...I think the point about gun owners being less outraged than non gun owners is an important one. If you listen to many people who are adamant gun control supporters, they often (mistakenly) believe that people simply shoot others because they are impulsive and angry, and a gun is nearby. My guess is that this is projection. This is what they feel they would do because they do not know how to modulate their own anger. They do not trust their own instincts (maybe with good reason!) and project their anger and inability to control themselves onto others. Most legal gun owners seem to have better anger management and control than the rest of the population. In fact, studies with kids who own legal firearms show them to have fewer behavioral problems, not more. The psychology of gun owners vs. non gun owners is important to understand in the ongoing debate about guns.
drhelen.blogspot.com
Michael Maier said...
I wish I had more money. I'd have a lot more guns and be at the range a whole lot more.
In my experience, anti-gun folks tend to be foolish utopians. They think "there oughta be law" for every unpleasant possibility in life, regardless of how much it infringes on others.
They also think dialing 911 is the solution to everything, including rapes, deadly assaults and break-ins already in progress.
8:00 PM, April 19, 2008
drhelen.blogspot.com
Adrian said...
I definitely think that what has been said about gun ownership in general is absolutely true about concealed carry. I think a lot of the critics don't really know what it is like to carry. You can't casually stop by the liquor store or pick your kids up from school. If you get into a fight with some guy on the street and it escalates into a serious confrontation you have to wonder if a jury is going to think you instigated it or did not live up to your duty to flee (in states where you have one). And, even if you are comfortable with it not being criminal, how comfortable are you with civil court where the rules of evidence are completely different (but where your life can get ruined just the same by a severe enough judgment against you)?
It's a big deal having a gun on you. You are constantly aware of it and the potential legal consequences of carrying it. You don't just not shoot off your gun, you don't shoot off your mouth too much, either. You don't flip people off on the road. You certainly don't go around brandishing it or telling people you have it. In fact, you are usually worried a little about what kind of print it is making at any given moment through your clothes. It's almost like a handicap that keeps you acting just so even when everyone else can be kind of an ass about things and otherwise act a lot more freely.
12:00 PM, April 20, 2008
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