What's your response to....

[Mule]

Ok, this just got my goat. I have to rant and blow off some steam.

I was teaching my wife to shoot (YES!!!!!) and working with her friend who carries. We got on the topic of liberal peckerheads who seem to think it's ok to tell us what they think we should be able to own and shoot.
Her comment was "How do you reply to people when they say you don't need a semi auto to hunt with and you really don't have a reason to own an assult rifle of any kind". She has to deal with this all the time I guess and really has no one to bounce this stuff off of.
My reply was " They have no right or justification for telling ME what I need, it's like me telling them what kind of car they should drive". "They don't know anything about weapons or me and I don't know what will make them happy to drive. Same principle"

Why do these nuts think they can tell us what we need???? I don't tell them they have to drive an old Ford Pinto, or they can't have a Starpukes because it makes them more of a peckerhead.......

So what's your reply to this neophyte statement?

Oh yeah, how about the statement "you have a loaded gun in your house? don't you think your going to shoot yourself?" arrrrhhhgggg. Ok, I'm really loosing it now. Can you tell I'm having one of those days.... time to stop thinking for a while!! I know education is a one person at a time thing, but sometimes we have to get a break.......
Greg

[newracer]

I have yet to discuss this with anyone but I would take the same approach that you do. We all have lots of things that we don't "NEED." Multiple cars, big houses, televisions, internet access, etc.

As for the other question my response would be "No I will not shoot myself because I am trained on the proper use and storage of a firearm. Are you afraid you are going to cut your arm off with your kitchen knife?"

[BadShot]

My reply is "Because the second ammendment says I can" now FDO.. (Fook Directly Off)

But you're response is a good one too

[Mule]

I like to "remind people" that it's my 2nd ammendment RIGHT too......
I also like my "non" politically correct RMGO sticker w/ the AR on it......

Hollywood/media has done such damage to the unknowing that we are really behind in the teaching curve. I have had friends think that I can't collect C&R "War" rifles legally.

I told this story somewhere else on the board;
I was in my daughters Hunters Safety class, we were talking about different ammo and the correct application. I brought up the .223 vs 5.56 AR thing and a 20 something guy behind me spouted out "Yeah, but those are illegal anyway." I asked him where he heard that, he said on the news. I politely corrected him and gave a brief "it's important to know the laws and not listen to the media" speach.

[Ice Pirate]

As for the first question, I usually come back with the responce that the Bill of Rights doesn't state that we have the right to bear only the arms we NEED for hunting or sport shooting. It states that we have the right to bear ARMS (PERIOD).

As for safety in the home. Well, a firearm is only as safe and the nut behind the trigger. SHOULD all owners of firearms be fully trained before owning a firearm? By all means yes! Only full and compleate training can insure safety. So if that is the case, then why not make training a requirement before allowing people to own firearms? Believe it or not, I used to believe that we should. However, if one could afford the firearm, but not the training, then wouldn't that mean that the government was "Infringing" on that person's "Right to Bear Arms?"

Do you realize that thousands of people every year are injured in accidents in their home workshops while woodworking with powertools or working on their cars? Millions every year are injured in their kitchens working with sharp knives, and hot stoves. Should the Government step in and make it mandatory to recieve safety training before allowing it's citizens to work on their cars or prepair their meals? How stupid would that be?

The bottom line is that we are supposed to be responsible adults. That means that we bear the responsibility of both our own safety and the safety of those around us. If I buy a new tablesaw and don't get trained or even read the manual, and end up slicing off my finger, well DAMNIT I should have known better and it's no ones fault but mine. The same thing goes with firearms. It's my responsibility to get the training I need, and if I don't, and I, or someone else is harmed by it, then it's my fault as the firearm's owner, and the Government has no more business controling my firearms, than it does contorlling my Tablesaw, or kitchen knives, or any other tool you care to mention.

It's high time that we all grow up and start being the responsible adults that we claim to be. It's also high time that we start telling the lawyers and judges who want to hold everyone accountable for the actions of the criminally stupid, to pull their collective heads out of their asses and realize that people have to be held accountable for their own actions!

OK, I've vented and I'm feeling much better now.

[JohnTRourke]

I usually try to lead them down the path where their reasoning (or lack thereof) leads them. (so, only cops should have guns huh? and why is that? they are civilians too? did you know they have no duty to protect you personally?)

or (and more likely) I get mad and say stuff like "well, don't call me when the bastids are knocking on your door.

in response to the 2nd question (loaded gun) I always reply with "well, there ain't much more useless than an unloaded gun"

And seriously, if people object "well I would never come over to your house"
It's a fine, please don't.
life is too short to waste on i want to feel good everyone gets a ribbon liberal zombies. I just move on and don't bother with them. They can't be convinced unless you can take them out shooting, then they magically come over to your side.

[MuzzleFlash]

Regarding semi-autos, I ask if people should be allowed to own sports cars capable of exceeding the speed limit. Of course. Most behave responsibly. Yet there are 40,000+ traffic deaths every year. And the right to own a car isn't specifically enumerated in the Bill of Rights.

Regarding guns in the house: I ask them if swimming pools should be banned. I then point out that even anti-gun researchers have conceded that you are 100 times more likely to have a kid die in a drowning accident than in a shooting accident. I also point out that those numbers are skewed by guns laying about in the homes of gang bangers and meth houses - People who are illegal possessors anyhow and would have guns even if they were blanketly illegal. I point out that this is happening in the UK where guns are banned but come in with the drugs. I ask them if they lock up their car keys when they come home. Huh? Well, aren't cars just as capable of killing? Aren't you worried about your 8 yr old kid taking your keys in the middle of the night and joy riding? Then why are you so concerned with a gun in the house?

[Mule]

I had one of my wife's friends freak when she found out I had a loaded shotgun in the house - not in my vault. It was like I was going to hand her kid the gun and say have at it..... I had to assure her that there was a cable lock on it before she was comfortable. I can see her worry, but the way she reacted was more on the order of I was going to give her kids some crack or something.
If we all tried to take a newbie shooting, our lives would be much more enjoyable. I'm going to try this approach and see what kind of reaction I get. What's a few dollars in ammo worth if I can get someone like her to see the light?????
Hey, at least my blood pressure is down now.....

[Artyboy]

I always use the swimming pool and sport's car argument when talking about this stuff, too. Do you have to take a class to own a swimming pool? Are your rights to drive or own a swimming pool protected under the Bill of Rights?

I get weird looks from people all the time when they see the shotgun sitting next to my desk in my office. When they ask me if I'm worried about it killing someone I just tell them that it's never gotten up on it's own and gone off to my knowledge. Honestly I'd trust a CCL holder or someone who owns NFA weapons a lot more than I'd trust any other random stranger on the street. Those people tend to value their rights and the rights of others.