Ok, to start this off, I'm not trying to start an argument on what kind of safety your gun should have. That horse has been beaten to death (then revived and beaten back to death), and it mostly comes to "choose what you prefer and train to proficiency". That said, I've read a lot of people on here really like the grip safety (i.e., 1911 and XD style). I don't really understand what that protects against. In my mind, a "trigger safety" such as the one on a Glock or M&P ensures that the gun only fires when you pull the trigger, not when it gets dropped, used as a hammer (not that any of us would ever do that!) etc. An external safety, I like to think of as a "trigger de-activator". It makes the trigger not work anymore. (all of you thinking to yourself, "that's EXACTLY why I hate them", just take a deep breath and keep going. I feel your pain). This is good if you are sloppy with your holstering and get something stuck in the trigger like the officer in northern IN earlier this year. It could also prevent accidents with kids, like the lady killed a week or two ago (though I know there are lots of other things that should have been different there). I don't get the grip safety though. I've been taught if I'm handling a loaded gun (and they're all loaded) I should have a secure firing grip on it. So, unless my pistol is in pieces to be cleaned, I've got my hand wrapped around the grip, deactivating the grip safety. I guess if you got something in the trigger guard while reholstering, and it didn't go off, it would prevent it from firing when you moved around... is that the only function? Again, not trying to start an argument for or against, I'm just curious why some people feel safer with them, as they seem to me like they wouldn't do much.