Reply #25: To qualify for a NC CHL...

[benEzra]

I had to pass a Federal background check, state background check, mental health records check, get fingerprinted and have my prints run by the FBI, take a class on self-defense law using a state-approved curriculum, pass a written test on same administered by the sheriff's office, and demonstrate competence shooting a handgun (live fire).

It's not that the authorities are "picky"---anyone who meets the above criteria can qualify---but rather that the process self-selects for those motivated to carry, squeaky clean enough to pass the checks, and conscientious enough about the law to actually care enough to get a license instead of the "don't ask, don't tell" approach that the less conscientious would take.

BTW, the "guns in bars" meme is highly misleading, and "drunks legally carrying in bars" is a fabrication on the part of whoever pointed you in that direction. The issue is primarily about whether or not it is legal to carry in a restaurant with a wine list or that has beer on the menu; most states that allow such carry require that the licensee abstain from alcohol while carrying, and many states (e.g., Florida) allow carry only in the NON-bar areas of the restaurant, i.e. when I lived in Florida I could go to the local Italian ristorante but had to sit at a table, not at the bar itself, and could not drink.