Originally posted by Talion
I\'m trying to undertand the thinking behind it.
Let\'s try another approach.
When you walked into the gun store. Did you think.
I fancy buying a gun.......and I can protect myself and family with it.
or did you think
I think I\'d better get a gun for defence purposes..............oh and i\'ve always wanted to get one.
What was the initial reason for getting one?
My first gun was given to me by my father, when I was 10 or 11.
A Remington .22, to hunt with.
From then on as I got older and stronger I went up in types and calibers of rifles and shotguns from the .20 gauge, to the .12 gauge, to the 30.06 hunting rifle.
This was not unusual in any way, shape or form.
You see, in my family we actually had to hunt to survive. It was not just a question of home protection it was a matter of eating.
After that my father introduced me to a 9mm.
Now, to those of you unfamiliar with guns, they are each designed for a specific purpose.
The .22 is an excellent mid range hunting rifle for small game such birds or squirrel.
The 20 gauge is an excellent short range shotgun for small game with less chance of missing.
the 12 gauge is a versatile all around short range shotgun, being able to use a solid slug, buck shot, or even birdshot.
The 30.06 is an excellent long range rifle designed to take down big game.
Handguns on the other hand are designed for short range dispatching of threats. It\'s why they are refered to as sidearms, as the rifle is the main weapon of choice.
So when I go shopping for a gun, it depends on the purpose I\'m intending to use it for.
For home defense, a pistol or a shotgun. For hunting a rifle.
The irony here, is that I am far more dangerous to someone else with a 30.06 hunting rifle, than a 9mm pistol or shotgun for two reasons: Range, and Accuracy.
Range, because if I miss the target, the bullet continues to fly, or if I snap and play sniper, I can easily hit people from a quarter mile to half a mile away.
Accuracy: because as above if I snap, I can acurately hit from extreme ranges and get at least 4 to 5 kill shots before people could even figure out the direction the shots were coming from.
The irony is that in every gun banning that\'s been attempted they have not even tried to touch the most dangerous weapons of all: The hunting rifle, which I\'m sure is even legal in England is it not?
They\'ve banned automatic weapons which are inherently inaccurate because of kickback, just like the triple burst, if you\'ve missed with the first shot, you\'ve more than likely missed completely.
Those that would ban assault rifles ban them because they are scary looking, not because they are proven to be any more dangerous.
A falicy by most anti-gun people is that guns are designed to kill. Wrong, some are actually designed to wound, such as the M16, and the AR15, which both fire small caliber .223 bullets. The reasoning being if you shoot a man on the battlefield and wound him, it takes another man to bring him in. Effectively taking two combatants off of the battlefield.
Now, I own a 12 guage, a .22 rifle, a 30.06 rifle, and a .40 cal pistol.
I don\'t hunt anymore, because I have no need to, however, there may come a day if unemployed, natural disaster, whatever, I may need to hunt to put food on the table.
There also may be a day due to natural disaster, evil people, whatever, that I may need to actually shoot and kill another person. It is not fear, it is not rancor, it is not irresponsibility, it is merely insuring my survival.