Carry permits appear to be getting more popular in this frozen tundra commonly referred to as Minnesota. Last year the number of permits issued was almost double of the number of permits issued in 2012:
Minnesota sheriffs’ offices issued almost double the number of permits to carry handguns in 2013 than they had the year before, according to figures released by the state Friday. It was the largest number since the state’s permit-to-carry law was enacted in 2003.
As of Friday, more than 165,000 people had valid permits to carry guns in Minnesota, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
So what does this mean for Minnesota? Contrary to what gun control advocates have been claiming for ages, the Mississippi isn’t running red with blood. For the most part nothing really appears to be changing in this state. It seems rational adults don’t turn into blood thirsty monsters after they receive legal permission to carry a firearm.
What this increase in issued permits likely means is a slow cultural shift. Firearms seem to be regaining their status in American culture. This is a good thing as it may also indicate a cultural shift, however small, towards decentralization. Instead of relying primarily on centralized police departments to provide defense many people are beginning to provide for their own defense. I would like to see this attitude spread into other areas as well. The less centralized our culture becomes the less apt to widespread failure it will be.