Although it is of absolutely no consequence to me how late the bars stay open, I disagree with keeping them open until 2 a.m. They tell us that this will prevent the 1 a.m. rush of drunk drivers from crossing into neighboring states, where the bars stay open one hour later, thereby keeping the roads safer. Trouble is, this will only keep the roads safer for one hour. At 2 a.m., the bar patrons will leave after an extra hour of drinking.

I feel the same way about our new right to carry a concealed weapon. Gun proponents will tell us that this will deter crime, and it will &045; to a point. It will deter crime against people who are already armed, provided that they can draw their weapon fast enough. It will do nothing to protect the unarmed. And spare me the tired old argument that an automobile can be considered a deadly weapon when a drunk is behind the wheel. Everybody knows that. The difference is that, as opposed to a gun, an automobile is not specifically designed for the purpose of killing something.

Combine the two, and that makes for a lot of potentially armed drunk people behind the wheel at 2 a.m.

At one time, I would have been in favor of a law permitting concealed weapons. One night about 10 years ago, I was out walking with a friend of mine, when we were assaulted by a group of four youths, for no real reason other than the fact that they were out looking for trouble. Both of us ended up in the emergency room. Even though three of them were caught and two of them actually ended up serving time in jail, that experience changed something in me. I wanted the kind of justice the courts could not dish out. I recall wanting to buy a gun after that happened. Had I actually bought one, and been permitted to carry it, I would have. I was determined not to ever be a victim again. If I was ever again accosted, I would be prepared to shoot to kill.

That was a long time ago. I no longer have any desire to own a weapon of any kind. I have actually made peace with one of the guys who jumped me, and although I can say that we will most likely never be friends, I have put the entire incident behind me and resolved my anger over what happened.

Unfortunately, there are many people still dealing with anger issues over their hurts of the past. And therein lies the problem. Being a law-abiding citizen does not automatically make someone stable and rational, and I think this will open the door to let some of the wrong kinds of people carry a gun. Although we all have the right to defend ourselves, how do we determine when we are legally justified in ending someone’s life? Although we certainly don’t want criminals to be the only ones with weapons, we can’t simply make it legal to pull the trigger every time we feel threatened by someone. You can’t shoot someone for being a smart-aleck.

I don’t know. I have a feeling that we would be much better off if the courts would simply do their job and keep violent criminals in jail where they belong. It would have made much more sense to focus on that before letting everyone carry a gun. This, unfortunately, has the potential to create more crime than it will prevent.

Dustin Petersen is an Albert Lea resident. His column appears Tuesdays.