Right Side of the Rainbow

This is mind-boggling asininity:

FARIBAULT, Minn. — A trip to the restroom resulted in a trip to the hospital for a Bloomington man who accidentally shot himself in the hand over the weekend at a gun show.

Faribault Police Sgt. Richard Larson said the 59-year-old man shot himself while removing his gun from a hook in a bathroom stall while attending the 31st annual Faribault Rifle and Pistol Club gun show on Sunday morning.

The man was taken to a local hospital, where he was treated and released by Sunday afternoon.

From this we can deduce that the ole boy was carrying his sidearm “free style,” i.e. stuffed down the front of his pants, itself an act of incredible stupidity. And then, when he had to drop trouser to tend to his back end elimination needs, the question presented itself: “What to do with the gun?” At that point, he had no good options.

Sidearms belong in a holster, one that covers the trigger guard. As you can see from the picture, I prefer kydex to leather.

In addition to safety, which is paramount, there’s another good reason to holster your handgun. In the event your concealment technique fails and you get “made,” i.e. seen as carrying a gun, you’re less likely to create panic if the gun is holstered. People will assume you’re “supposed” to have it. (And indeed, if you have a license to carry, you are supposed to have it.) But even the most devoted advocates of the Second Amendment will wonder about a man with a gun stuffed down the front of his pants. Criminals don’t holster their firearms.

(Thanks to Ravenwood’s Universe.)