No one in their right mind needs an assault weapon to protect their home, their family, or themselves. No one. If they live in that dangerous of a neighborhood they should move. It's simply not habitable.
And without assault weapons, this Vegas shooter could not have killed and injured anywhere near as many people as he did. These are just simple, obvious facts. So the question is why won't we ban assault weapons, when they are completely unnecessary for hunting, sport, or self-defense?
And the answer is because a lot of American men are living in their own fantasy of the "wild west", wherein they imagine themselves to be the lone cowboy, out in the wilderness, living by his own strength and wits, in an "every-man-for-himself" Darwinist adventure environment. And he really LIKES this fantasy because it makes him feel powerful and autonomous, when the reality in which he lives makes him feel anything BUT powerful and autonomous.
So he piles up the guns, and the knives, and the ammo, and he plays with them when he can, and dreams about using them to 'obliterate the bad guys', as he wallows in that fantasy of power and autonomy that these weapons help him maintain. Because it makes him feel so much better than his reality does. A reality in which he has become just another cog in the rich man's money pump. With no escape, no power, no respect, no voice, and no hope of positive adventure.
The American male CANNOT let go of this "wild west" fantasy and accept the ugly reality of the totally interdependent society in which he now lives. And owning guns is a very important part of maintaining that "wild west" fantasy. That fantasy of personal power and autonomy that he can't get in real life, anymore. And he needs that fantasy so badly that he's willing to let other people's children, husbands, wives, friends, and loved ones be killed for it.
Many thousands of gun deaths every year in this country are not "the price of freedom", as has recently been claimed. It's the price of that wild west fantasy that modern American men just cannot let go of.
Until we address this cultural emasculation of men, and their loss of personal power and autonomy, we will never get our society to impose reasonable and effective gunregulation. Greedy gun manufacturers and their paid whores in the legislature are a problem, but they are not the ultimate problem. The ultimate problem is the cultural emasculation of men, and their requisite NEED to feel empowered, and autonomous. And nothing does that for them right now, in our culture, like owning a gun.
And that's what has to change.
You make some good points, particularly in addressing the cultural aspects, although it's not just the "wild west."
Some of it is also religious-inspired, as many people are stockpiling weapons, food, and other supplies in anticipation of the end of the world.
I also think that the Cold War and the widespread fears of nuclear war contributed to the survivalist mentality, along with countless movies showing post-nuclear aftermath or some kind of "zombie apocalypse" in which have a large cache of weapons would come in handy.
Then there's also crime itself - gangs, organized crime, etc. - and this too has become widespread and ingrained in the culture to some degree.
But added to that is a generally apathetic, cold, and harsh attitude towards the suffering of others and even the value of human life. This is why the issue gets so emotional. I recall last week, just after the Las Vegas shootings, people kept saying "don't make it political, let's at least mourn the victims first," but it kept turning political just the same. I think this is where the rubber meets the road and why these discussions get so emotional and both sides become entrenched.
This may relate to your point about "emasculation," since men are expected to be rough and tough. We can handle a bloody nose, and we honor those who sacrifice themselves to save others. We're supposed to laugh in the face of death, because we fear nothing.
Historically, we've been a warlike, militaristic society from the very beginning. Every citizen on the frontier was automatically "militia" because they perceived themselves in almost a virtual constant "state of war" with the Native inhabitants. While that eventually ended, the same mentality transformed into what we became as a result of the World Wars and the Cold War, as fears of evil, tyrannical regimes overseas compelled many Americans to want to remain ever-vigilant.
I think many on the right-wing see themselves as "guardians" or "protectors" or some kind of "warrior," and they see the left/liberal gun control advocates as being "weak sisters," "wimps," and/or otherwise too naive about the ways of the world and all the "dangers" we face. They might see the liberals as too soft, letting their emotions cloud their judgment and blinding them to what "real men" have to do.
That's one reason these debates go nowhere and the gun control issue generally gets deadlocked politically. It's a lot of bickering over endless statistics, the wording of Constitutional amendments, long dry technical explanations of the inner workings of firearms - it all just seems like a lot of beating around the bush and missing the elephant in the living room.
That's why I think you're on to something with your point about men and emasculation.
The Right sees the Left as a bunch of wimps, while the Left sees the Right as a bunch of simps. (I'm not a poet and I know it.)
