Why is it conservatives just love to imagine themselves as oppressed minorities? You describe the scenario of a brutal police state, and then accuse others of living in a fantasy world? In fact, the world where you are perfectly justified in opening fire on your neighbors, the police, the IRS, or whoever… that is the fantasy world. Too bad so many people act out that fantasy every year.
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All “ownership” is farce, so there is no reason to assume that gun ownership would be any different.
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I suspect people are going to present some interesting and thoughtful points of view and everyone will remain respectful of each other.
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Here’s how I read your position:
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No one is saying X.
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If someone is shown to say X, it proves my point.
Does not compute.
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Duly noted, but I asked for alternatives, not attacks. Got any?
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I would almost imagine its the same reason there’s a “war on christianity” going on as well. I would imagine that many individuals who prescribe to the belief of any 3 of the 5 following:
Obama is a muslim
Pray away your sins, who needs a conscience
Homosexuality should be illegal because its a sin
Family values trump any kind of progressive thoughts
We should do it like the xx’s (40s, 50s, whatever)
Are secretly hoping that it becomes an Orwellian police state where they, themselves magically become part of the praetorian class in that society from all this clean living. Sort of like that John Steinbeck quote about Socialism in America (“Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an exploited proletariat but as temporarily embarrassed millionaires.”).
However being on topic. I’d like to provide some personal perspective. This is my my 2 cents and I’m way done advocating any position. I’m a flip flopper in many political ideas, leaning mostly left of center and I own and carry firearms for defensive (and fun sporting) use.
Lets be honest, I will most likely never use it for defense, and thats ok with me. I think that anyone who carries needs to seriously ask themselves uncomfortable questions about that responsibility and those questions are damn hard to answer. COULD You? SHOULD you if you needed to? Understanding your life will change (and not necessarily for the good) if you have to use it are all things you should have to answer to if nothing yourself. For me, it means i’m comfortable, never complacent, of owning and god forbid, having to utilize a firearm for defense.
Sorry, not meaning to get preachy, but firearms aren’t something the should every drive complacency and some assholes like open carry Texas or fudds who leave loaded weapons out for children to find deserve the deepest and darkest levels of hell their imagination could conceive.
Anyway, happy Friday and don’t get on the hate train.
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Color me skeptical, but no matter how many times I hear gun rights advocates claim that they’re open to hearing about ideas that would work “in the real world” the conversation usually goes like this:
A: “Well, in other first-world countries like Australia and most of Europe they’ve conclusively proven that societies can drastically decrease gun deaths by-”
B: “THIS ISN’T COMMUNIST RUSSIA AND NOTHING THAT HAS WORKED SUCCESSFULLY IN OTHER COUNTRIES HAS ANY BEARING ON THIS DEBATE WHATSOEVER.”
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Create a time machine, go back in time, rig that cherry tree so it falls on George Washington, prevent the American Revolution, stopping the Constitution and therefore the 2nd amendment.
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I remember visiting Australia and the UK before all of their law-abiding gun owners were exterminated in a bloody campaign of slaughter - perhaps you read about it?
Oh wait, their governments changed the law and law-abiding gun owners bitched about it and then complied.
Yes I understand that the USA has a different approach to guns than those countries, but I reject your artificial choice of only two choices.
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Just like on the G----G— threads.
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My old man used to get one of the NRA magazines, and I’d flip through it and read those anecdotes. Read a couple of them back-to-back, and it was clear that the stories were copied over, word-for-word, from previous issues,
Too bad there wasn’t a companion magazine to make a fair comparison against, maybe titled “Accidental Discharge.”
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“Dear Penthouse, I never thought this could happen to me…”
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But… that… would only eliminate the militia movement, wouldn’t it?
I could live without Posse Comitatus.
Well, sometimes that happens, but usually Penthouse doesn’t need to be notified.
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I work with a couple of people associated with the Militia (including, hilariously, a Puerto Rican who likes to do WW2 recreations on the German side - and they have nice parties where they have cakes with swastikas on them - he’s shown me).
I think they’re full of shit, but on some level they want Obama to come for their guns so they can rise up with their AK-47s. Freedom!
Nucking futs.
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Frankly, I’m not that worried about being shot. Driving my car, bicycle, or motorcycle is far, far more dangerous. The crazy health care system may end up bankrupting me. But guns? They don’t have much impact on my life and I’m pretty average.
When you break down the statistics young black men are shooting each other, old white men are shooting themselves, and a few people are shot accidentally (more people are accidentally drowning).
Everybody has their favorite causes (mine is climate change) so I understand the fun and challenge of arguing an unwinnable argument. Thankfully deaths from criminal use of guns is on the decline in the US. Maybe in a decade or two the number will be low enough that we can retire this debate and start arguing about what to do for all the people losing their jobs to automation.
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May god speed your mighty wings and your stomach remain free of indigestion.
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Oh, I can. It’s one of may reasons I don’t own a gun.
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It’s not entirely unreasonable to own a gun for self-defense, but only if you live in bear country, and even then, bear spray appears to be more effective.
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