some gun statistics:

[milos_mommy]

You obviously suffer from Hoplophobia. Would you feel insecure around me, knowing I am carrying? Knowing that I am well trained and very capable in their use? Knowing that I would willing risk my life to protect yours if I was witness to you being assaulted?

yes. i mean, i wouldn't totally freak out or not go around someone with a gun, ever. but i would be nervous. i wouldn't feel 100% safe. my parents have a gun in their safe. and THAT makes me nervous.

i could very well suffer from hoplophobia. i never thought about it until right now, but it is very possible.

 

[Beagleluver5463]

Hang on i encore'd in the wrong place. I will always own a gun. My children are very good with theirs, as i taught them when they were young. I will protect my family and my property. I have used it once when someone tried to break into my home. Turns out they were armed, and i got them before they got me. I also live in a very safe place, or so i thought.

 

[Dekka]

:hail: HBH

Yep gun crime is rising..so is our population. But if you catch someone for something minor (ie drug deal) and they have a gun..they get caught before)

 

[sparks19]

:hail: HBH

Yep gun crime is rising..so is our population. But if you catch someone for something minor (ie drug deal) and they have a gun..they get caught before)

OK.. and you wonder why a country that has States with a higher population than all of Canada might have more crime? If population increase is the reason for crime increase... well you answered your own question.

OK so what if they don't deal drugs? Not everyone gets caught for something before murdering someone. and a drug deal is something minor?

Sorry.. I guess this post just doens't make sense to me. They are easier to catch if they get caught doing something else?

 

[SeniorPetLover]

For those that don't feel comfortable owning or using a gun...it is okay...you shouldn't. A gun should not be in the hands of someone who is not mentally prepared to use it. My Dad always taught us to NEVER point a gun at anything that we did not intend to kill. It was not a toy. It was not a game and it's use to take a life of ANY KIND was never to be taken lightly. He taught us sportsmanship in hunting. He always said that he knew what it was like when his "prey" was also armed and I could always see that he was troubled with what he had experienced, but that only further drove home the point that using a gun required responsible action. It was a conscious decision to draw down on something...we were taught to never shoot at an animal if we did not think we had a clear enough shot to drop it on the first shot BECAUSE it was irresponsible and inhumane to do otherwise. Would I use a gun to protect my family? Yes. The "Railroad Killer" murdered several people in my immediate area...I live in a very remote area and often arrive home alone...my local sheriff advised me to keep a loaded pistol under my seat so I would be able to protect myself if I needed to. I did until he was apprehended. I am a person that you should most surely feel safe to be around when armed...I rescue little senior dogs and nurse them to health. I'm far from a cold-blooded killer, HOWEVER, I am confident in my gun handling ability and I am confident that I understand the appropriate use of a firearm and I fully understand the reprecussions of my actions. I believe that in the event of an emergency, I have the ability and the confidence to handle any situation. I value life and I go out of my way to preserve it, but if it is right for me to take it, then I will. I have had to use my gun to dispatch animals that could not wait the hour for the vet to arrive or could not be transported for euthanasia. It is unpleasant, but it is often the most kind and loving thing that can be done. Would I go out of my way to look for a fight? No. But I will not be a victim if I can help it.

 

[HoundedByHounds]

I sure don't want a gun...but that is my choice. I don't think they should be removed from people's hands that do the right thing and understand the serious need for educating themselves about them.

It's just not the lifestyle for me...and hopefully that's okay with everyone.

 

[Puckstop31]

This scenario doesn't inspire me to want a gun in my home.

Frying pan...pencil...hammer...knife...whatever is handy.....karate...jujitsu...mace....large dog...security alarms...neighborhood watch....picking a good neighborhood...giving in giving what they want...varying your schedule...being aware of your surroundings...all options/ideas I find much more realistic, than having a gun in my home.

Life is not 100% and gun or no gun if the BTK killer-type, wanted you, he'd have you...because the nature of true evil is to know your target....and someone who broke in specifically to do something to you, likely knows your habits very well...and would pick the best time for themselves. Your gun would do you very little good when he grabbed you in the shower....or on the way from your car to the house...or any of those million times a day when you aren't thinking "someone could harm me...right now...."

If you thnk about things like that too long...one could get a real paranoia. I am aware of possibilities...but try not to be too paranoid about them.

Of course nothing is 100%... Your choice is to not have one and that is fine. I choose to have, several, know how to use them and WILL use them if necessary. My odds of coming out of the encounter alive are grealty increased by having a weapon.

Some people know "kung fu"... I know "gun fu".

Also, it is not paranoia on my part, it is simply accepting reality. I hope I never need to use a gun to defend myself...again. But if I have to, I can and will.

"It's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it."

 

[Dekka]

OK.. and you wonder why a country that has States with a higher population than all of Canada might have more crime? If population increase is the reason for crime increase... well you answered your own question.

OK so what if they don't deal drugs? Not everyone gets caught for something before murdering someone. and a drug deal is something minor?

Sorry.. I guess this post just doens't make sense to me. They are easier to catch if they get caught doing something else?

Fine we will agree to disagree. But I really wish you would read my posts before saying I don't make sense. I did say you have higher gun crime EVEN taking into effect of higher pop. Same as other countries..but you never answered that. Ont gun crime is rising somewhat..but not if you compare it to our pop.

Anyway, I don't want to live my life in fear, fear of being a victim. I don't want to live as if I must always be on alert. I don't want to live around others who feel that way. That is fine. I totally understand others want to live in other ways. I was just asking some honest questions and never got answers.

Done with this thread.

 

[Puckstop31]

I sure don't want a gun...but that is my choice. I don't think they should be removed from people's hands that do the right thing and understand the serious need for educating themselves about them.

It's just not the lifestyle for me...and hopefully that's okay with everyone.

100% agree with you here.

Owning a gun for self defence is a personal choice and should remain so. If you are not willing or able to use it, don't have it. You must be 100% sure you could use it, to KILL.

 

[HoundedByHounds]

oh not saying you suffered from paranoia..just a general statement that when one has kids, especially, "what could happen" always has one a bit worried.

It's a tightrope lol. Too far to one side and you're blase' and the other you can get paranoid.

the "have it not need it" motto, very well sums up my feelings on money...guns...not so much. LOL.

 

[sparks19]

Fine we will agree to disagree. But I really wish you would read my posts before saying I don't make sense. I did say you have higher gun crime EVEN taking into effect of higher pop. Same as other countries..but you never answered that. Ont gun crime is rising somewhat..but not if you compare it to our pop.

Anyway, I don't want to live my life in fear, fear of being a victim. I don't want to live as if I must always be on alert. I don't want to live around others who feel that way. That is fine. I totally understand others want to live in other ways. I was just asking some honest questions and never got answers.

Done with this thread.

Oh don't get your panties in a twist... I read your post.. you obviously didn't read mine... I said that the part that did not make sense was that it's easier to catch a criminal with a gun if they get caught for something else first. That just doesn't make sense to me. But if he doesn't get busted for something else first... it's really not easier to catch them.

Sorry you got so upset that something didn't make sense to me... you could have just explained it rather than getting upset about it... I made it clear what didn't make sense to me.

and just for the record... people that own guns for protection do not live their lives in fear nor are they always on alert... they are just normal everyday people like you. Guns don't change people. You can be equally paranoid whether you own a gun or not.

 

[Dekka]

sigh... I was getting frustrated from asking questions that went unanswered. I guess I don't feel light fighting when its obviously not going anywhere (and I can only post from what it seems like to me...)

 

[sparks19]

sigh... I was getting frustrated from asking questions that went unanswered. I guess I don't feel light fighting when its obviously not going anywhere (and I can only post from what it seems like to me...)

??????

Who is fighting? it's a discussion... a debate if you will.

 

[Dekka]

its a one sided debate if people don't answer the others questions. And debates are only fun if a. If both sides are willing to look at it from the others point of view. or B. if a. isn't happening then its fun if you don't like the other person and you can make them look silly.

Now as I don't think a is happening, and well as to b..I like you too much (and not sure if I could make you look silly anyway )

 

[sparks19]

its a one sided debate if people don't answer the others questions. And debates are only fun if a. If both sides are willing to look at it from the others point of view. or B. if a. isn't happening then its fun if you don't like the other person and you can make them look silly.

Now as I don't think a is happening, and well as to b..I like you too much (and not sure if I could make you look silly anyway )

Well... considering I look silly usually 24/7... I'm not sure trying to make me look sillier (more silly?) is a task you have enough time for that would be quite an undertaking lol.

I'm sorry your questions weren't answered.... Since I just blew a fuse in the living room... I must go tend to that but I will do my best to answer later tonight.

 

[Georgygirl]

I personally have nothing against guns. I grew up in a home with guns...though they were for hunting, and I have fond memories of my dad teaching my older brother and I how to shoot a .22. (not to dredge up an old sibling rivalry, but I was a hell of a lot better shot than my brother ) Unfortunately I never quite got into hunting so it's been a while since I've shot a gun.

But I do think that there are some types of guns that shouldn't be given to civilians. Mainly the ones whose main purpose is to shoot a ton of people in very little time. Yeah, they have their uses in the military, but its really not something I'd want my neighbor to have (no matter how responsible they are with it). But my view on guns comes from growing up with a hunter. My dad doesn't have a pistol and all his guns are in his gun cabinet in the basement. He obviously doesn't have guns for protection and I honestly wouldn't get a gun for protection either. But then again, I grew up in a small town in Iowa where a lot of people still leave their doors unlocked. Maybe I'd feel different in a more high crime area.

 

[anna84]

Dekka do you really corelate being alert with being afraid? I do a lot of things that girls are told to be afraid of. I run at night, hike alone, have wandered through many new cities taking in all the sites. But I'm always aware of where I am and whose around me. I was taught how to carry and use a knife when I was 11 and to this day have never left home without one. In a few years I will own a gun for home protection.

Gun regulations effect law abiding citizens. But criminals and crazies don't follow the law, so what they get to carry around weapons illegally where as I am bound by law to not protect myself. Thats a ridiculous situation. There are even places in Europe now where your not allowed to carry mace....it's just absurd. People quote things like the Virginia Tech shooting which was tragic. But that guy had a gun he obtained illegally and he mowed down unarmed students. What if just one of those students had been armed and knew how to shoot. How many lives would have been saved?

 

[anna84]

Oh and this is oddly fitting and kind of sad. I grew up with both cops, friends of my parents. And gang members, older siblings of my friends. Both cops and criminals have the same term for the average unarmed citizen...they called them sheep.

 

[Dekka]

Oh and this is oddly fitting and kind of sad. I grew up with both cops, friends of my parents. And gang members, older siblings of my friends. Both cops and criminals have the same term for the average unarmed citizen...they called them sheep.

Hmm see and i find that so sad I want to cry. The lack of respect overwhelms me.

And yes to me to be that alert at all times would be very stressful. If i was carrying a gun I would be so stressed, because what if I let my guard down, was grabbed (chloroformed) now my attacker is armed. And if its easy for me to get a gun, that means its easy for the criminals to get a gun, so my attacker is surely armed. So is a gun in a holster going to help me if I have a gun to my head?

If I went running at night I would carry mace (the good stuff, not the cheepstuff) I could run with it in my hand, and it won't kill anyone.

Hmm yes but I would feel safer in a country where at least it was difficult to get guns. (obviously you don't)

 

[MelissaCato]

This is my rifle.

There are many like it, but this one is MINE.

My rifle is my best friend. It is my life.

I must master it as I must master my life.

My rifle without me is useless. Without my rifle, I am useless.

I must fire my rifle true.

I must shoot straighter than my enemy who is trying to kill me.

I must shoot him before he shoots me. I will...

My rifle and myself know that what counts in war is not the rounds we fire,

the noise of our bursts, nor the smoke we make.

We know it is the hits that count. We will hit...

My rifle is human, even as I, because it is my life.

Thus, I will learn it as a brother.

I will learn its weaknesses, its strengths, its parts, its accessories,
its sights, and its barrel.

I will ever guard it against the ravages of weather and damage.

I will keep my rifle clean and ready, even as I am clean and ready.

We will become part of each other. We will...

Before God I swear this creed.

My rifle and myself are the defenders of my country.

We are the masters of our enemy.

We are the saviors of my life.

So be it, until there is no enemy, but PEACE.

-- Maj Gen WH Rupertus