NRA News x Billy Johnson says we dehumanized gun violence and humanized guns:
I agree with what he’s saying for the most part. I know the more people who are pro-gun the better, but I’m really sick of trying to convince people that guns aren’t bad. If someone isn’t intelligent and logical enough to be like “You know what… people take other peoples lives with guns but I realize it’s not the gun’s fault” then I really don’t have any time for them. Sure that person is also going to argue “if there were no guns in the world then no one would die from getting shot by a gun” which is the oldest most retarded statement in the book. Then the will also likely say how “guns should be made illegal” citing that it would reduce gun violence… sure bro whatever you say. The government should also pass a law to make criminals have to obey laws…. that would work well in conjunction with your making-guns-illegal law.
2:44 – Telling someone “guns are intimidating or scary” isn’t the right way to go about it in my opinion. That doesn’t Demystify guns. People should have a healthy respect for guns and what they can do, just like they should have healthy respect for the damage capability of a 3000 lb. vehicle. Learn that the gun is an inanimate object, learn how to use it, learn how to be safe with it and confident with its function.
As far as open carry goes, I’m still indifferent. I really wish the state of the country was that the average person wouldn’t freak out when they saw a regular person doing day to day activities with a gun on their hip, but that’s the way it is. If you think you’re going to be a Leonard Embody and not get any friction from law enforcement and the general public then you’re wrong. If you don’t care though and you think in your heart that it’s the best thing for you personally, and for gun rights in general then “do you”.
Thoughts?
Comments
5 responses to “Demystifying Guns”
Nationally open carry won’t work. If decided by the states or regionally it would work. Last week in NE Texas & Louisiana we had bad storms and power in some areas was knocked out for days. Plain clothed folk were at almost every traffic light corner “monitoring things” and these were in some of the not-so-nice parts of towns. Handguns and rifles were open carried and nobody freaked out, not even the news reported it. It’s the south – people carry guns. Nobody gives a shit down here.
Now if that were in the northeast it would have made CNN and people would have lost their ever-loving fucking minds. So I say let the states decide.
Well, shit, I have to be THAT guy:
Open carry will work nationally and states don’t have a say on the matter. In 1791, the second of a series of amendments was made to the Constitution stating so. There are just as many caveats to that amendment as there are to the first: “You can print or say what you want, except in MA and New York. You are only allowed to agree with the government there and you can’t use the word green or wombat.” Sounds silly doesn’t it.
The constitution applies all states. You can’t subvert it and those that are, do so illegally.
“People would lose their minds” is what North Koreans would say if asked about universal free speech.
/soapbox
Imagine if the stumbling blocks for buying a gun from a dealer/carrying a gun were applied to other inviolable rights, such as voting.
“You pass a background check and proficiency test before being able to vote.”
“You won’t be able to vote until your local Sheriff signs off on the permit. And if he doesn’t like you, suck it.”
“You must wait for 10 days before you can cast your vote. Who knows what you might do, like vote for someone other than DiFi.”
Things can become normalized through continuous and/or prolonged exposure. Think about abortion. In the not too distant past, it was not even a topic that was discussed. However it was brought out of the back room, sanitized, normalized and now it can even be heard being discussed over dinner or at parties.
Think about the gay and lesbian lifestyle. Same thing.
Firearms are no different. If we “come out of the closet” and are not ashamed or afraid to claim the rights that are already guaranteed, things will become normalized and accepted. In fact, there are several animated graphic maps around the interwebs that show the acceptance of either CC or OC or both.
Sure we have some crackpots in our ranks (OC an AR in Target anyone?) but just like the flamers in the gay and lesbian ranks, most people understand that such examples are the extreme and tend to write them off.
Would we like to demystify guns?
I doubt we could do it until gun owners became a protected class.