Signature thread about gun control and gun violence

[Sagrei]

I am flatly, unapologetically, afraid of guns. Hate having them around, refuse to ever keep one in my home, don't even like seeing them on cops' service belts.

A friend of mine is into guns. He has some handguns, a large and imposing rifley thing, an old world-war-one frontloading whatsit, and a concealed-carry permit. Scared the hell out of me the first time I saw them all lying in a pile on his bed -- he'd been cleaning them and hadn't thought to clear them away before I arrived. I am a city girl, and in the city, guns are only ever used to kill people. (And the occasional gator, but in Florida that's a given.)

So, instead of mocking me for it, or calling me some kind of campfire-singing hippie, he sat me down and explained it. He liked the mechanics of the things, the physics involved. Liked practicing shooting at a firing range. And, yes, yerdamnright he liked knowing that if he was put in danger he could defend himself, and anyone who happened to be with him.

You know what? I liked that too. If I ever wind up in a dark alley on the bad side of some scary-ass town, I hope to hell I have that friend with me, cos he'd have his gun and know how to use it. If someone tried to rape or mug me, my friend would stop my attacker, get me somewhere safe, and then call the police. In that order.

Another guy I know works as a police dispatcher. He takes 911 calls, then sends out the cops and emergency workers. He's got some scary-ass stories to tell, and he's told me lots of them.

Talking to those two made me re-evaluate a lot of things. I'm still scared as hell of guns, and I still don't want one in my home. I've got a big dog with an even bigger bark, so I'm not too worried about my home being broken into. (Cop-friend explained that: the best deterrent to a prowler is a big-barked dog. They don't know how big or how aggressive it may be, so they'll just saunter off next door.) But if any friend of mine owns a gun, or tells me they're going to buy one, I will not argue with them. I'll hope they are never put in a place where they need to use it, but if they are.. I'll be damn happy they've got it.

America's a rough place. Very violent. And a good chunk of Americans absolutely are aggressive shitheads. I'm not sure it's the guns themselves that are the problem... as mentioned above, many European nations have a higher ratio of guns to people. Whatever the problem is in America, it's cultural. I haven't the first idea how to change that. Background checks before sales? Sure. Required gun-safety courses? Fantastic! But I'm not about to tell someone they shouldn't have a gun if it makes them feel safe. You can't make all the black-market guns disappear, and no police force has the manpower or finances to try.

None of this applies to machine guns, though. Dude, unless you're in the military, you don't need a Kalashnikov. That's like the mid-life-crisis-car of guns.

(on preview: why is it I'm not at all afraid of alligators, who show NO fear of people, but this casual talk of human-avoiding bears gives me the wibblies? Wild Bear = OMG RUN AWAY. What's that about?)

[ICKessler]

I'm not going to comment on the gun debate but I know trolling when I see it.
I hope this thread is locked soon.

I find your images at the beginning of this thread to be inappropriate.

[Joey]

This has got to be the ugliest debate I've ever seen on NC. I don't care about either side of the argument, it's just ugly. Nasty and hard to follow, I can't believe I read the whole thing. Both sides are ugly.

This needs to be locked for sheer ugliness. Unlock or yell at me later, but I don't see this getting any less ugly.

I'll stick with my swords.

[Jazzy]

I hate to bump a locked thread, but...usually, my decisions are explained in public, so this one will be.

I would like you to tone down your signature, because you do now know that people do not like several aspects of it. I am asking you to do this when I could remove it myself (yes, permanently; technically I could even make it so you can't have a signature again) because I do not tend to make authoritarian decisions. Enough people have said that they do not like the image, the wording, and the flashiness, so I am asking you to change it.

You're not being victimised by the Klu Klux Klan. You're being asked by the admin to tone down your signature so that it is no longer a) flashy and b) inappropriate. You have a week, and if it's not toned down in that time I will remove it myself. Reduce it to one still slide with no "bitch" in 32pt font and I'll be happy.

And if anyone disagrees with me, feel free to PM me.