Is owning Guns good or bad?

[FFH]

Dale Schanze a local computer retail business owner lost his mulit million dollar business after just one year of fighting a court case in which he had brandished a weapon, he had in his car, when someone threatened him physically for speeding in a residential zone.

He said he felt like he was in danger and had to show his gun to protect himself.

The local media quickly picked up on this and he lost all his credibility.

Dale is a returned Mormon missionary who started a succesful computer retail business and later upened up a shooting range in which you could shoot any number of various types of weapons.

All he has left now is his ultralight paragliding company and I think he's pretty much given up on that too...

 

[Comprehend]

Question, in the form of an analogy, which no one will respond to.

FFH, actually it is just a simple straightforward question. It relates directly to the comment about "trusting in God" when the other guy says yes, it shows he doesn't really mean what he is saying.... or if he goes to a doctor, or brushes his teeth, or votes...

 

[klubbhead024]

I believe that gun ownership is a good thing!
More guns = people thinking twice before pulling their illegal gun out to scare = less crime = keeping the Constitution the way it was meant to be!

While I come from a home that didn't have any sort of gun, and having parents strongly against gun ownership, I will be getting a small handheld gun to keep next to the bed in case some idiot decides he wants to rob me!

 

[jonny]

This is crazy, given their purpose, how can so many religious people own so many guns! You can't justify it by saying 'it's ok if the person is sensible' even sensible people act irrationally under emotional stress. you could be the calmest peace loving person in the world, maybe never been in a fight in your life, loved and respected by everyone, then something happens and you reach for the gun. it was a one off, a momentary loss of control....but someone is left badly injured or worse. I wonder how many people have killed because of this scenario. Take america for instance, can you honestly deny the number of gun related deaths are related to your lax gun laws? This thread has seriously altered my perception of the people on RF, I thought this was a comunity of sensible people wanting a better world!

Have you ever met a sensible American? We simply don't exist. That's what makes the rest of the world so much better than us. :sarcastic

 

[Comprehend]

Unlikely Angel
By Ashley Smith
From the show Held Hostage by the Atlanta Spree Killer: How Ashley Smith Survived

From The Publisher:

In March 2005, Ashley Smith made headlines around the globe when she miraculously talked her way out of the hands of alleged courthouse killer Brian Nichols after he took her hostage for seven hours in her suburban Atlanta apartment. In this moving, inspirational account, the 27-year-old widowed mother of a six-year-old girl shares for the first time the little-known details of her traumatic ordeal. Juxtaposing the minute-by-minute tale of her experience with the never-before-told tragedies and triumphs of her own life, Unlikely Angel is Ashley's gripping, powerful account of how this nightmare scenario developed into a remarkable connection between a man wanted for multiple murders and a single mother struggling to make a fresh beginning from her troubled past.

Miraculously talked her way out? She gave the guy Crystal Meth . Not exactly the "feel-good" story of the year....

 

[FFH]

FFH, actually it is just a simple straightforward question. It relates directly to the comment about "trusting in God" when the other guy says yes, it shows he doesn't really mean what he is saying.... or if he goes to a doctor, or brushes his teeth, or votes...

Okay, fair enough analogy then. I guess that explains why I never wear my seat belt, although here in South Jordan they will pull you over if they can see you don't have your seat belt on. I hate that because I've driven for years without one and they don't pull you over just for that in other areas of Salt Lake..

 

[jonny]

Dale Schanze a local computer retail business owner lost his mulit million dollar business after just one year of fighting a court case in which he had brandished a weapon, he had in his car, when someone threatened him physically for speeding in a residential zone.

He said he felt like he was in danger and had to show his gun to protect himself.

The local media quickly picked up on this and he lost all his credibility.

Dale is a returned Mormon missionary who started a succesful computer retail business and later upened up a shooting range in which you could shoot any number of various types of weapons.

All he has left now is his ultralight paragliding company and I think he's pretty much given up on that too...

Dale Schanze was a lunatic and the most annoying thing I've ever heard on the radio. He deserved to lose his business after all the crazy stuff he pulled and I don't miss him at all. I don't know which was crazier - showing his gun to a bunch of people who were angry because he was speeding through their 'hood or buzzing cars on the freeway with his hangglider.

 

[FFH]

Miraculously talked her way out? She gave the guy Crystal Meth . Not exactly the "feel-good" story of the year....

You need to hear the whole story in her own words. It's very compelling...

That was only one small part of the story in which she had a choice to continue doing meth or stop. She chose to stop that day and changed her life and convinced the killer to turn himself in without a fight after she had convinced him to let her leave by reading portions of "The Purpose Driven Life" and applying the principles she had learned to herself and her assailant...

She also told her story on Dr. Phil...www.DrPhil.com

 

[Quoth The Raven]

This is crazy, given their purpose, how can so many religious people own so many guns! You can't justify it by saying 'it's ok if the person is sensible' even sensible people act irrationally under emotional stress. you could be the calmest peace loving person in the world, maybe never been in a fight in your life, loved and respected by everyone, then something happens and you reach for the gun. it was a one off, a momentary loss of control....but someone is left badly injured or worse. I wonder how many people have killed because of this scenario. Take america for instance, can you honestly deny the number of gun related deaths are related to your lax gun laws? This thread has seriously altered my perception of the people on RF, I thought this was a comunity of sensible people wanting a better world!

Well, if you have your gun in pieces stored in a seperate gun safe from your ammunition, it's a little hard to have a spur of the moment attack of irrational shooting. By the time you unlock the safe, put the thing together then go unlock the other safe with the ammunition and load it,it gives you time to think about what the hell you're doing. Having loaded guns beside the bed or stashed in the wardrobe strikes me as a recipe for disaster, but that's down to the gun owner, not the laws.
I will say it's a little sad that you're using a single thread with a limited number of respondents as a benchmark for the attitudes of the entire umpteen thousand forum members here...it's a trifling sample to be basing a judgement on.

 

[Quoth The Raven]

FFH, actually it is just a simple straightforward question. It relates directly to the comment about "trusting in God" when the other guy says yes, it shows he doesn't really mean what he is saying.... or if he goes to a doctor, or brushes his teeth, or votes...

Yeah, I was always under the impression God helps those who help themselves...I didn't realise he's actually there to nanny everyone.

 

[Comprehend]

Yeah, I was always under the impression God helps those who help themselves...I didn't realise he's actually there to nanny everyone.

I have to go to the bathroom now. Should I get up and go or wait for God to take care of it.... LOL.

 

[Comprehend]

Doesn't anybody have a response to Soy Leche's posts #30 and 32? They were both excellent points and I notice that the no-gun side has ignored them or missed them...

Would anybody care to address Soy's freakonomics info?

 

[XAAX]

Jonny inspired this thread with his becoming a man thread... and I happened to have purchased another gun yesterday (I have many).

QUESTIONS: (pick any or all)

Do you think owning guns is good or bad. (generally).

Would you personally ever own a gun? why?

Is an armed populace good or bad? Does it protect against despotism?

Absolutely 100% believe in owning guns. Safety is my #1 issue with them. I think that we should arm ourselves as well as teach our children gun safety. In addition never keep them loaded or keep the ammunition in the same location as the gun. If you have trigger locks use them also. Although I am against violence in any situation other than self-defense, we must protect our families and ourselves...

 

[Lindsey-Loo]

As always, it depends on who you are and what you're motives are, but generally:

Do you think owning guns is good or bad. (generally).

Good. It allows for self-defense, as well as hunting for us red-necky Southerners.

Would you personally ever own a gun? why?

Yes, I do. Well not ME, but my Dad owns several. They are to protect our family from any possible threats, and for turkey hunting.

Is an armed populace good or bad? Does it protect against despotism?

Well, fact is, the "bad guys" per se will always be able to find a way to get guns, just like they're able to find ways to sneak in drugs, and stuff. Besides, almost anything can be used as a weapon. So it's a lot better that everyone in the population is allowed to own a gun if they so choose, than law-abiding citizens not being able to own guns in order to protect themselves. The vast majority of gun owners are extremely responsible, and not any idiot can just go buy a gun, you have to get a permit, in my state, after taking an exam and actually shooting in front of a professionally trained instructor. Unless you're puchasing it illegally, of course.

 

[XAAX]

Good. It allows for self-defense, as well as hunting for us red-necky Southerners.

Hey Smoky, some southerners do not hunt...Unless you are starving and need it for survival I am against hunting completely. I think that until you are at that point, you have no Godly right to take the life of an animal. Especially hang part of its carcass on your wall. Truly a barbaric remnant of early man.

 

[Lindsey-Loo]

Hey Smoky, some southerners do not hunt...Unless you are starving and need it for survival I am against hunting completely. I think that until you are at that point, you have no Godly right to take the life of an animal. Especially hang part of its carcass on your wall. Truly a barbaric remnant of early man.

Feel free to start a new thread on this so we don't get off topic here! I'm willing to discuss it.

 

[jmaster78]

Quick question - do you wear a seat belt in the car?

cars are for getting from A to B, guns are for killing things!

 

[Mathematician]

Jonny inspired this thread with his becoming a man thread... and I happened to have purchased another gun yesterday (I have many).

QUESTIONS: (pick any or all)

Do you think owning guns is good or bad. (generally).

Would you personally ever own a gun? why?

Is an armed populace good or bad? Does it protect against despotism?

I don't think ownership of a weapon is necessarily a matter of morality. I'm a pacifist and I own a sword collection, so I can easily sympathize with the reasonable gun collector. Personally I would never own a gun because they don't interest me in the least, but I have nothing against hunters and people wanting ensurement on their family's defence.

I personally think there are alternatives to attacking an oppressive government, such as refusing to pay any of your taxes. The number of people needed to take down an authoritarian system with weapons could likewise defund the government and be non-complict towards the law.

 

[jmaster78]

Well, if you have your gun in pieces stored in a seperate gun safe from your ammunition, it's a little hard to have a spur of the moment attack of irrational shooting. By the time you unlock the safe, put the thing together then go unlock the other safe with the ammunition and load it,it gives you time to think about what the hell you're doing. Having loaded guns beside the bed or stashed in the wardrobe strikes me as a recipe for disaster, but that's down to the gun owner, not the laws.
I will say it's a little sad that you're using a single thread with a limited number of respondents as a benchmark for the attitudes of the entire umpteen thousand forum members here...it's a trifling sample to be basing a judgement on.

yes well you may be the bright spark of the gun totting bunch but i wonder how many of your fellow gun owners keep their guns in pieces in a separate safe to the amunition?

oops sorry about using a general comment,i should have asked every member of the forum for their oppinion first, unfortunately not everyone was logged on, but the majority of those online were pro gun. so i worked withh what i had.

does G-D help those who help themselves to other peoples lives? and the next time you hear someone praying to him for protection, you can tell them to 'dry their eyes, he's not there to nanny them!'

 

[SoyLeche]

I think that we should arm ourselves as well as teach our children gun safety.

I think that is a very important point. The problem isn't that people have guns - it's that people have guns and don't know how to use them. I would assume that is the main difference between Switzerland and the U.S. The people in Switzerland are trained in how to use the guns - the people in the U.S. just have them.