Ain’t that the truth!
Weighing the pros and cons is the key. The problem is that there are many serious and fatal downsides of owning a gun that are often glossed over. A gun is not like a TV in the guest bedroom. It can’t be bought by a novice, kept in a separate location until it’s needed, and then expected to work perfectly.
Is the person who’s not qualified to own a gun able to come to the decision that they shouldn’t own a gun? That is, is that type of person self aware enough to realize they are likely to cause more harm by having a gun than potential safety by having it? The less competent a person is in something, the more likely they are to overestimate their ability that area.
Will they do regular training? Is the person calm under pressure? If they wake up from a noise in the middle of the night, will they be able to tell the difference between a resident walking around and an intruder? Is there anyone in the house with mental issues who may have access to the gun? Any kids?
I think it’s good to bring up the counter arguments to highlight that there are downsides. If someone gets a gun just because it makes them feel safe, they may actually be putting themselves in more harm. If they don’t seriously and accurately consider the downsides, they’re not making a good decision.
It is here (Texas). I’ll admit I’m not a legal scholar either, but the law makes it pretty clear that deadly force can be used to prevent a theft, or to stop the thief from leaving (in certain situations). There’s also a section on using force to prevent trespassing, but it I’m not sure what level of “force” it allows.
Excerpt from the relevant Texas Penal Code (9.42):
- A person is justified in using deadly force against another to protect land or tangible, movable property:
(1) if he would be justified in using force against the other under Section 9.41; and
(2) when and to the degree he reasonably believes the deadly force is immediately necessary:
(A) to prevent the other’s imminent commission of arson, burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, theft during the nighttime, or criminal mischief during the nighttime; or
(B) to prevent the other who is fleeing immediately after committing burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, or theft during the nighttime from escaping with the property; and
(3) he reasonably believes that:
(A) the land or property cannot be protected or recovered by any other means; or
(B) the use of force other than deadly force to protect or recover the land or property would expose the actor or another to a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury.*
You live in a home with a lot of violent gang-banger felons?
The image of a Grumpy Bunny with a baseball bat actually made me smile.
Right now I own exactly one gun, a semi-automatic handgun. Perfectly adequate for home defense, but if money was no option I’d like something a bit bigger and better. Either a Mossberg-style shotgun or a short-barreled pistol cartridge carbine like Beretta’s Cx4 Storm.
One is none. Two is one. And three is better than two.
Pretty amazing how even it still is.
Number of people who have voted either “Yes, I’ve either considered buying a gun or I already have one” is 104 and the number who have voted “I’d can’t ever see myself doing that” is 104.
I voted that I wouldn’t get a gun. I live in a pretty safe area, and I don’t know how to use a gun anyway.
While I would have taken a less lethal approach it nevertheless seems to be quite legal in Texas and a specific example was Joe Horn.
This discussion board has significant international participation. I’m curious how much the ‘Yes’ or ‘I can’t see ever doing that’ choices correlate to the location of the posters.
I am guessing most of the ‘I can’t’ votes are from non-U.S. locales or U.S. states with stringent gun control laws.