I've been getting some debate in recent days on this post I wrote - "The Flaw with the 2nd Amendment." It got me thinking about guns in general.I've often said the worst part of the pro-handgun lobby tend to be the gunowners themselves. I'm behind the 2nd Amendment and I've bought into the statistics which prove gun crime is higher in states and cities with stricter gun control laws. I just hate the vocal majority of the pro-gun lobby.
After all, many handgun owners (or, at least, the pro-gun ones who post on the Internet) are irresponsible bores. Just take a look at this hysterical video I stole from CK's blog:
It's a VERY funny video, but it also illustrates that some (perhaps even most) gun owners are assholes.
So, let's just cut to the chase, Gun Nuts. Let's just admit the truth: Many, if not most of you, have a gun for myriad reasons, home security being just one of them. I get that and it's okay.
Guns are cool. Guns are sexy. Guns make you feel big and powerful and important. Gun smoke is one of the most thrilling scents in the world. Guns themselves have a slick, cold, heavy awesomeness that just makes them wildly fascinating.
They are loud and they are deadly. They are possibly the forth most thrilling thing a man can play with (after, in no particular order, a '69 Dodge Charger, an American Quarter Horse and a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader.)
Let's just cut to the chase. The pro-gun lobby is so big just because so many American men want to own guns. It's not about home defence or personal security - after all, a gun owner is several times MORE likely to see a member of his own family shot than a home intruder. It's about the fact that guns are cool and sexy and make us feel good.
So next time we're discussing the 2nd Amendment, cut the crap and be honest about it. Don't reel out the old 'deterrent' and 'home defence' dog and pony show when the issue of gun ownership comes up. Just admit you want to own a gun because they're awesome.
If you've got the balls to admit that, even ol' liberal Militant Ginger will stand shoulder to shoulder with you about the 2nd Amendment. I hate guns and they scare the crap out of me, but I believe in the Bill of Rights and I'd no sooner see the 2nd Amendment overruled than the Freedom of Speech or the Right to Silence squished.
Besides, it's your house and your family. If you're willing to risk a family member getting shot for the sake of going down to the firing range every weekend, that's your problem.
2 comments:
Good post, as usual. And I'll agree with your assertion that many gun owners are assholes (I would, however, wager that gun-control advocates probably include a higher percentage of assholes).
I must take issue, however, with citing the thoroughly debunked 1986 Kellerman study regarding firearm ownership and the percentage of accidental homicide in the home. Dr. Gary Kleck, a highly respected criminologist, completely refuted Kellerman's findings. In fact, Kleck's book, Point Blank (the one in which he debunked the Kellerman study) received the 1993 Michael Hindelang Award, the highest award given by the the American Society of Criminologists.
For anyone interested, there's a good back-and-forth on Kleck's and Kellerman's findings here:
http://www.guncite.com/gun-control-kellermann-3times.html
Several other good articles on the faults with Kellerman's findings:
http://www.firearmsandliberty.com/read5.html
For what it's worth, I own several firearms and will admit they're awesome. But I never play with them. They are my own personal nuclear option: I own them in the unlikely event of home invasion, in which case I'd be more than happy to show said invader just how awesome jacketed hollowpoints and 00 buckshot can be.
Please send me my 1969 Dodge Charger and Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader. I promise to use them wisely and in unison.
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