Sticking to their guns

Whether for safety, skill or sport, pistol packin' mamas are everywhere

April 25, 2005
FloridaToday.com

You see them every day, shopping or dining with children, stopped at traffic lights next to you or walking alone at night through store parking lots.

Chances are, a woman you saw today was carrying a gun.

In fact, nearly 50,000 women in Florida are licensed to carry a weapon concealed on their person or in their vehicle.

Commentary:
The more stories like these are told, the more criminals will fear making an attack.

In 1966 the police in Orlando, Florida, responded to a rape epidemic by embarking on a highly publicized program to train 2,500 women in firearm use. The next year rape fell by 88 percent in Orlando (the only major city to experience a decrease that year); burglary fell by 25 percent. Not one of the 2,500 women actually ended up firing her weapon; the deterrent effect of the publicity sufficed." (Congressional Record, 90th Cong., 2d sess., January 30, 1968, p. 1496, n. 7) Five years later Orlando's rape rate was still 13 percent below the pre-program level, whereas the surrounding standard metropolitan area had suffered a 308 percent increase.