fromage,
Somewhere I posted the difference between a weapon of mass distruction and a firearm. A surface-to-air (in your post, shoulder-launched) missile can take out hundreds of people with a single shot. A nuclear device can take out millions. A gun must be pointed at a target. A miss by an inch is still a miss.
The guy who shot himself in the leg was an idiot. Chalk up a near-miss for Darwin.
I live in L.A. (or Hell-A, as I like to call it), and my neighbourhood is not a great one (but better than it was a few years ago). I own firearms, but I do not feel the need to carry one or to keep one loaded and within reach. But some people would benefit if they carried a firearm and had the training to use it. Women come to mind, as they are often victimized in our society. A few months ago there was a string of rapes in the neighbourhood. If one of these women were armed, the rapes may not have continued as long as they did.
this is a funny quote from someone who says they have never been a victim. Here, try these versions of your sentence:
…and getting raped is not as bad as it is made out to be.
… and getting murdered is not as bad as it is made out to be.
… and having your family killed in front of you is not as bad as it is made out to be.
You know, I have black friends and I have never seen racism, it just isn’t as bad as it is made out to be.
I have never been in a car accident, cars just aren’t as dangerous as they are made out to be.
Ok, enough about how bad crime is.
Only the true anti-gun nuts hate hunting. (ok, maybe a few exceptions ) Unless you are a vegan the whole anti-hunting thing is just a little hypocritical.
And about the Right not to own a gun.
I agree that there is no legal obligation or even Constitutional obligation to own a gun but I still don’t see the RIGHT to own a gun.
If Congress acted and made it a federal law that all States neede to form up their Militias into at least a vague sense of order. What part of the Constitution would you use to strike down a State order that every citizen in the State between 18-55 had to own their own firearm and pass a marksmanship class with it?
So much for proof reading BEFORE hitting the submit button.
Obviously,
…but I still don’t see the RIGHT to own a gun.
Should read
…but I still don’t see the RIGHT not to own a gun.
Let me correct that quickly before someone has a heart attack think I have been converted to the Anti-Second Amendment side.
Freedom,
First let me say that I am strongly in favour of our 2nd Ammendment rights.
But I have to use your own arguement against you vis-a-vis the right NOT to own a gun. You’ve correctly stated that a right cannot be “granted”; it can only be recognized or not. If it’s not recognized, it still exists.
But you’ve also said that the 9th Ammendment covers any rights that are not ennumerated. This covers one’s right not to own a gun, if one so chooses.
There were 2.5 million violent crimes (completed) in 1998. Sure, that only what 1% of the population. Doesn’t seem like that big a deal until you’re one of them. Being a victim of violent crime is no laughing matter. You might consider doing some research on how actual people actually feel about it before making such a statement.
“Glitch … download” - Glitch’s final action. sniff
One Reason Why Free People Should Be Armed Is …
to protect themselves against OTHER armed free people?
In the ‘Wild Western Days’, so glorified by the many cowboy pictures of years ago, everyone who so desired carried a gun. Unfortunately I do not have any statistics on the amount of killings which went on then. Some sources have stated that the killing level was actually low because the shooter knew that if he missed, he would more than likely be shot. Plus, the level of medical care was low and even a shot in the arm could kill a person. Not to mention that the level of anesthesia was usually a bottle of booze so digging out a bullet could be a real interesting process. (Unlike today, where certain minorities consider bullet scars like badges of manhood because the high quality medical care not only saved their lives but made the removal of the slugs much less painful.)
Now, other sources have stated that the fatality level was high when people carried guns everywhere, even into the toilet. I don’t know, but it would be interesting to find out and compare it with today.
Things started getting really nasty when gangs changed to loose associations of thugs and started doing drive by shootings without any regard for anyone else on the street and just committing random acts of murder to ‘see how it felt’ or to impress others. Years ago, gangs had codes of honor and mostly did not involve the innocent bystander if they could avoid it. Not any more though.
) Unless you are a vegan the whole anti-hunting thing is just a little hypocritical.