7 ms·

What good reasons do people have for owning firearms in urban environments? (Serious)

daw___ 10y ago
None.
forrestthewoods 10y ago
Wanting to own one. That's the good reason for most things that I own. It's something I wanted and I'm allowed to have it therefore I got it.
dpc59 10y ago
I live in the middle of Montreal and don't own firearms, but I plan on going hunting soon because I want to try to kill my own food, and if I get into it it would be a pretty good reason to own a firearm.
- coldtea 10y ago
  If you want to "kill your own food", you could start by killing poultry with your hands -- and cooking the chicken! No reason to take it to the macho fantasy of the hunter -- that armed with a 21st century high-tech shotgun kills some deer that never had a chance.
  - back_beyond 10y ago
    As if the chicken had a chance when you kill it "with your hands"... No reason to be condescending towards another's hobby.
    - coldtea 10y ago
      Another's hobby, an animal's death. Besides, it's not about the chicken having more chances or less. It's that it's a more substantial lesson in "killing one's own food" -- as we eat chicken, beef etc tons of times a year, whereas hunting is 100% hobby and 0% substantial "killing own food".
      - hga 10y ago
        Speak for yourself. My father and I have a policy that everything we hunt that isn't a varmint (pest control and the like, due to our removal of other apex predators, including dealing with invasive species like coyotes) we also eat. From squirrels and turtledove to elk and moose, and I'm pretty sure that the value of good meat gained by my father's hunting of the latter and mule deer before my mother said NO MORE! (due to the taste) at least covered the expenses of his hunting, which weren't huge. A whole elk or moose goes a long way (I don't remember much about the deer phase, but mule deer aren't small). So make that at worst 50-50. And there's a lot of poorer people out there for whom the annual deer is a significant and cheap source of high quality meat.
        coldtea 10y ago
        Sounds like the very definition of "outlier". Even if your family does that, nowhere near a significant majority of hunters do anything like 50-50 for hunted vs bought food.
        hga 10y ago
        Err, sorry for my lack of clarity, I meant hunting itself is a 50-50 hobby and food collection thing. The one big animal a year back when my father did that, plus upland game birds and miscellania (including the bull frogs I hunted for dissection and giving the legs to my Cajun mother), plus fishing ... maybe as much as 1/3 the year's meat? More than half the red meat, a much smaller fraction of fowl compared to the chicken, and a domestic turkey or three a year. And that doesn't count veggies (we did garden) plus the cereals that probably accounted for probably over half the calories we consumed.
      - back_beyond 10y ago
        There need not be a distinction. Your hobby could literally be to kill your own food.
mifreewil 10y ago
Defending yourself in case someone breaks into your home - far more likely in an urban area than rural.
- hga 10y ago
  And carrying concealed, which is allowed in 42 states, plus many less urban counties of California and New York, and cities in Massachusetts. That's something like (from memory) 72% of the US population, as long as you're an adult 18-21 and haven't committed a felony etc. States with concealed carry right now have issued licenses to 5-10% of the age eligible population, well more than 12 million by now, plus 10 states don't require a license, with Missouri likely to join them by the end of the year. Guns also become a more important means of self-defense the physically weaker the person, so the need, and observed statistics are weighted towards older people, and the US is rapidly graying with the demographic Baby Boom. Hunting is also a popular pastime in the US, and is in fact a critical resource in controlling various prey populations after we wiped out the apex predators that used to keep them in check. As it is, deer are now the most deadly animals in the US due to collisions with cars.
back_beyond 10y ago
Recreation. Many people enjoy visiting a firing range.
- semi-extrinsic 10y ago
  Why not let the firing range own the weapons then, and rent whatever you like for the day? Or at least, why not store them there in an approved gun locker you can rent?
  - back_beyond 10y ago
    Some people do exclusively rent guns and never take them out of the firing range. If this is your only intended use, that's probably the best strategy. However, like others have suggested, an additional reason to own a gun is self-defense; a gun stored at the firing range is completely ineffective in this regard.
  - hga 10y ago
    Only the latter addresses customization of guns, and I've done a fair amount of that, plus fixing a couple of issues, plus of course all my cleaning of them, at home. Or assembling your own, in the US AR-15 pattern rifles are pretty much the ultimate examples of both.
  - GunboatDiplomat 10y ago
    Because I don't just use one range? Also, I can't shoot intruders with a gun at the range.
    - semi-extrinsic 10y ago
      I've never understood "guns for self defense". Gun ownership without storing the gun in a proper secured gun locker is completely irresponsible, and is much more likely to lead to your kids or someone else discharging the firearm and injuring/killing someone than it is likely to be useful for self defense. And if you do store your guns appropriately, you won't have time to get them in a self defense situation. The former is like saying "I won't wear seatbelts so I can get out of the car quickly in case of fire". The latter is saying "I'll buy a fire extinguisher for my car, but I'll keep it locked up under the hood."
brbsix 10y ago
At least in the U.S. you don't need a reason, yet alone a good one. It would be like asking "what good reason do people have for saying fill in the blank hateful/unpopular/religious things"? Of course no one needs to justify their right to say such things, nor do they need to justify or elaborate reasons for owning a firearm. If you were genuinely curious, violent crime is easily 2x more prevalent in urban areas. Firearms provide defense for shopkeeps and senior citizens alike.
unit91 10y ago
I have a wife and 5 kids under age 7. Were my family to be confronted with a dangerous criminal, I couldn't possibly defend them all without a gun, and even then it might still be very difficult. So I carry a Glock 22 at all times. It really is that simple -- I'm often surprised at the bewilderment about one's desire to own a gun.
- superswordfish 10y ago
  There's a difference between owning a gun and carrying a Glock 22 at all times. It's sad that people imagine themselves in some action film surrounded by violent criminals out for their blood. I take it that where you live there is no police force and that you and your family are always isolated from bystanders who could help, witnesses who would discourage an attack on your family, etc. You've chosen to live in a failed state with your large family, it seems. Statistically, it's far more likely that one of your children will kill themselves, or a friend, or each other, with your gun than it is that it will be helpful for self-defense. This is going to be a bigger deal as your kids get older.
  - back_beyond 10y ago
    It's sad that people are often confronted by violent criminals. If this time were to come, should we just hope that police and/or bystanders will protect us? Criminals seek situations where neither is readily available.
    - superswordfish 10y ago
      You're free to make your own decision. I'm not about to pack heat every day for some bogeyman. The few times I've felt threatened, it's been trivial to remove myself from the situation. Awareness and caution can go a long way. And no, I'm not here to advocate taking your guns away. Just trying to suggest that there are certain downsides to always carrying a lethal weapon, and that given our mostly secure society, people might view it as antisocial.
      - 10y ago

None.

Wanting to own one. That's the good reason for most things that I own. It's something I wanted and I'm allowed to have it therefore I got it.

dpc59 10y ago

I live in the middle of Montreal and don't own firearms, but I plan on going hunting soon because I want to try to kill my own food, and if I get into it it would be a pretty good reason to own a firearm.

coldtea 10y ago
If you want to "kill your own food", you could start by killing poultry with your hands -- and cooking the chicken! No reason to take it to the macho fantasy of the hunter -- that armed with a 21st century high-tech shotgun kills some deer that never had a chance.
- back_beyond 10y ago
  As if the chicken had a chance when you kill it "with your hands"... No reason to be condescending towards another's hobby.
  - coldtea 10y ago
    Another's hobby, an animal's death. Besides, it's not about the chicken having more chances or less. It's that it's a more substantial lesson in "killing one's own food" -- as we eat chicken, beef etc tons of times a year, whereas hunting is 100% hobby and 0% substantial "killing own food".
    - hga 10y ago
      Speak for yourself. My father and I have a policy that everything we hunt that isn't a varmint (pest control and the like, due to our removal of other apex predators, including dealing with invasive species like coyotes) we also eat. From squirrels and turtledove to elk and moose, and I'm pretty sure that the value of good meat gained by my father's hunting of the latter and mule deer before my mother said NO MORE! (due to the taste) at least covered the expenses of his hunting, which weren't huge. A whole elk or moose goes a long way (I don't remember much about the deer phase, but mule deer aren't small). So make that at worst 50-50. And there's a lot of poorer people out there for whom the annual deer is a significant and cheap source of high quality meat.
      - coldtea 10y ago
        Sounds like the very definition of "outlier". Even if your family does that, nowhere near a significant majority of hunters do anything like 50-50 for hunted vs bought food.
        hga 10y ago
        Err, sorry for my lack of clarity, I meant hunting itself is a 50-50 hobby and food collection thing. The one big animal a year back when my father did that, plus upland game birds and miscellania (including the bull frogs I hunted for dissection and giving the legs to my Cajun mother), plus fishing ... maybe as much as 1/3 the year's meat? More than half the red meat, a much smaller fraction of fowl compared to the chicken, and a domestic turkey or three a year. And that doesn't count veggies (we did garden) plus the cereals that probably accounted for probably over half the calories we consumed.
    - back_beyond 10y ago
      There need not be a distinction. Your hobby could literally be to kill your own food.

mifreewil 10y ago

Defending yourself in case someone breaks into your home - far more likely in an urban area than rural.

hga 10y ago
And carrying concealed, which is allowed in 42 states, plus many less urban counties of California and New York, and cities in Massachusetts. That's something like (from memory) 72% of the US population, as long as you're an adult 18-21 and haven't committed a felony etc. States with concealed carry right now have issued licenses to 5-10% of the age eligible population, well more than 12 million by now, plus 10 states don't require a license, with Missouri likely to join them by the end of the year. Guns also become a more important means of self-defense the physically weaker the person, so the need, and observed statistics are weighted towards older people, and the US is rapidly graying with the demographic Baby Boom. Hunting is also a popular pastime in the US, and is in fact a critical resource in controlling various prey populations after we wiped out the apex predators that used to keep them in check. As it is, deer are now the most deadly animals in the US due to collisions with cars.

back_beyond 10y ago

Recreation. Many people enjoy visiting a firing range.

semi-extrinsic 10y ago
Why not let the firing range own the weapons then, and rent whatever you like for the day? Or at least, why not store them there in an approved gun locker you can rent?
- back_beyond 10y ago
  Some people do exclusively rent guns and never take them out of the firing range. If this is your only intended use, that's probably the best strategy. However, like others have suggested, an additional reason to own a gun is self-defense; a gun stored at the firing range is completely ineffective in this regard.
- hga 10y ago
  Only the latter addresses customization of guns, and I've done a fair amount of that, plus fixing a couple of issues, plus of course all my cleaning of them, at home. Or assembling your own, in the US AR-15 pattern rifles are pretty much the ultimate examples of both.
- GunboatDiplomat 10y ago
  Because I don't just use one range? Also, I can't shoot intruders with a gun at the range.
  - semi-extrinsic 10y ago
    I've never understood "guns for self defense". Gun ownership without storing the gun in a proper secured gun locker is completely irresponsible, and is much more likely to lead to your kids or someone else discharging the firearm and injuring/killing someone than it is likely to be useful for self defense. And if you do store your guns appropriately, you won't have time to get them in a self defense situation. The former is like saying "I won't wear seatbelts so I can get out of the car quickly in case of fire". The latter is saying "I'll buy a fire extinguisher for my car, but I'll keep it locked up under the hood."

brbsix 10y ago

At least in the U.S. you don't need a reason, yet alone a good one. It would be like asking "what good reason do people have for saying fill in the blank hateful/unpopular/religious things"? Of course no one needs to justify their right to say such things, nor do they need to justify or elaborate reasons for owning a firearm. If you were genuinely curious, violent crime is easily 2x more prevalent in urban areas. Firearms provide defense for shopkeeps and senior citizens alike.

unit91 10y ago

I have a wife and 5 kids under age 7. Were my family to be confronted with a dangerous criminal, I couldn't possibly defend them all without a gun, and even then it might still be very difficult. So I carry a Glock 22 at all times. It really is that simple -- I'm often surprised at the bewilderment about one's desire to own a gun.

superswordfish 10y ago
There's a difference between owning a gun and carrying a Glock 22 at all times. It's sad that people imagine themselves in some action film surrounded by violent criminals out for their blood. I take it that where you live there is no police force and that you and your family are always isolated from bystanders who could help, witnesses who would discourage an attack on your family, etc. You've chosen to live in a failed state with your large family, it seems. Statistically, it's far more likely that one of your children will kill themselves, or a friend, or each other, with your gun than it is that it will be helpful for self-defense. This is going to be a bigger deal as your kids get older.
- back_beyond 10y ago
  It's sad that people are often confronted by violent criminals. If this time were to come, should we just hope that police and/or bystanders will protect us? Criminals seek situations where neither is readily available.
  - superswordfish 10y ago
    You're free to make your own decision. I'm not about to pack heat every day for some bogeyman. The few times I've felt threatened, it's been trivial to remove myself from the situation. Awareness and caution can go a long way. And no, I'm not here to advocate taking your guns away. Just trying to suggest that there are certain downsides to always carrying a lethal weapon, and that given our mostly secure society, people might view it as antisocial.
    - 10y ago