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The second amendment is most important for communities where police are failing in their role of serving and protecting. Cops don't have a duty to protect or a

by cwkoss 5y ago

The second amendment is most important for communities where police are failing in their role of serving and protecting. Cops don't have a duty to protect or a requirement to respond to calls promptly. Historically and currently, the police provide less protection to racial minorities. (Including some examples where being armed has prevented violence by police against racial minorities - guns arguably played a significant role in achieving black suffrage) I'm a privileged white dude who doesn't feel the need to own a gun, but I strongly believe we must balance gun control measures to ensure that a black single mother with reasonable fears of violence living in an underserved community can protect her own family with a gun when that is effectively her only option.

dragonwriter 5y ago
> strongly believe we must balance gun control measures to ensure that a black single mother with reasonable fears of violence living in an underserved community can protect her own family with a gun when that is effectively her only option. I strongly believe that if we have underserved communities where black single mothers reasonably fear that a gun is effectively their only option to protect their family from violence, we need to fix that problem and discussing any other response to that situatiin is analogous to debating the set list for the band on the _RMS Titanic_ in terms of actually solving problems.
- AnimalMuppet 5y ago
  Yes, we need to fix that problem. Absolutely. But when is that going to happen? Not today, and probably not this year. In the meantime, that black single mother is out there, needing to protect herself and her children. It's not either/or.
- thomastjeffery 5y ago
  If we can save the Titanic, maybe it's worthwhile for some of us to argue over the band.
- cwkoss 5y ago
  Yes, you have correctly identified the prerequisite societal change that must be made before passing gun control legislation that would infringe this hypothetical person's access to firearms. It is frustrating to frequently see white suburbanites with a savior complex rallying for gun control while never addressing the reasons why gun ownership rates are higher in underserved and rural communities: because the police do not adequately protect these populations. That political energy would be much better spent on fixing the root of the problem rather than they symptom of it.
  - robcohen 5y ago
    > fixing the root of the problem The issue I have with this line of thinking is that you are assuming this is fixable at all. What are you going to do, place a police station on every farm to market road in America? Another way of putting this -- when seconds count, remember that police are only minutes away.
    - cwkoss 5y ago
      Yeah, even if we permanently solved crime somehow, dealing with aggressive large predator wildlife is another oversight of national level gun control absolutists. Assuming we want to continue allow humans to camp in the wilderness, I think we should allow people in remote areas to have guns as a last resort protection measure.

by cwkoss 5y ago

dragonwriter 5y ago

> strongly believe we must balance gun control measures to ensure that a black single mother with reasonable fears of violence living in an underserved community can protect her own family with a gun when that is effectively her only option. I strongly believe that if we have underserved communities where black single mothers reasonably fear that a gun is effectively their only option to protect their family from violence, we need to fix that problem and discussing any other response to that situatiin is analogous to debating the set list for the band on the _RMS Titanic_ in terms of actually solving problems.

AnimalMuppet 5y ago
Yes, we need to fix that problem. Absolutely. But when is that going to happen? Not today, and probably not this year. In the meantime, that black single mother is out there, needing to protect herself and her children. It's not either/or.
thomastjeffery 5y ago
If we can save the Titanic, maybe it's worthwhile for some of us to argue over the band.
cwkoss 5y ago
Yes, you have correctly identified the prerequisite societal change that must be made before passing gun control legislation that would infringe this hypothetical person's access to firearms. It is frustrating to frequently see white suburbanites with a savior complex rallying for gun control while never addressing the reasons why gun ownership rates are higher in underserved and rural communities: because the police do not adequately protect these populations. That political energy would be much better spent on fixing the root of the problem rather than they symptom of it.
- robcohen 5y ago
  > fixing the root of the problem The issue I have with this line of thinking is that you are assuming this is fixable at all. What are you going to do, place a police station on every farm to market road in America? Another way of putting this -- when seconds count, remember that police are only minutes away.
  - cwkoss 5y ago
    Yeah, even if we permanently solved crime somehow, dealing with aggressive large predator wildlife is another oversight of national level gun control absolutists. Assuming we want to continue allow humans to camp in the wilderness, I think we should allow people in remote areas to have guns as a last resort protection measure.