Because I can
Somewhat out of the blue, I was reading an article on the net, to which a thread of replies started where posters were discussing the quality of a particular handgun.
Now, you could talk to me all day & night & not make me appreciate the pleasures of shooting guns. However, what I can appreciate is that some people out there have interests that I just don't get; I also see no reason why any person should be denied any pursuit, as long as he's not hurting anybody.
I feel like smashing my head against a brick wall when I listen to gun enthusiasts because their inability to understand that their keeping collections of handguns in their homes results in innocent people dying, matches my inability to understand what makes them want the guns in the first place.
I understand that in Australia owning a gun is legal, as long as you're a member of a gun club, and that you must keep your gun at your club at all times. Perfect! Shooting enthusiasts get to keep shooting, guns are kept in safe, secure places where they're used exclusively by trained individuals who have agreed to take on the risk of entering an activity where their lives are potentially in danger. We install similar laws in the US and problem solved right?
I doubt that very much. I'm editorializing big time here, but I'm willing to bet that if you said to your average NRA member "You can either keep your gun in your gun club where you can safely pursue your shooting activity, or you can keep your gun in your home, but under no circumstances would you ever be allowed to fire a bullet", your Hestonite would choose to keep his gun in his home. That's why NRA members are called gun-nuts and not shooting-enthusiasts. Their premier desire is not to use their arms, but to bear them.
So many Americans exercising their right to bear arms costs the lives of hundreds of families & young children every year. Unless gun owners hold their guns closer to their hearts than their families, continuing this kind of behavior doesn't make sense. And in the words of the surprisingly insightful Shatner: I can't get behind that!
Now, you could talk to me all day & night & not make me appreciate the pleasures of shooting guns. However, what I can appreciate is that some people out there have interests that I just don't get; I also see no reason why any person should be denied any pursuit, as long as he's not hurting anybody.
I feel like smashing my head against a brick wall when I listen to gun enthusiasts because their inability to understand that their keeping collections of handguns in their homes results in innocent people dying, matches my inability to understand what makes them want the guns in the first place.
I understand that in Australia owning a gun is legal, as long as you're a member of a gun club, and that you must keep your gun at your club at all times. Perfect! Shooting enthusiasts get to keep shooting, guns are kept in safe, secure places where they're used exclusively by trained individuals who have agreed to take on the risk of entering an activity where their lives are potentially in danger. We install similar laws in the US and problem solved right?
I doubt that very much. I'm editorializing big time here, but I'm willing to bet that if you said to your average NRA member "You can either keep your gun in your gun club where you can safely pursue your shooting activity, or you can keep your gun in your home, but under no circumstances would you ever be allowed to fire a bullet", your Hestonite would choose to keep his gun in his home. That's why NRA members are called gun-nuts and not shooting-enthusiasts. Their premier desire is not to use their arms, but to bear them.
So many Americans exercising their right to bear arms costs the lives of hundreds of families & young children every year. Unless gun owners hold their guns closer to their hearts than their families, continuing this kind of behavior doesn't make sense. And in the words of the surprisingly insightful Shatner: I can't get behind that!
