Originally Posted by
TCinVA
I don't know about you guys, but I cannot practically conceal a G17 with a 33 round mag stuck in it or practically conceal one of the happy sticks as a reload.
If we tweak the question somewhat and ask whether or not I'd carry a firearm that offered 33 rounds that were just as effective in a package that is as reliable (more reliable than Todd's G17, anyway) and easy to use as a G17, would I carry it?
You bet your sweet bippy I'd carry it.
...because I really believe that I need 33 rounds on tap or I'll die screaming in a gunfight?
No. While it is possible to think up a scenario where I'd wind up dead if I couldn't fire 33 shots without a reload, it's much more likely that such an ammo capacity would last longer than any problem I'm capable of solving with a handgun. At the same time, I don't imagine myself standing in the aftermath of an event where I've just fired 20 rounds and thinking to myself that I really wish I hadn't put those extra 13 in the mag, you know?
In economics there's the law of diminishing marginal utility stating that the utility gained from each additional unit of something consumed decreases, and I think it pairs up nicely with this discussion. Beyond a certain point "more" isn't useful...it's just more. An AR-15 is much "more" for any problem that involves shooting bad guys, but for me the weapon really isn't useful in many situations as I can't go about my life with a rifle strapped across my chest. Though the weapon is objectively "more" the utility for that much "more" is minimal for my purposes. When considering a J frame versus a Glock 19 or a P30, on the other hand, we're talking about "more" that I can actually put to practical use on a day to day basis. That I'll go for. Change the situation from daily carry to dealing with an active shooter 2 minutes from now and I'll give a testicle for the AR15.
I can't carry my typical loadout every day in every situation. There are times when circumstances dictate the J frame in the pocket as my primary means of kinetically pacifying a problem. In those situations it's either carry that or nothing, so I happily carry the J frame. When I'm not bound by those circumstances I eagerly upgrade to my usual loadout and use the J frame as a capable BUG.
When I carry the J frame I'm doing so with an informed judgment. I know the weapon's limitations well and I'm making a bet that I'm probably not going to face a shooting problem in that situation...but if the worst happens and all I have is my J, I'm still infinitely better off having it than not. When I judge that I'm not under the kind of restrictions that make carrying the J my only practical option, I upgrade without hesitation.
It's easy to go with the small gun out of complacency....but if someone is using the small gun based on a rational decision making process and a judgment of their circumstances, you won't hear me argue against it. In the end we all have to make a judgment call one way or another. If someone knows what they are doing, so be it. Often on discussion boards the conversation is ruled by those who don't have a clue what they are doing. That I find irksome...but we generally don't have to worry much about that here.