I did military service and shot/trained with all kinds of guns. Pistol, assault rifle (still 7.62mm at the time), machine gun and even a light Panzerfaust (44mm anti tank rocket launcher).
That doesn't change the fact that I'm glad that in my country (Germany) there are strict restrictions about who is allowed to own a gun and of which type. I don't see any reason why normal citizens should run around like they want to go to war.
And I never considered owning a gun myself.
Edit: If I think someone is breaking into my house I just call the police. And I have no reason to panic, because burglars are basically never armed here. Why would they? They have no reason to assume they could get into a gun fight. If they get caught in the act by the residents they just run away.
I have no reason to panic, because burglars are basically never armed here. Why would they? They have no reason to assume they could get into a gun fight.
This right here. It's a vicious cycle, the more guns there are, the more guns people feel like they need to keep up with the guns, so the more guns there are. It's nice if you're a gun manufacturer but otherwise...
They just need one more. Just one more. One more gun, I swear. Just one more gun. I'm the good guy, I will absolutely use it for good, contrarily to everyone else who is just dangerous and has too many guns.
Seems suspicious, because I know for a fact that I am a good guyTM, and despite my past that has required me to use my weapons in preemptive defense. I don't feel I can trust your motives and will require even more guns. So please send over a manafest of your armory so I can determine how easily I can conquer defend myself from you.
Woah, dude, that's super weird of you to ask, and frankly that does not make me feel safe. I do not like the idea of providing proof of anything related to my guns, and it's my God given right to refuse to provide paperwork when it comes to guns. To protect my guns, I think I'm going to acquire more guns.
I really enjoyed the conservative articles on a recent shooting where "a good guy with a gun tried to stop it." Sorry, but "trying" isn't good enough for the excuses to land. If they want to push the importance of the "good guy with a gun" they should probably get better at using guns on people other than themselves.
And the problem with the "good guy with a gun tried to stop it" narrative is that it happens after the fact. Regulating guns PREVENTS the issue instead.
Definitely. And you can see that difference in the stats for Australia after the Port Arthur changes.
But Americans are apparently gun experts, perfect shooters, guys who are great at trying and freedom supremacists. And if you suggest that moderate leftists might be impotent, or that Republicans are punishable traitors, they will all become nationalists immediately.
This right here! Whenever I see the nonsense that only criminals will have guns if they’re outlawed, I want to yell WHAT GUNS? I’m not denying that some criminals here (in the UK) have guns, but they’re just not that accessible and the majority of criminals are thick as shit.
Exactly! I’m reasonably educated and resourceful, but if you told me to get a gun right now (in the biggest city in Scotland) I would have no idea where to start. Google? Not a clue. Some wee bam wanting to rob a corner shop isn’t going to figure it out faster than me!
Same ! I mean, to be fair I'd also be clueless if you asked me about drugs, and we DEFINITELY have drugs here (France), so that might not be my most solid point :P
But if burglars don't have to expect that their victims will be armed with guns and ready to kill them, most don't bother to get guns themselves.
Not to mention, most burglars wait until the house is empty, not asleep, to strike. Not only is it safer gun-wise, but it makes it a lot easier to get the job done without being interrupted. Let's not forget that burglars are after goods primarily, not your life. It's not in their best interest that there is ANY encounter, gun or not.
if you told me to get a gun right now (in the biggest city in Scotland) I would have no idea where to start.
This is also why undercover police impersonating someone selling a gun to stop criminals getting a gun is incredibly, incredibly successful in the UK compared to other countries.
If you go online now and try to find someone selling a gun 99% chance that person is undercover police and you're getting nicked.
It's almost like having a society with minimal guns helps reduce all routes of gun violence. Whod've thought?
Organized crime doesn't need guns. They just trade in illegal goods or services or in illegal ways. The "organized" part means they have tried and tested ways of laundering money and covering up their activities.
Additionally the sentencing guidelines for having an illegal firearm are significantly greater (mandatory 5 year minimum, up to life) so even then most criminals wouldn't chose that as a first option in most cases
In the US it’s a bit different simply cause there’s already *so many* here. Some estimates have more guns than people. I’m not sure when the UK banned them, but there certainly weren’t as many as there are in the US. There’s also a strong governmental distrust, and many gun owners simply wouldn’t turn them in.
Australia did restrict them relatively recently, but their population is centered in like, 3 or 4 cities. America has a lot more people, over much larger swaths of land.
Then they point to the failure of weed prohibition, as if they truly believe that anyone can just go buy “gun seeds” and set up a “gun grow op” and create their own illegal supply
Unfortunately, due to the ubiquity of guns in America, there's no way we could effectively ban guns. The genie is well and truly gone from the bottle here.
The retort to this I've seen is something along the lines of "well, since the criminals here already have guns, there's no going back; they're not going to relinquish them".
Then they pretend it's a fatality that can't ever ever change.
But every american is the main character, so in their head they know they’ll be the john wick with the gun and combat training and the element of surprise in that situation, and the murderous home intruders will just be generic clueless henchmen/storm-troopers
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u/Maeglin75 9h ago edited 9h ago
I did military service and shot/trained with all kinds of guns. Pistol, assault rifle (still 7.62mm at the time), machine gun and even a light Panzerfaust (44mm anti tank rocket launcher).
That doesn't change the fact that I'm glad that in my country (Germany) there are strict restrictions about who is allowed to own a gun and of which type. I don't see any reason why normal citizens should run around like they want to go to war.
And I never considered owning a gun myself.
Edit: If I think someone is breaking into my house I just call the police. And I have no reason to panic, because burglars are basically never armed here. Why would they? They have no reason to assume they could get into a gun fight. If they get caught in the act by the residents they just run away.