8 ms·

America has a pretty big obsession with thinking that they would be the hero in this situation if only they were there and had a gun. The average gun owner (he

by rhcom2 9y ago

America has a pretty big obsession with thinking that they would be the hero in this situation if only they were there and had a gun. The average gun owner (hell, the average police officer probably) is in no way prepared for an active shooting situation. It's a fantasy to think you'd be the one to stop it.

carry_bit 9y ago
Average gun owner != average CCW holder who would be carrying at that moment
- Frondo 9y ago
  Oh, man. Having known a bunch of CCW holders who also carry their guns with them at all times, I would be far more scared of those guys in this situation, full stop. They talk tough, but I have zero confidence in their ability to add the good kind of violence to a violent situation. Sooooooo overconfident, smh.
  - Frondo 9y ago
    Heh heh, struck a nerve with some CCW holders ;)
- rhcom2 9y ago
  CCW holder just means you took a class (in most states).
matte_black 9y ago
It has nothing to do with being the hero. People who are a good law abiding citizens should not be denied the right to own firearms because some people misbehave. This is just a result of America’s individualist society. If we were collectivists we would ban guns for the good of society. But we’re not, and we never will be. We’re rugged individualists, for better or worse, and some people actively vote for things that make their lives worse just to uphold that value. It’s what America was built on. I don’t see a problem with it. It’s just a different way of life.
- icebraining 9y ago
  Very few Western countries actually ban guns. Sweden, for example, has 2M registered guns (21 for each 100 persons). Germany has 5.5M. In the Czech Republic you can get a PAR MK3 (local version of the AR15).
  - matte_black 9y ago
    But can you own an AR-15?
    - eric_h 9y ago
      According to [0], it looks like you could even own the full auto military version (the M16). 0)https://www.sweden.org.za/gun-laws-in-sweden.html https://www.sweden.org.za/gun-laws-in-sweden.html
    - Natanael_L 9y ago
      The current laws in Sweden - the short version is that you need a justified reason (hunting or "shooting club"), you need to pass tests and not have a recent criminal record. Fully automatic weapons are much harder to get permits for than standard ones. https://polisen.se/lagar-och-regler/vapen-regler-och-tillstand/ https://polisen.se/lagar-och-regler/vapen-regler-och-tillsta...
  - HarryHirsch 9y ago
    To the best of my knowledge in Germany it's mostly long guns for hunting, not handguns. To carry a handgun you'd need a permit and demonstrate your need to be armed.
- kmonsen 9y ago
  You are just a sheep parroting NRA and not a rugged individual. Citizens shooting back in a crisis only makes things worse, how do you know who is the real shooter now? Have you ever been in a shooting situation? If you are not trained for it it is terrifying and it is unlikely you will make a positive difference.
disease 9y ago
Bear in mind that after the recent Florida school shooting, the President of the United States declared that if he were there, he would have, despite being unarmed, physically overpowered the shooter and saved the day. If that is not worrying enough, half of the country believed him when he said that.
- HarryHirsch 9y ago
  Good for Trump that he said that. He has an imposing physique, and he might just have impressed the disturbed kid enough to put down his gun. (Ten years ago there was a school shooting in Germany where a teacher did stop a student that way.) But we must respect the decision of the policeman in Florida who found himself outgunned not to confront the shooter, first responders are trained not to be heroes and to keep their life first priority.
  - FireBeyond 9y ago
    > Good for Trump that he said that. He has an imposing physique Okay, while attempting to be as neutral and objective as possible, Trump is an obese geriatric. He's decently tall, 6' or so. But that's about it. https://proxy.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse2.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.Bg348jD5p4XHcu6LJuAPWwHaIM%26pid%3D15.1&f=1 https://proxy.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse2.mm.bin...
- Lapsa 9y ago
  [citation needed]
- burfog 9y ago
  This is a man who got out of his limo to confront a mugger in Manhattan. (old news articles cover it) I think that this is evidence enough to suggest that yes, he actually would do it.

by rhcom2 9y ago

carry_bit 9y ago

Average gun owner != average CCW holder who would be carrying at that moment

Frondo 9y ago
Oh, man. Having known a bunch of CCW holders who also carry their guns with them at all times, I would be far more scared of those guys in this situation, full stop. They talk tough, but I have zero confidence in their ability to add the good kind of violence to a violent situation. Sooooooo overconfident, smh.
- Frondo 9y ago
  Heh heh, struck a nerve with some CCW holders ;)
rhcom2 9y ago
CCW holder just means you took a class (in most states).

matte_black 9y ago

It has nothing to do with being the hero. People who are a good law abiding citizens should not be denied the right to own firearms because some people misbehave. This is just a result of America’s individualist society. If we were collectivists we would ban guns for the good of society. But we’re not, and we never will be. We’re rugged individualists, for better or worse, and some people actively vote for things that make their lives worse just to uphold that value. It’s what America was built on. I don’t see a problem with it. It’s just a different way of life.

icebraining 9y ago
Very few Western countries actually ban guns. Sweden, for example, has 2M registered guns (21 for each 100 persons). Germany has 5.5M. In the Czech Republic you can get a PAR MK3 (local version of the AR15).
- matte_black 9y ago
  But can you own an AR-15?
  - eric_h 9y ago
    According to [0], it looks like you could even own the full auto military version (the M16). 0)https://www.sweden.org.za/gun-laws-in-sweden.html https://www.sweden.org.za/gun-laws-in-sweden.html
  - Natanael_L 9y ago
    The current laws in Sweden - the short version is that you need a justified reason (hunting or "shooting club"), you need to pass tests and not have a recent criminal record. Fully automatic weapons are much harder to get permits for than standard ones. https://polisen.se/lagar-och-regler/vapen-regler-och-tillstand/ https://polisen.se/lagar-och-regler/vapen-regler-och-tillsta...
- HarryHirsch 9y ago
  To the best of my knowledge in Germany it's mostly long guns for hunting, not handguns. To carry a handgun you'd need a permit and demonstrate your need to be armed.
kmonsen 9y ago
You are just a sheep parroting NRA and not a rugged individual. Citizens shooting back in a crisis only makes things worse, how do you know who is the real shooter now? Have you ever been in a shooting situation? If you are not trained for it it is terrifying and it is unlikely you will make a positive difference.

disease 9y ago

Bear in mind that after the recent Florida school shooting, the President of the United States declared that if he were there, he would have, despite being unarmed, physically overpowered the shooter and saved the day. If that is not worrying enough, half of the country believed him when he said that.

HarryHirsch 9y ago
Good for Trump that he said that. He has an imposing physique, and he might just have impressed the disturbed kid enough to put down his gun. (Ten years ago there was a school shooting in Germany where a teacher did stop a student that way.) But we must respect the decision of the policeman in Florida who found himself outgunned not to confront the shooter, first responders are trained not to be heroes and to keep their life first priority.
- FireBeyond 9y ago
  > Good for Trump that he said that. He has an imposing physique Okay, while attempting to be as neutral and objective as possible, Trump is an obese geriatric. He's decently tall, 6' or so. But that's about it. https://proxy.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse2.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.Bg348jD5p4XHcu6LJuAPWwHaIM%26pid%3D15.1&f=1 https://proxy.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse2.mm.bin...
Lapsa 9y ago
[citation needed]
burfog 9y ago
This is a man who got out of his limo to confront a mugger in Manhattan. (old news articles cover it) I think that this is evidence enough to suggest that yes, he actually would do it.