If you want to carry guns, that's fine, just don't shoot me.
i take it you are referring to the republican bent towards laws that allow the average law-abiding citizen to carry handguns if they so choose and pass the requisite background check. see here's the thing... these are NOT the people you need to worry about shooting you. the people you need to worry about shooting you are the reason why those people want the right to carry guns themselves.
the funny thing to note about gun laws, is that only law-abiding people obey them. the people that would shoot you are
not in that group.
i was one of three victims of a studio robbery in northern California several years ago. i owned a 9mm handgun at the time, and had it in a concealed holster in my waistband.... i walked next door to the unit adjacent to me where two guys had a small writing studio space... to get back a few mic stands they'd borrowed from me as i needed them for a session. the door opened and a guy i did not recognize opened the door and was very hostile toward me... another guy came from behind me on the walkway (he had been loading the car with equipment stolen from my neighbors) and shoved me from behind into the grasp of the guy inside... who promptly put a Tech-9 to my head and marched me to the back room, where my two neighbors were lying face down on the floor. they forced me to the floor, gun to the back of my head, and told me that i would be shot if i made a move or a sound. the 3 of us lie there looking at each other nervously after the 2 accomplices left the back room we were in....
the two pillaged the place, taking everything they could. one guy staying inside to make sure we didn't move while the other made multiple trips to their vehicle to load the stolen gear.
finally we heard the two discussing from the other room whether or not they should kill us, as we'd seen their faces. it was at that point that i carefully pulled out my gun, disengaged the safety, and cycled the slide as quietly as i could, to chamber a round... still not sure if they heard that... because suddenly we could not hear them... a few minutes went by with no sound from the other rooms.... i finally got up and checked. they were gone. we called the police and they were captured.... get this, their getaway car (that had been being driven by their
girlfriends!!) broke down on our street. ha, idiots.
anyway, i never pulled that weapon until i heard them discussing whether or not they should kill us... that's when i made up my mind that if they returned to that room i would shoot them down, to defend my life and the lives of my two neighbors.
if any political party EVER tries to take away my right to carry a self-defense weapon should i choose to (and i don't often choose to, to be clear... only when i feel a bit unsafe, as i did in Oakland most all the damned time) i will fight against them, with my vote. should such restrictions pass to law, i will... as well many hundreds of thousands of others... become a criminal... as i was in Oakland that day, since i was not legal to carry the gun concealed... because i refuse to be told that i shall not have any recourse to defend myself from a gun-wielding criminal who will not obey any gun control laws anyway.
I consider myself a democrat when it comes down to it... although i really wanted Ron Paul to become our next president..., but i'lll Vote McCain in a quick minute if Obama doesn't back off his stance on legally owned guns.
history also compels me... one of the first things the nazis did was, "in the interest of public safety", to take away the German people's guns... the previously legally owned guns.
anyone who thinks gun laws will stop gun crime is delusional. see, that's the thing about criminals... they don't obey the law. it's kinda what makes 'em, you know... criminals. i wish all guns and weapons of every type would just disappear from the face of the planet. but that's not gonna happen, and i will not become a statistic, without a fight.
we have a "Castle" law here in Florida.. that states essentially that your home is your castle and you may defend it with deadly force if necessarry... basically, if someone breaks into your home, or trespasses on your property, and then threatens your safety or the safety of your family, you are righteous to blow them away.... and as there have been home invasion robberies within 8 miles of my home, i sit as i type this with a loaded .32 caliber revolver right in front of me, underneath my digi interfaces. try, just try, to make me feel bad or wrong about that.
sorry for the huge OT rant, but hey... you mentioned it. and yeah... boo on coastal drilling.
