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I prefer to harm no one. I definitely do not feel a need to kill someone else. The reason I'm not in something like UFC is that I'm not fighting for the enjoyment of it, but for survival. The UFC isn't "real", people aren't going to die or be permanently injured in there. There's referees--there is no referee in real life.
Don't be silly. I cannot think of one gun owner that I know who is itching to go hunting for humans. BUT I do know of gun owners that are prepared to defend their property against the many types of scum that could bring harm to his or her family. Unlike the many police shows where there is extended conversation between the gun toters over who did or can do what to each other, a real life situation involving a criminal will be a rather spontaneous event. A criminal with a gun is the most violent type of offender and can be easily underestimated. You will ONLY get once chance to defend yourself.
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Originally Posted by TKramar
I have been attacked by my wife--do you suggest I should have kept a gun around so she could have shot me? Or that I shoot her when she attempted to harm me? Is that any way to treat someone you "love"?
Don't be silly. Gun ownership is NOT mandatory. You can freely CHOOSE NOT to protect yourself. If trouble does befall you, you can consider yourself extremely fortunate if someone like myself is there to defend you against the thugs in the event a policeman is not available(oddly, what are the chances of this happening considering the abundance of police officers?).
The police are highly unreliable when it comes to preventing crime. Policing is more of a reactionary service, hence the popularization of the term "FIRST RESPONDERS" in recent years. Crime prevention is geared toward educating the citizenry on locking doors and keeping valuables out of plain sight.
In Texas, obtaining a Concealed Handgun License (CHL) is a laborious process. First, there is the class and range qualification. Second there are the fees. Third, there is a protracted wait and extensive background check including fingerprint cards and photos sent off to the FBI and other Law Enforcement activities for cross reference. These licenses aren't just handed out to everyone. Roughly 1.5% of the population in Texas has a CHL. Additionally, the license can be suspended or revoked for many minor infractions that would otherwise be of no consequence for other citizens. A CHL holder in any state has additional responsibilities. The following link is the state police website for the demographics of CHL holders and has extensive listings for licenses issues, qualified instructors, revocations, suspensions, denied permits, etc. In Texas, a Concealed Handgun License (CHL) is a privilege more than it is a right that can be revoked or suspended at any time.
Concealed Handgun Licensing Bureau Demographic And Statistical Information (http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/administration/crime_records/chl/demographics.htm - broken link)
More importantly, at least for Texans, a concealed handgun or firearm can be carried in an automobile in Texas provided that it is CONCEALED and out of plain sight. No license is required. The automobile is considered an extension of the home in this state. Also, under Texas law, a homeowner does NOT have to wait until he is pinned against the last wall of his home to take defensive action in protection of his or her life, the lives of others, or his or her property. With the explosion of home invasions, there is no sense letting the intruders encompass your home and surround you before taking protective action.
Lastly, with the economy the way it is and massive unemployment continuing in an upward trend, crime can only increase in the ensuing months and years. In an extremely high crime environment, it is less likely that you will receive an immediate response to a call for help via 911 since the police will be busy protecting their own families and neighborhoods. More than likely, you will languish on hold while trying to navigate a phalanx of voicemail booby trap prompts while your wife is throwing pots and pans at the intruders busily hacksawing through your burglar bars on the door to get inside.
Anti-gun advocates don't like others having guns which is reminiscent of the old adage, "Misery loves company. "What we NEVER see in the evening news are the victims of violent crime saying they are still happy they don't have a gun and would gladly repeat the life threatening drama as a defenseless victim all over again. That is, if they are still alive to tell about it.
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Originally Posted by TKramar
No. But I think there IS something to what you say, since I've seen people turn and walk across the street upon seeing me approach.
Let's try to refine the subject.
Those of u who don't carry,
do u do so because of dislike of guns
or out of fear of guns...
Dislike is a healthy emotion,but fear should be treated & eventually cured...
Noone should be afraid of anything...
Remember the great phrase...We have nothing to fear,but fear itself...
Precisely why I have never felt the need to purchase--or carry--a firearm: I do not live my life in fear.
Even when I worked 2nd and 3rd shifts in terrible parts of Seattle and Dallas, or when I lived in rough areas in Seattle and Everett, WA, I simply did not feel a gun was necessary.
guns are good but the law has shrunk self defense to the size of a pin, better to use it only in the home. as to the many posts on this thread saying firearms are utterly unnecessary --these threads unfortunately attract many keyboard bruce lee's.
Carrying has nothing to do with living in fear. Do you put on a seat belt out of fear? Carrying has more to do with being prepared, just like carrying a spare tire in your vehicle. I doubt anybody is "fearful" of a flat tire everytime they get into their vehicle. There's nothing wrong with preparedness, nor is there anything wrong with realism.
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Originally Posted by rayneinspain
Precisely why I have never felt the need to purchase--or carry--a firearm: I do not live my life in fear.
Carrying has nothing to do with living in fear. Do you put on a seat belt out of fear? Carrying has more to do with being prepared, just like carrying a spare tire in your vehicle. I doubt anybody is "fearful" of a flat tire everytime they get into their vehicle. There's nothing wrong with preparedness, nor is there anything wrong with realism.
For some people, being prepared means they carry a weapon. For me it does not, simple as that.
Driving entails certain hazards, so of course I wear a seatbelt and carry a spare in the trunk...however, my personal life is not met with danger at every turn, where I would feel the need to be armed with a deadly weapon.
If you lived here, you'd understand (or maybe not, that's your choice).
Sorry to disappoint the NRA, but I just don't feel like packin' heat.
I prefer to harm no one. I definitely do not feel a need to kill someone else. The reason I'm not in something like UFC is that I'm not fighting for the enjoyment of it, but for survival. The UFC isn't "real", people aren't going to die or be permanently injured in there. There's referees--there is no referee in real life.
You just re-made my original point. UFC (or whatever) is NOT real-life. There are no referees on the street. Those who are going to commit criminal mayhem are not bound by rules, and those without your self-proclaimed skills are going to be at a dis-advantage. So in many cases, a handgun is the only thing between them and permanent injury, trauma, or death.
BTW -- you are wrong about UF or even boxing. People have died, or suffered permanent injury (both physical and mental) as a result. And this is in a controlled environment where both parties consent to the potential consequences.
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I have been attacked by my wife--do you suggest I should have kept a gun around so she could have shot me? Or that I shoot her when she attempted to harm me? Is that any way to treat someone you "love"?
I don't suggest you do anything other than taking the steps/means you personally feel you should take for your own safety and those of your loved ones. Again, if you are the bad-a$$ you constantly say you are, then hey, no need for a gun! You can wipe them all out bare-handed. If you really can do that, groovy! But most of us lesser mortals are not blessed with such super-human powers.
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No. But I think there IS something to what you say, since I've seen people turn and walk across the street upon seeing me approach.
Seems like a bit of a parodox here. On one hand you say you don't want to harm anyone and have a rep as a very peaceful man. On the other, you claim folks run from you. How does the latter square with the former? Hmmmmm...
Precisely why I have never felt the need to purchase--or carry--a firearm: I do not live my life in fear.
Even when I worked 2nd and 3rd shifts in terrible parts of Seattle and Dallas, or when I lived in rough areas in Seattle and Everett, WA, I simply did not feel a gun was necessary.
i'm guessing that you have neither thought the debate through all the way, nor have you read even a single, full page of the thread.
you obviously are not going to understand this, but your comparison is invalid in every sense.
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Originally Posted by rayneinspain
For some people, being prepared means they carry a weapon. For me it does not, simple as that.
Driving entails certain hazards, so of course I wear a seatbelt and carry a spare in the trunk...however, my personal life is not met with danger at every turn, where I would feel the need to be armed with a deadly weapon.
your every day life is fraught with many dangers––at every turn. your body just barely clings to life... every day. your organs only barely manage to stave off disease and injury... every day. the world that you live in is only a few measures away from disaster, in so many forms that our best scientists still don't even know them all... every day.
you live among rapists, murderers, car thieves, muggers, pedophiles, drunken drivers, robbers, and kidnappers. whether you realize it or not, you are surrounded by the victims of these animals every day of your life. whether you realize it or not, many of their victims don't ever have the blessing of continuing in their daily lives of security and comfort, so that they can meet other obliviously confident people such as yourself. many of them are run down in the streets, gunned down in their own homes, abused, used, and then left for dead by the sadistic, the perverted, the apathetic, and the selfish.
you say that you live your daily life in relative calm because you don't have the faintest idea of how fleeting your peaceful life can be. because, so far, you are riding a wave of prosperity and comfort.
there are certainly those that are guilty of the stupid generalization that you make, that jump at shadows, carry loaded weapons with which they are not proficient and with which they will likely kill a family member sooner than a lurking demon, suspicious of everyone, afraid of everything, on the road to an early, miserable grave.
the rest of us gun owners live in reality. most of us live in rural environments where we trust our neighbors, and are proud of our quiet, peaceful societies. but even there, we realize that life is fickle, and that if you take too many chances, you eventually lose the game.
there are ways to mitigate those risks; seat belts, guard dogs, smoke detectors, insurance, education, responsible social relationships, exterior lights, door locks, functioning tools (including firearms), and other measures can be used to increase your chances of surviving fat and happy into old age. they don't guarantee anything, but they certainly help your chances.
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If you lived here, you'd understand (or maybe not, that's your choice).
if you lived here, with the rest of us, maybe you'd understand.
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Sorry to disappoint the NRA, but I just don't feel like packin' heat.
that's your choice; just try not to so obviously look down your nose at others that tend to have a different opinion than you.
i don't carry a gun. i have considered it, and when i have the money, i might. i realize that i will likely never have to use it except against paper targets at a range, and that is most definitely my desire. i don't want to shoot anyone; i've already been to iraq, and i've had enough.
but it would suck to have your one-in-a-thousand chance (in some places, it is even higher) of being targeted for a violent crime, and not having the means with which to defend yourself. worse, to not be able to defend your family should the need arise.
i might be short on cash now (struggling college student and all), but as soon as i have the change to spare, and the home remodeling projects have quit depleting my bank account, then i will probably invest in a small handgun. i'd much rather carry a weapon that i might never need, than not carry a weapon and need it.
i'm guessing that you have neither thought the debate through all the way, nor have you read even a single, full page of the thread.
you obviously are not going to understand this, but your comparison is invalid in every sense.
your every day life is fraught with many dangers––at every turn. your body just barely clings to life... every day. your organs only barely manage to stave off disease and injury... every day. the world that you live in is only a few measures away from disaster, in so many forms that our best scientists still don't even know them all... every day.
you live among rapists, murderers, car thieves, muggers, pedophiles, drunken drivers, robbers, and kidnappers. whether you realize it or not, you are surrounded by the victims of these animals every day of your life. whether you realize it or not, many of their victims don't ever have the blessing of continuing in their daily lives of security and comfort, so that they can meet other obliviously confident people such as yourself. many of them are run down in the streets, gunned down in their own homes, abused, used, and then left for dead by the sadistic, the perverted, the apathetic, and the selfish.
you say that you live your daily life in relative calm because you don't have the faintest idea of how fleeting your peaceful life can be. because, so far, you are riding a wave of prosperity and comfort.
there are certainly those that are guilty of the stupid generalization that you make, that jump at shadows, carry loaded weapons with which they are not proficient and with which they will likely kill a family member sooner than a lurking demon, suspicious of everyone, afraid of everything, on the road to an early, miserable grave.
the rest of us gun owners live in reality. most of us live in rural environments where we trust our neighbors, and are proud of our quiet, peaceful societies. but even there, we realize that life is fickle, and that if you take too many chances, you eventually lose the game.
there are ways to mitigate those risks; seat belts, guard dogs, smoke detectors, insurance, education, responsible social relationships, exterior lights, door locks, functioning tools (including firearms), and other measures can be used to increase your chances of surviving fat and happy into old age. they don't guarantee anything, but they certainly help your chances.
if you lived here, with the rest of us, maybe you'd understand.
that's your choice; just try not to so obviously look down your nose at others that tend to have a different opinion than you.
i don't carry a gun. i have considered it, and when i have the money, i might. i realize that i will likely never have to use it except against paper targets at a range, and that is most definitely my desire. i don't want to shoot anyone; i've already been to iraq, and i've had enough.
but it would suck to have your one-in-a-thousand chance (in some places, it is even higher) of being targeted for a violent crime, and not having the means with which to defend yourself. worse, to not be able to defend your family should the need arise.
i might be short on cash now (struggling college student and all), but as soon as i have the change to spare, and the home remodeling projects have quit depleting my bank account, then i will probably invest in a small handgun. i'd much rather carry a weapon that i might never need, than not carry a weapon and need it.
aaron out.
Wow...how are you able to function on a daily basis without suffering a heart attack or stroke from all of that fear you harbor?
If I felt that I needed to arm myself, I would. And, for the record, I AM living in a semi-rural area in eastern Indiana. I have also lived in urban areas, so save us all from your generalizations on either.
By your logic, it must be a flippin miracle that ANYONE NOT CARRYING A FIREARM survives from one day to another.
Wow...how are you able to function on a daily basis without suffering a heart attack or stroke from all of that fear you harbor?
If I felt that I needed to arm myself, I would.
By your logic, it must be a flippin miracle that ANYONE NOT CARRYING A FIREARM survives from one day to another.
You are most welcome to your paranoia and terror.
this is what i am talking about as far as you not actually reading posts. you are making assumptions based off of your own lack of information.
if you actually take the time to read the thread, or even just my post––which you clearly have not done yet––then you would have noticed where i mention that i don't live in fear. i am not afraid of all of the horrible things that could be happening to me right now.
i mention them because reality is far different than the care bear world that you think you inhabit.
Moderator cut: not necessary you are more than welcome to actually address the issues that i raise in my post, specifically about your oblivious fallacies. but i'm guessing you will keep making baseless assumptions and nothing more.
Last edited by katzenfreund; 11-19-2009 at 09:35 PM..
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