I'm tired of it.
Bear in mind that the majority of the police forces in the UK (except for Northern Ireland) do not carry firearms; only specially-trained officers have permission to do so. However officers are armed with non-lethal alternatives such as Tasers or incapacitant sprays which are subject to the same regulations.
I don't hate guns per se. I have family members who served in the military. I know people who are responsible gun owners. What frightens me is the "wild west" mentality, that there are too many people who use their guns as tools of intimidation, or worse. The notion of open-carry makes me more nervous.
A few months ago I took part in a conversation with a gun enthusiast who, among other things, decried other countries as weak and said that they would no longer exist if the U.S. hadn't been involved in World War II. He then went further and added, "We can walk right in if we wanted to and take what we want," before posting a photo of his personal sidearm. I interpreted that action as a threat and immediately blocked him.
Someone I have known for a long time has, in recent years, become extremely pro-gun. On almost a daily basis he posts gun-related articles and images on his Facebook wall and he fully supports open-carry. That's his prerogative. But when he began to encourage his fellow gun-owners to defy state legislations concerning background checks and other gun controls, that's when I had to draw the line and limit my conversations with him. I eventually unfollowed him with great regret because I just couldn't bear to see his arguments any more.
More guns isn't the answer. We should have more open dialogue with the disaffected. There needs to be more services for people struggling with mental illness. And there must be better controls so that people who are more likely to become violent won't end up hurting so many others. Sadly, in many countries there isn't the money or the political will to do that.
As two members of my household recently took their firearms safety training, a course that took some 16 hours to complete, I am acutely aware of how many hoops gun owners in Canada have to jump through. There is a purpose to the training and a reason we don't allow people to store unsecured or loaded weapons, let alone to carry a sidearm in the streets.
ReplyDeleteI quite agree about the Wild West mentality and the belligerence of some "gun enthusiasts." It's the swagger of blowhards who have little concern for anything but proving their testosterone levels that is behind so many of the violent incidents involving guns.