Churches offering concealed-carry weapons training to attract members

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14. Is the legitimate use of a weapon to defend yourself, your family or another innocent individual ...

from an attack that would result in serious injury or death an example of fear or ignorance?

Self-defense (United States)

In the United States, the defense of self-defense allows a person to use reasonable force in his or her own defense or the defense of others (see the theoretical background for why this is allowed).

While the definitions vary from state to state, the general rule makes an important distinction between the use of non-deadly and deadly force. A person may use non-deadly force to prevent imminent injury, however a person may not use deadly force unless that person is in reasonable fear of serious injury or death. Some states also include a duty to retreat, when deadly force may only be used if the person is unable to safely retreat. A person is generally not obligated to retreat if in one's own home in what has been called the castle exception (from the expression "A man's home is his castle&quot .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-defense_%28United_States%29

Should we change our long legal history to forbid the use of a weapons for self defense in circumstances where it is possibly the only logical alternative to prevent serious injury or death from an attacker who has the ability, capacity and intention to cause this result?

I am in no way denying that weapons are frequently used to cause tragedy by criminals and irresponsible citizens. This is a serious problem and needs to be addressed by our laws and their enforcement.