Gun ownership itself is a slight mental illness

A

LOL – oh I loved that - putting me down by dumping on your husband - oh harsh

Anyway my dear A you know we have been through this all before – you getting all huffy and passive aggressive, next you will be running away, again – so as mentioned before I come to the forum to learn and for fun and are you saying that people can’t debate subjects they are interested in or that you have to live somewhere to talk about it that would be very inconvenient to astronomers, I was talking to someone who is an expert on the moon should she drop the subject because she doesn’t live there?

Well back to the subject – can you defend any of the silly pro-gun slogans from criticism?

 

Mel

Fuck the others – LOL (oh it’s only a joke ‘others’ I love you really)

I’m often abrasive because been nice hasn’t worked and it’s often more fun.

Anyways thanks for the support.

 

The thing that you have to wonder about here is why repeat a silly slogan or dumb argument you know no one has ever been able to defend from criticism the last 46 times it has presented it before.

I mean someone said that the definition of insanity was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result so in normal circumstances you would think that such behaviour was due to a mental disorder but I don’t think these people doing this are nuts – so why?

Is it dishonesty?

Do these people know their arguments are crap but dishonestly keep saying them anyway and if it is dishonesty what the point of doing it? Where is the gain?

I mean they must know by now that the arguments are going to fall flat, just as they fell flat all the other times they have been presented - so what gives?

 

It's probably good that you don't like guns cause you seem passive aggressive.

 

See. You're having fun arguing about things that don't affect you like they do others in the conversation.

Argue on with whomever will play with you, My Dear.

I'm not on about defending slogans.

 

I always get amused by Balbus and his psychotic outbursts. It's part of his charm.

I say we take him off his meds and put him in an NRA meeting and see what happens.

 

Funny... that's not how I would characterize @Balbus posts at all

 

Me either. Balbus often gets accused of not accepting that other people have different views.
I don't see that. He just wants people to be able to explain their views in a depth most people don't self-examine to.

 

Good question. So far, the arguments I've heard on HF for not regulating even semi-automatic weapons fall into ten categories: (1) people also die from automobiles and stepladders (but we're somehow likely to cause less panic if we take a stepladder into WalMart or an automobile into the parking lot; why?),(2) guns don't kill people, people kill people (but people can kill more people more efficiently with guns; (3) we can kill people with knives, forks or spoons (but not at the same range or on the same scale); (4) dictators don't like an armed citizenry (but going up against a modern army with ordinary weapons is unlikely to succeed);(5) there is no such thing as an assault rifle, just as there are no such things as pit bulls; there are only tactical semi-automatic rifles with adjustable stocks, vertical fore grips, and/or muzzle brakes or compensators- lever action, bolt action, breach loading, etc. that are popularly known as assault rifles ( if they're capable of rapid fire shooting and can hold a very high number of rounds of ammunition, that should qualify); (6) an assault rifle depends on the use it's put to (what's to stop the mass murderer from using them to assault people?.; (7) the weapons are needed for self-defense (why not use a pistol or shot gun?) (8) we need these weapons for hunting (semi-automatics? Aren't conventional rifles/shotguns good enough?; (9) we have a constitutional right to own them ( D.C. v Heller said that the right is not unlimited and could be subjected to reasonable regulation; the Supreme Court has refused to hear challenges to restrictive laws in Conn., NY, & MD .banning certain semi-automatic rifles and high-capacity magazines.); (10) we want them, we need them we luuuv them (You can't always get what you want). And so it goes.

 

Balbus lol. Can't get his personal opinion through to another individual so he/she starts with the personal attacks and putting members down. Yeah, a real figure to look up. fucken girls blouse.

 

I find that claim to be so far off base. My father had a shotgun and rifle in the house when I was growing up. He hunted and I can still remember him carefully maintaining his tiny arsenal. I never got into it particularly (my mom sold his gear when he died) but guns were almost part of the furniture. Then I married a soldier- infantry, initially, at that. Hub has several weapons, and goes to a shooting range a couple of times a month. I don't see any signs of fear or paranoia. He does respect them.

I do think not everyone should be permitted to have a gun, and I don't see the need for some of the weapons that are available in the USA.

 

thats why its better to just ignore him !! Works for me

 

If he was not afraid he would not have these guns. Call it whatever you like. You own a gun on the belief that it makes you a bad target for crime. This means first you need to think you can be a target for crime. So much so you are willing to risk death of a loved one which is actuly more likely to happen for gun owners. Fear so great you convince yourself you will beat the odds you are a good guy and your wife and kids won't get shot. This is why you go the range. Number say otherwise but those don't matter only my fear and refusal to be a victim do.

If I came to take the guns tomorrow what would he do? Get upset right? That implies he really wants/needs a gun for an emotional reason.

Can you name a reason outside of needing to kill something I would need a gun? You can't since that is the sole reason they exist. When you get to the nuts and bolts of the 2nd amendment it's always "what if there is a war? I would need to kill people in this war. People I personally deem to not be American". It's a sense of personal power that overrides fear. They can't get me!

That's fear and no matter how much the gun owner tries to say they have no fear (some right wing BS where feelings are only for women) they sure get afraid when we talk guns.

 

where i grew up everyone had guns. there were a lot of hunters, but also a lot of people (my family included) who never hunted but enjoyed target shooting. nobody was afraid of crime, it was just a fun thing to do when you had enough land to do it.

i'd get upset if you came to take my playstation tomorrow too. taking someone's personal property is not cool.

i know the counter argument is that you shouldn't have toys that can so easily be used for killing, and while i'm kind of mixed on that personally, i do get that point. but you're much more likely to get your point across if you make legitimate argument instead of just accusing everyone with interests that are different from yours of being mentally ill or terrified or whatever. i think sports cars are pointless and douchey, but i'm not going on and on about how you're mentally ill for liking them or afraid of not looking cool enough on the road.

 

A fear that you might not be able to defend yourself/family against violent crime, proven by statistics, is not paranoia.

We're entitled to have healthy fears.

 

"If he was not afraid he would not have these guns."

You simply do not know whereof you speak. Being prepared for something is not at all the same thing as being afraid of that thing. For example, we have a few months of emergency food supplies. We don't think catastrophe is around the corner, although it could happen.

I question your assumptions when you say, "So much so you are willing to risk death of a loved one which is actuly (sic) more likely to happen for gun owners." although I admit there is not zero risk. But responsible gun owners carefully assess and mitigate that risk. We have a granddaughter living with us now- the guns are locked away in a pretty secure cabinet. I think we would know if she were placing herself or us at risk, but even if we didn't, she'd have a hard time doing us in with one of them. She shows no interest in them, and won't get access until she is trained in their use. There is a handgun in our bedroom. Burglars are welcome take whatever he wants downstairs (at least until the cops arrive). Come upstairs, and they've got a firefight on their hands. As for hub "going postal" on us, or me on them, well, I think the probability is vanishingly small.

"This means first you need to think you can be a target for crime. "

And if you don't think you could be, I suggest you get out and about a bit. Maybe even read a daily newspaper.

"Can you name a reason outside of needing to kill something I would need a gun?"

Yes: you might need to defend yourself or others dear to you. A gun can come in handy for that purpose. You are obscuring the rationale for having arms by placing the emphasis where it does not belong.

For gun owners, responsible management of them is of paramount importance. I realize not all gun owners are as responsible or well trained as my spouse is, and that is a problem that America should address. Lethal weapons in the hands of nutjobs is indeed a prescription for disaster.

 

It's like this.

If I'm going out in bear country to gather mushrooms, nuts, and berries - or to fell logs to build my house - I'm taking a firearm capable of killing a bear just in case I need to save my life.

 

Bears don't kill people.
Only people kill people.