Alternative response: No.

The increased risk is NOT worth it for me, considering the modest gain in time -- half a second. I can present the weapon, and chamber a round, in a very short period of time. Anyone who practices can.

Among other things, I am then sure I have a live round in the chamber.

And, I have a little more time to figure out what is going on.

For those who want to draw and shoot in a split second, I hope they have done all of the decision-making and quick reaction training that really is needed to back that sort of thing up.

In Afghanistan, I did not chamber a round while on the FOB. Going in and out of facilities with clearing barrels, I saw a lot of uncertain behavior and heard about a number of NDs -- into the barrel. With no round in the chamber, I put myself one step ahead of that problem. I had a roomie who would chamber and unchamber rounds in the man-can. I reminded him the walls were poncho-liner thick, and I was on the other side -- his actions were the natural by-product of thinking he had to carry his M9 with a round in the chamber all the time.

Once the Green-on-Blue thing started happening, which was after my last time there, I would have gone over to carrying a round in the chamber.

(In Bosnia, many years ago, I loaned a M11 to a visiting fireman, who took it out on a road trip, and came back to Tuzla -- and put a round in the barrel -- and got "arrested" by the MPs).

If I am someplace where the danger is so high that I need to have a round in the chamber, here in the States, I need to re-evaluate -- and head home.

Increased handling of the gun, loading and unloading live rounds, leads to increased risk. Chambering rounds repeatedly leads to damage to the rounds. Chambering and unchambering leads to NDs. Just statistically speaking. To me that risk outweighs the modestly increased risk caused by my being able to bring the gun into battery a little more slowly.

Do people leave their guns loaded, with a round in the chamber, all the time? Around the house? Are there children around? What about a dropped gun? (I know guns are "safe" now when they land, but the greater danger is the dropper grasps for the gun as it falls...). More risk factors.

So, if you are thinking you would be more comfortable with an unloaded chamber, and almost as fast -- then you are free to go with your intuition on this one.

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S&W Rover