What is it about nice people that attract total idiots?Nice people are martyrs. Idiots are evangelists.

SOCK IT TO ME BABY!!!

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Martin on Gun Control and the Perception of America

A fellow blogger I follow (oops! redundant) is a chap by the handle of Grumpy Old Ken.  Ken is a delightful guy who has very eloquent way of waxing on about life.  We don't always see eye to eye (Imagine that from a fundamentalist Christian and an agnostic), but he does have a wise and entertaining way about him.  However, there is one of his oft-made points I'm going to take exception to. 

Ken has a thing about the gun violence in America.  Not surprising, considering a) the amount of gun violence in the USA, and b) the fact that he lives in a very gun controlled nation.  That also is not a surprise- the constant danger of Northern Ireland, several years of liberal rule, I get that.  But sometimes Ken paints a picture of America as a gun-crazed society where we go about shooting injuns every morning from the porch.  (Okay, that's an exaggeration.)  And he made a comment on his last post about perspective presidential candidate Rick Perry, that I have to pull the big knob on.


"And Rick Perry sounds 'one hell of a guy.' Evidently he slips on his shoulder holster containing his Ruger .380 with laser sights and loaded with hollow-point bullets before he goes out jogging in the morning. Oh, and he's thinking of running for President. 'Texans elect folks like me' he once said and his wife told him 'It was his duty to save America.' (There were at least five people killed in five separate shootings in America in July.) What a mentality! "


Honestly, I don't care if someone, ESPECIALLY a man in his position, carries a weapon.  If he has the means to carry a really nice one, so be it.  The problem in America is not, repeat NOT, law abiding citizens carrying heat.  The problem in America has the following elements:

1. Laws are enacted to make sure that purchasers of weapons are both trained and FBI background checked.  Lack of enforcement and loopholes like gun shows allow many to skirt this.

2. The government, far more irresponsible than the people, allowing assault weapons to be sold to Mexican cartels "in order to track them down."  Whatta load!)

3. Assault weapons IMHO are not really necessary for the general public.  Do I want an assault weapons ban? Yes, but not until this next thing is cleared up.

4. Weapons being sold by gun shows, pawn shops, and Wal-marts.  Really?  Why not just pass them out to the bad guys?  Let's limit sales to certain SELECT retailers, maybe then the FBI can keep up with the background checks.

But, according to Ken, a man carrying a personal protection piece carries the stigma of "what a mentality," especially given that we might elect this man president.  I'm sorry, Ken but SO WHAT?

Here's a little tidbit on the state of gun ownership and its effects in Jolly Ol', courtesy wikipedia:



The United Kingdom has one of the lowest rates of gun homicides in the world, and did so even before strict gun control legislation came into force. The overall homicide rate is also low. In England and Wales (the most populous part of the United Kingdom) the rate is below the EU average, about four times lower than that of the United States but on almost the same level as in Canada.[1] Its police officers do not routinely carry a firearm.[2]
However, depriving citizens of means of self-defense is not without a cost: the low rate in homicides is offset by a massive rate of other violent crime. For example, comparing London and New York, cities of very similar population and demographics, the rate of assaults and robberies is over six times as high,[3] and 7 or 10 times nationwide (depending on statistic used).


And speaking of which, how about those sad four days of rioting, in which one guy gets shot by the police, and 1,600 reprobates take it upon themselves to go all Clockwork Orange everywhere?  I'll bet those three Muslim brothers at their car wash would still be alive if they had something to offer four carloads of worthless gutterscum other than pleasant smiles.

At the end of the post, I'm guessing Ken's going to dismiss me as a gun toting lunatic typical of the colonials. (Probably not; he's a decent sort, I'm just using a flair for the dramatic).  And over here, Bobby G.'s gonna bust on me for the assault-weapons ban thing I mentioned.  (But at least I know he's not going to come over here and pepper the front door (are ya, Bob? Bob...?  BOB???)  I don't own a gun, for one simple reason- I couldn't hit the wastebasket at my feet with a rubber band, and the world is a much safer place if I'm not carrying.  But I thank God some law abiding people do, like the off duty deputy who tagged that holdup artist a couple of days ago.  Frankly, I don't know that I would own a convenience store that operated 24/7 if I didn't have a weapons system trained on the space near the cash register, armed to fire at the touch of a remote.  I'm a law abiding tax paying working man, and if it comes down to me or some lazy POS never-had-a-job-in-his-life that needs his next fix, I'm going for me.  And I don't think it's nuts to feel that way.

7 comments:

  1. This is a great post and you've made some good points here. Our problem is definitely that guns get in the hands of too many bad guys. Where there are drugs there are gangs. And where there are gangs there are gun. It is getting out of control here. If law abiding citizens had a license and carried a fire arm legally, would as many people have died at Virginia Tech or Columbine or any other mass murder sight. Someone could have stopped a lot of deaths if they carried a fire arm legally. It will always be a debate in this country. But statistics show that it's time the good guys start wearing protection. And I hate guns. But I hate what's happening to innocent people more.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Only thing I am going to say in this debate is that we have very strict gun control, particularly since the Port Arthur shootings.
    Yes there are still criminals with guns and our law enforcement are armed with guns and Tazers.
    Yes there are still murders and assults but generally, the crazies dont have access to firearms.
    I dont fear sending my kids to school.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I have always been around guns, always respected guns, and always followed gun safety rules. I am almost 31 and have been shooting since I was around 10. Given that many years, cleaning, loading bullets, firing, etc...I've never had an accident. As you said the issue is not with the average gun user/owner but rather with people who are already mentally unstable, criminals, and general trash.

    I truly don't think that the average gun owner, carrier, or user is a threat. I would never mishandle a gun and though I do not have a permit to carry I have considered it several times. The first rule of gun use outside of a shooting range is that you do not take it out unless you plan to use it. It's the unstable person who wields and waves it like a lunatic.

    I despise people who give gun owners/users a bad name. I am a perfectly sane, sweet, and law abiding citizen and have a gun. Should you fear me? Nah, not unless you steal my covers and even then the worst you'll face is getting kicked out of my bed! ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi
    First, thanks for visiting. No, I don't reckon you are a lunatic for your views.
    Don't think any of us will change our views, pushed for time so one or two quick points.
    A gun described as 'a really nice one.' Really?
    'A personal protective piece'. Makes it sound almost OK.
    Guns will ALWAYS get in the wrong hands.
    One of your followers 'despises' people who don't like gun clubs. He talks of an 'average' gun club member. No such thing. How sad, I personally don't despise anyone.
    Britain 1985 Dunblane massacre by member of a gun club.
    Britain 1996 Hungerford massacre by member of a gun club.
    Britain 2010 Cumbria massacre by man who had visited shooting ranges.
    All had licensed guns.
    Its a personality thing. (A consultant criminal psychologists words not mine.)
    I had a gun when I was a teenager. Then I grew up.
    Smashing post, good luck, keep writing.

    ReplyDelete
  5. All good comments, people. I realize everyone has an opinion on this, and usually its a strong one. I think that my main concern is that a government should be more interseted in keeping them out of the wrong hands than out of the right ones. And yes, Ken, bad things often end up in the hands of bad people. But gun control didn't save those boys at the car wash, and the didn't keep that local convenience store from being robbed.

    Unfortunately, I think we're only going to see the problem exascerbated in the USA, what with a President who only enforces SOME of the laws.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I am a "Pistol Packing Momma" as my sons call me and I own several hand guns. But what gets me is every place I have worked since I got my license will not let me have a gun at work. Even unloaded and in different compartments of my purse. That does not make sence to me. I got my license when I worked the front desk at a hotel and relief night auditor, they would not even let me have my gun in my car out side. What good is it to have my license even if I was robbed. So it is not just the robber that is crazy but the employers too. Thanks for letting me put my 2 cents in.

    rainbow (Momma Lyn)

    ReplyDelete
  7. CWM:
    Nah, I'm not busting down any doors THESE days...lol.
    (thanks for the "props", though...I think)

    The UK got it a tad wrong when they passed a handgun ban back in 1996...a bit of a knee-jerk reaction (imho).
    It disarmed a LOT of the law-abiding public.
    Add to that the 12000+ surveillence cams in and about London, and you'd THINK crime would go DOWN...
    The opposite is true over there (knife attacks and bludgeoning crimes went way up), and now we see the result.

    In America, we "colonials" love to PROTECT OURSELVES...unfortunately, we ALSO have criminals that love to prey on the innocent, hence the number of gun-related deaths every year.
    (and NOT by the law-abiding people mind you, but by the thug elements of our society, with a few police-action shootings tossed in when the perps try and cap the cops...bad move, guys)

    It's not about GUN control...it's about (certain) PEOPLE control, and we always have to be very cautious in that realm, lest we become totalitarian or authoritarian.

    As for shooting, I should take you to a range some day and let you "punch some paper"...you'd get a kick out of it.

    Kudos to your take on this topic.
    Plus some excellent comments.
    (and OK, maybe we don't see eye-to-eye on the assault gun gig, but if a perp wants to have an AK, then I NEED to have an M4.
    If he's got himself a 9mm, then I have a .45ACP.
    (my 12 gauge pump works just as well in CQB).

    VERY good post.

    Stay safe up there.

    ReplyDelete