I know this is a sensitive subject, but this isn’t about you. It would probably be helpful if you tried to not identify with those that misuse weapons to kill people.
I have family members that require narcotics (specifically Fentanyl) for pain management. The regulations to allow them to so much as access the drug have become insane over the last year because hordes of people are dying from overdoses and misuse. They are incredibly inconvenient and have caused issues getting the medication. But given the number of deaths involved, my family member has chosen to grudgingly accept the regulation to save lives instead of rising up and accusing the establishment of calling her a killer just because she also uses the drug.
Your hobby weapon is being used to kill people. You would prefer to keep it regardless. But you cannot make that choice and ignore the effect that choice would have on the availability of that weapon class to be misused. You may dislike that it is used this way, but you cannot ignore the fact that for you to keep your hobby weapon, it means it will continue to be available for those that choose to misuse it.
My hobby weapon lives in a safe, as do the 3 30-round magazines I keep for it. It has never harmed a soul. Nor will it ever. My will states that when I die it goes to my son, who has been trained how to safely and responsibly handle one.
My hobby weapon has never killed anyone, nor have I. Why do I have to give mine up?
I will state this flatly. If required to sell my AR back, I will not. If I am required to surrender it under penalty of law, I will not. If someone knocks on the door and demands that I surrender it, I will not do it. As I’ve said previously on this board, civil disobedience has a price, and it’s one I’m willing to pay.
You are welcome to do as you wish, your ownership of the weapon is not the problem. You’ve stated:
If you make the choice to advocate to keep your hobby weapon for your use, then you cannot choose not to accept the judgement of others who feel your position also keeps it in the hands of killers. Much as freedom of speech, you may be entitled to say whatever you wish, but that does not protect you from consequences for saying it.
You want it both ways - you want to keep your weapon free to acquire, and want there to be no consequences for your choice because you are not misusing it. But keeping the weapon free to acquire does not just affect you and cannot be separated from those who would misuse it. You may dislike being judged for your position, but that is the price you pay for taking the position you have chosen.
I’m not necessarily calling for your weapon to be taken away, but I don’t think you should be allowed to have it unless you meet some very strict training and licensing requirements that do not currently exist in this country. Same deal goes for explosives and anthrax. If your idea of fun is doing the stuff they pull on Mythbusters then get ready for a lot of paperwork.
Your convenience is not more important than the lives of innocent children.
If someone makes the well-supported point that “this isn’t about you” and your reaction is to make a comment that is about you to the exclusion of everything else then we don’t have a difference in political opinion, we have a difference in reading comprehension.
This is a deflection and always has been. The mentally ill are more likely to be harmed than to harm others.
Wanna know what mass shooters have in common? Entitlement. Big heaping stacks of entitlement. And guess what? That gets born from privilege, it is not a mental illness.
You don’t like being demonised as a gun owner because of what other gun owners have done, but you have no problem demonising an entire group that is far less likely to be a danger.
As for criminals… Well, if the entire “justice” system weren’t racist as shit, you might have a small point. But it is, which means using “criminal” as the standard basically serves as a dogwhistle for “scary black folks”.
