XPost: alt.home.repair, alt.politics.scorched-earth, uk.politics.misc   
   XPost: uk.legal, alt.politics.uk   
   From: burfordTjustice@tues.uk   
      
   But not in the UK/EU where you permit the criminal to kill   
   you all the while claiming the moral high ground.   
      
   Demand soars for concealed carry permits, data shows   
      
   The number of concealed carry permits in the United States has topped   
   15 million over the last year, according to data collected by the Crime   
   Prevention Research Center.   
      
   That’s the largest one-year increase ever in the number of permits issued,   
   according to the research center. In July 2016, the center reported that 14.5   
   million people had concealed handgun permits. As of May of this year, the   
   number is already 15.7    
   million.   
      
   John Lott, founder of the group and a Fox News columnist, said several states,   
   including Arizona, Florida, Michigan and Texas, have seen a big jump in the   
   number of gun permits issued. There are several reasons for the increase –   
   most notably, a rise    
   in women and minorities seeking to purchase handguns, Lott said.   
      
   "I think you're continuing to see a change in the composition of people who go   
   and get permits," Lott said. "Women are growing at a much faster rate than   
   men."   
      
   Between 2012 and 2016, Lott said, the growth rate for women was twice as much   
   as it was for men. He also said minorities are purchasing handguns at a higher   
   rate compared to previous years.   
      
   Firearms instructors are reporting an increase in the number of black women   
   learning how to use guns around the country, as noted in an earlier Fox News   
   report. Gun instructors who teach self-defense courses say more women are   
   looking toward guns to    
   protect themselves against crime.   
      
   In a May 10 statement to Fox News, NRA spokeswoman Catherine Mortensen said   
   women are the fastest growing segment of firearms buyers in the country.   
      
   "The NRA is a natural home for women firearms owners," Mortensen said.   
   "Increasingly, women today don’t want to rely on a spouse or neighbor for   
   protection. They want to be able to protect themselves and their families."   
      
   The Crime Prevention Research Center – a nonprofit, gun advocacy research   
   group – releases an annual report each July documenting firearm statistics   
   by citing numbers provided by state agencies.   
      
   The center's official report for 2017 is due in July but Lott said data   
   already collected shows a significant increase in permits in a number of   
   states.   
      
   Arizona had 272,622 such permits in 2016 and 315,107 as of May 2017. Florida   
   had 1,581,742 last year compared to 1,755,580 as of April 30.   
      
   Lott noted other factors contributing to an increase in permits.   
      
   "You're seeing states making it easier for people to go and get permits," he   
   said.   
      
   In contrast, states like California and New York have among the toughest   
   requirements for permits in the nation.    
      
   In Sacramento County, as of December 2016, residents are "required to pay $220   
   in application fees, pass a state criminal background check, take a 16-hour   
   training course and have approval of the sheriff’s department by having   
   'good moral character'    
   and a good reason to have CCW," according to the center.    
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)