How many DPers own or support guns?

So no one but your neighbors might threaten you or your family? Bad guys can't drive into your neighborhood?

I dunno Rob, your social skills are about as bad as mine -- that alone says that you should own a gun.

 

Nah, I don't need one.

It would end up collecting dust. We have locks on our doors and a guard cat.

 

You two kill me!

And there was no gun involved!

 

Wandering off this current sub-thread...

It is the duty of every American with an able body and an able mind to own a firearm and know how to use it.

The Supreme Court has ruled that the police are not responsible for our protection. Citizens are the first line of defense against crime.

In addition, every American citizen should own a firearm to protect the rights of American citizens against infringement by our government or by foreign governments. Yes, we're a long way from that today, but today is not forever.

Optimally, every able bodied American would own, maintain, and be proficient at operating a minimum of three firearms:

1. A shotgun -- for defense against crime at home.
2. A handgun -- for defense against crime away from home.
3. A rifle -- for defense against governments.

These are not your rights as a citizen -- these are your responsibilities.

 

How many crimes have you and your guns stopped/prevented, Will?

 

Hell, I chased off a couple of house burglars just a couple of months ago -- AND WE LIVE IN A VERY GOOD NEIGHBORHOOD.

I am just sad that I am so *&^%$# blind that I couldn't get a license plate number.

I declined to shoot them, as they were running away anyway.

Of course, the real value of firearms in preventing crime is that the mere possibility of the presence of firearms acts as a motivating influence to deter criminal activity.

Or, as Thomas Paine said "The supposed quietude of a good man allures the ruffian; while on the other hand arms, like laws, discourage and keep the invader and plunderer in awe, and preserve order in the world, as well as property."

 

I wish i could get a shot-gun

 

You're right. My knowledge of guns is less than other people here. I wasn't really raised around firearms and stuff, but I see why they are valuable to have. I want to educate myself in learning about them.

If dogs are well trained, most of the tricks thieves may try to use won't work. It depends on how well you train them.

I've heard you can train dogs not to eat anything other than what you give them, but when it comes to female dogs, I have no idea how to deal with that........

 

My suggestion to you is to go to your local shooting range and rent different guns from them. You can test them, shoot them, etc all right there at the range. Find the one that meets your needs and are comfortable with and buy it.

 

Take a gun safety class first. For your sake and mine!

 

I dunno, the locals seem to use AK-47s very effectively when doing cash-in-transit heists, robbing police stations (yes, i know, sounds stupid, but as the cops aren't allowed to draw their guns unless they're "shot at with the intent to kill" most end up dead before they can do anything...). If I remember correctly, isn't it rather inaccurate compared to the M16 because the bullet 'tumbles' or something to do more damage?

 

Of course it's effective (any gun would be) when no one else has the right to defend themselves.

 

I would get a gun for defence only as yo-yo said

 

yeah pepper spray is illegal too. Personally i think thats i feel safer with guns being illegal and me not carrying one than guns being legal and me carryign one for defense. I figure if i am carrying one for defence someone that wants to commint a crime is definatly going to carry one! Granted a lot of criminals will have illegal guns over here, but depending on where you live it isnt that many really.

 

DAMN STRAIGHT and this is the CRUX of it.

In a society where criminals AND civilians are able to arm themselves with firearms easily, you will have FAR more crime, murders etc etc.

America is fucked now in that department and there's no going back, you can't take the guns off the civilians now as stated earlier by someone else the criminals will always have the guns now, but for other countries like ours well it's cool we don't have access and the criminals only have extremely limited access to guns. Thank fuck I say. It would be an extremely dangerous place if many burglars, robbers, muggers etc carried guns. Heck.. doesn't bare thinking about!

In related news.... a police woman was shot in Nottingham (England) today by a burglar with a gun. Remember Will.Spencer and Yo-Yo, these are freak occurances here in Britain and this does not justify the government allowing civilians here to arm themselves to the hilt, 'cos the criminals will do just the same... and then this place would see crime and a bloodbath like it's never seen before.

Pete

 

Exactly!!
Im just imagining guns being legal in Portugal.

Instead of a usual fight in traffic we would have a shooting fight...
hum... maybe not a bad ideia to reduce traffic hey?

 

what annoys me about england is that you aren't even allowed to defend yourself at all against an intruder. No unarmed combat, no nothing. Good grief

At least I'm allowed to kick a burglar's ass here (except, of course, if he's black, but that's just politics)

 

Lol about the black politics comment... man, I'm glad I aren't living over there. I used to work with 3 white south Africans and they certainly didn't want to return back to SA with their family. They would do anything to stay here because they felt it was so unsafe.. even too unsafe to walk home on a night by themselves etc... they say they'd be taken out. Sounds like a very dangerous place man. Do you like it there?

The comment in regards to our laws well it's not technically true but it is to an extent.

<the following sentence may be fiction, it may not, who can say>

I'd say I know of 2 people who have killed intruders by a result of the injuries they gave them, but this was quite a while ago - we're talking years. That's if what I'm saying is true (it may well be fiction!) Things have changed since then and criminals have too many rights now.

</end of possible ficticious sentence>

We certainly can't go murdering intruders nowadays. It's a very grey area which should be as simple as it is in America. Unfortunately here we're lumbered with 'unnessasary force' rulings.. and if the burglar is running away from you and you clobber the shit out of him, he will probably end up sueing you for damage and if he can prove you clobbered him while he was running off.. in the slammer you could go! It's rediculous.

A popular case involving a farmer that shot and killed a burglar with his shotgun you will of probably heard of. Search Google for Tony Martin if not. He got sent in the slammer and I think a lot of that was to do with the fact he shot at them while they we're making their escape. He'd been hounded by burglars for ages.... then got fed up and armed himself..... and came out shooting at the next intruders and look what flippin' happened! UNBELIEVABLE stuff it is...... ITS INSANE. Really gets my goat.

You would get away with giving them a good beating aslong as it wasn't too severe, but killing them or beating them beyond 'reasonable force'? Hell no. That would be jail time unless the intruder had a nasty weapon on him. Even then it's dodgy.. it's complete arse.

This is why I'd prefer to leave any such decision to a few good dogs doing what comes natural to them. If they kill the intruder, so fucking what? I didn't train them to nor did I instruct them to. A much safer option then doing the job yourself in England. The softest growing country in the world.

Pete

 

In our country, it is really hard to get a license to keep/carry a gun, you gotta have good links at upper level to get one.

Even if you get one, you are only allowed to keep your firearms in that particular state you reside in, and to get a license for all India level it is nearly impossible. Even After acquiring the license you are not allowed to carry your firearms in public.

But, there are a lot of places in India, where a lot of people keep illegal firearms, and you can get a locally assembled pistol for as low as $70. I remeber at the time of Operation Blue Star at my gradparents place (who live in punjab) they used to keep 6-7 firearms (assault rifles, pistols, shotgun etc). That was really hard time, you were not allowed to go out after 7 in the evening. Every night was a curfew.

 

Actually the laws have changed here we are allowed to use "necessary" force, basically if an intruder is in your house you are allowed to beat him up, but lets say you beat him to the floor or whatever you are supposed to stop. If he is running away from you without any stolen property you are supposed to leave him.
I think to some extent you are even allowed to use weapons now, but it is a very grey area