Hello from a former Californian!

[Bigum]

Well, this hello now comes from Southwestern Indiana. I grew up in Huntington Beach, California and graduated from "The Beach" - Cal State Long Beach. Life and such has taken me to both Colorado and now Indiana. I do often visit California -- and will be visitng again in a couple weeks.

I often read this web site with interest as you all work to achieve a CC license. I owned one gun while living in CA, and I remember how paranoid I always was bringing it to the range, etc. to shoot. I never even dreamed of carrying one concealed or not.

Then I moved to Indiana. And I bought my first gun here, waited 2 minutes, and walked out the door with it. There's no waiting period here or limit on the # of guns you can buy. Just an NICS check and off you go.

A few years later I noticed some folks carrying half concealed and decided to look into that. Well, Indiana issues a License to Carry a Handgun. It is a license to carry open or concealed.

The process is simple. A short application to your local PD or Sheriff, off to the state police (w/fingerprints), and then your license comes printed out on a pink piece of paper. You actually have to cut it out and have it laminated at Kinkos. The whole process takes 4-8 weeks and Indiana is a Shall Issue state so there is no need to prove a reason. I now know why Indiana has one of the highest % of people with carry permits.

I often miss CA in so many ways. Great weather and natural beauty. There is so much to do there. But I don't miss the gun laws.

I now carry whenever I want, keep a gun in my car at all times, and don't have to worry about loaded firearms during transportation. This isn't the "Wild West" out here in Indiana, but people have a strong sense of individual rights. It has changed me somewhat as well. I think my wife thinks I've become a little more "red behind the neck" if you know what I mean.

Anyhow, I think my wife and I will hopefully make it back to beautiful CA someday. Thanks to you all for working hard and fighting the good fight for the right to bear arms.

[Glock32]

Welcome and thanks for the 'Indiana Summary'. I have never been there, but it sounds like a good place for gun owners.

[Bigum]

Terrible weather here (humidity!!!) but great gun laws. And, really nice people. A handshake still means a lot here.

[Bombard]

Originally Posted by Bigum

Terrible weather here (humidity!!!) but great gun laws. And, really nice people. A handshake still means a lot here.

Sounds nice.

Remember, stainless is your friend!

[X-ffdo]

Isn't it something else thought? What resists persists!!!.
Here in CA. we go trough all this trouble for something that somewhere else is a procedural minor inconvenience. It loses its impact. No big deal. (Lucky you!)
Nothing happens out of the ordinary and life continues.
Back at home, it is such a big deal, look at all the politicking and maneuvering, for something that somewhere else is routine. I feel defrauded!
However like I said, what you resist persists. Look at all the emotions in the general public, look at all that goes on here at this board, mostly positive.
For something that should be a non event

[Bigum]

It really is no big deal here in Indiana. No big gunfights in the middle of the street. Many police officers here are happy that law abiding citizens carry.

I know there is a large population difference between the two states (CA and IN), but there are big metro cities here like Indianapolis.

One of my friends is a local police officer. He's a common sense guy that wants to go home safe every night. But, he firmly believes in a citizen's right to own, and carry, a handgun.

I've heard -- but can't substantiate -- that 1 in 10 residents of Indiana have a License to Carry a Handgun.

[Dan M.]

Welcome, Bigum! Hard to imagine that kind of freedom regarding firearms. Hard to imagine no beaches and desert and mountains though too. There's always a trade-off, I guess. Good to have you here.

[Bigum]

I agree. I sure do miss the mountains, desert and ocean. I always end up out on the West coast for some type of visit each year.

Home prices are nice here in Indiana, though.

It's easy to move from the West to the Midwest (home price wise), but it will be hard to go the other way.

Thanks for the welcome.