Adventures in Logic ~ Lesson 1: Responsible Owners

[JoB]

CM

no apologies needed

your query was an upgrade

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[DBP]

Responsible gun owners are not the problem.

Or are they?

It depends.

To the extent that responsible owners keep their weapons out of harms’ way, and to the extent that they model good behavior for others, they are a force for good in the world.

To the extent that they stand fast against ALL gun control measures, and to the extent they pressure lawmakers to knuckle under to the NRA, they are a force for bad.

Unfortunately, there are still many so-called responsible owners out there (well-intentioned people, mind you) who are acting as a force for bad.

But we can still turn that around. I dream of a day when responsible gun owners step up to their social responsibilities and ditch the NRA in favor of a more reasonable approach. If that happens, then our country can move forward with sensible gun control that will protect citizens AND protect gun owners’ rights.

On the other hand, if gun owners allow the NRA to continue representing them, what we will end up with is more bloodshed and more national rancor, culminating in gun laws that many are likely to find draconian.

That’s just the way social change works. As JFK said, when you make peaceful change impossible, you make violent change inevitable.

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[CM]

DBP

See my post 23 above, paragraphs 2 and 3.

Since I can’t vote the NRA to go away, and am not in a position to start an “Anti NRA for responsible gun owners with a social conscience” (That’s going to make an awfully awkward acronym, isn’t it?) I don’t know how to do anything about them except not support them financially, which then, as I said, means I have no voice in their org.

Serious question, then: So what’s a boy to do? I don’t know how to start, much less operate an organization that powerful. I don’t have the wherewithal or the time (pesky bills) to run something like that, but I, and the majority of my friends and probably many more, would support that organization fully.

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[DBP]

You’re off the hook, CM. You don’t have to do anything except to continue not joining the NRA. It also helps that you’ve differentiated yourself from their position of stonewalling all change. Good karma.

If you’re at the shooting range someday, and you find someone making the assumption that since you’re a gun owner, you must follow the NRA line too, it would help if you set them straight.

For example, you could go: “No, I don’t agree with everything the NRA says.”

That would have a big impact, since the NRA likes to portray themselves as speaking for all gun owners. Which they don’t.

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[redblack]

DP:

If you wanna drive a car in this state you have to take a test, buy a license, and buy expensive liability insurance.

i generally agree with the consensus that’s forming here, so i’ve kept my big yapper shut.

but i think that comparing gun ownership, licensing, and responsibility to anything else – especially cars – is a mistake. guns are weapons. period. their sole purpose is to fire a projectile into a living organism for the purposes of stopping or killing it.

if we allow a comparison with something that is increasingly a necessity in a society which won’t pay for public transportation, we’re allowing the status quo a good number of valid arguments against tighter legislation. and the chief among them is freedom of choice.

i seek a system which makes it impossible for the irresponsible and mentally ill among us to obtain weapons of mass destruction and more inconvenient and expensive for those who are responsible.

then again, considering the way people drive and the number of fatalities they cause with cars…

nonetheless, for those of us who rely on them, cars mostly have a positive and useful impact on our day-to-day lives. (i’m sure cyclists have a different opinion on that.)

guns? not so much.

responsible owners may see them as a deterrent or a defense against criminals, but irresponsible people see guns as something to be stolen and used to obtain what they want by force for free.

just pointing out that comparing cars and guns may lead to a slippery slope.

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[CM]

“For example, you could go: “No, I don’t agree with everything the NRA says.” “

Wait. You mean talk to a real person face to face? No, no, no. It’s much easier to type with my imaginary net-people. ;)

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[DBP]

Thank you as always for the circumspection, redblack.

CM: As a gun owner, any appeal to reason that you make automatically carries with it more weight than a similar appeal coming from the likes of me.

If you’re for real – and I hope you are – then you, sir, are pure gold.

Good karma and Merry Christmas.

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[CM]

I try.

Thank you, and the same to you. Let’s hope the coming New Year brings us all positive changes and closer to a better world. Peace.

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[CM]

Oh, sorry. I should add two things:

DBP:

1. If ever given the chance, I’d be honored to buy your choice of beverage, I just don’t get out much, especially lately.

2. Since I try to educate, or at least help people understand, if you ever want to go to a range and shoot (or be taught how to shoot if you haven’t) let me know, it’s on me. Sometimes experiencing goes a long way towards understanding, as I figure you already know.

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