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What do you tell someone...?

22K views 72 replies 57 participants last post by  SCmasterblaster 
#1 ·
So I was curious about what you tell someone or maybe discussions you have had about why you bought a firearm?

I am getting a lot of flak from people who are not familiar with firearms and against my purchase (too bad for them) and just don't understand why someone would buy a gun.

What do you guys say to someone who is afraid of firearms?
 
#2 ·
Just explain as I did to my mother(only person I know against it) that you choose to willing to protect your home and person, gives you a feeling of security. Also shooting is a great past time enjoyed by millions of Americans everyday and a right written out in our constitution. Maybe offer to take them to the range and show them that all owners are not criminals and nuts.
 
#3 ·
It's a hobby like many others. You read about guns and you clean your guns and at times you shoot your guns. You always look for new guns to buy. Almost like golf in a way, however, you also take the time to learn how to be safe with guns and an added bonus is that you can protect yourself and your family if you every had to.
 
#4 ·
I don't generally break out "it's my Right" when having these types of discussions. Most people that are anti-firearm don't believe we have a Right to own guns in the first place and the conversations now has doubled to a conversation about the Constitution as well.

Personally, if I see even the slightest chance, I try to get them to go shooting with me one time. I believe I have the training and experience to safely and effectivly introduce a new shooter to the world of firearms. I have a .22 Ruger handgun with a suppressor that I always start people that have never shot a firearm off with. No recoil, and with the suppressor, it's very quiet. It takes the fear and loud noise out of the picture so the person can focus on learning that handguns aren't the devil. I gradually move them up from there.

Many people are receptive and willing to accept your reasons if you have calm discussions with a smile on your face. I know some people like to jump up out of their seat and start screaming about this reason and that but that does nothing but heat the situation. Every anti that gets converted is another person on our side. :)
 
#5 ·
The first thing I would do is not go out telling everybody; maybe you are getting a lot of flak because you are telling people that don't need to know about it? Honestly if someone came over to me and out of nothing told me they own guns I would be a little iffy too.

My parents always knew I liked guns and they were actually surprised it took me so long to get my first one. I've take them to the range and they did ok, still don't like it but I think they are more accepting and undertanding. When I was dating my wife I told her about it, showed it to her and took her to the range. She is fine with me caring around the house.

I think many people fear things they don't know/understand, and once they are properly introduced the fear subsides to a point where they either like it or at least are ok with being around guns. Education is key, but also do not force the issue. If someone is not willing do not push or it will only get worse!
 
#6 ·
I usually don't bring it up unless it becomes a topic of conversation. Even then I try and stay as gray as possible. As an instructor a lot of my acquaintances know that I carry always, but one of the things that I teach in CCW classes is to stay the gray man or woman. In the event it does come to "that" discussion I usually compare it to any other tool. A power drill or circular saw is dangerous when used improperly. But you just need to accept the fact that there are some people who will never understand, save yourself the grief and don't try to make them. Carrying is a very personal and private decision, better to keep it that way.
 
#7 ·
I agree 100% with telememo and Occam's Razor...

I never bring up the subject of guns unless someone else brings it up first... or unless I know their stance and agree with them of course...

Some people only know one thing about guns... They hate them! And those types of people are usually quite loud and obnoxious about it... They usually think guns are evil... They don't understand that guns are inanimate objects that rely on people to manipulate them. I usually avoid the "gun" discussion with these people...
 
#25 ·
I agree with Occam's Razor and __jb as well... I do not flaunt my carry firearm nor do I ever speak of it unless I'm asked. When the subject does come up I sincerely explain that I was raised with firearms and have a healthy understanding and respect for them. If the subject continues I will mention my former law enforcement status or my son's current LEO status and move on :cool:
 
#8 ·
If they have a family ask them what the average response time is for the police in their town. Upon their answer, tell them, "Well, that seems like a long time to watch a bad guy attack your family before the cops get there".

or you can simply tell them that......

The gun removes the disparity in physical strength, size, or numbers between a potential attacker and
a defender.
 
#9 ·
I can't remember a single time i'v ever had someone ask me out of the blue if i owned a gun.
But hay ,i guess it could happen.

Now the wife on the other hand gets asked " dont u think its dangerous haveing a gun in the house with the kids " after they ask her what i do for a living.
She just says with a smile NO of coures not ,its just like a carpenter needs a hammer to do there job ,its just a tool he needs to do his job ,and that with the proper training a gun is not something to be scared of.
She also tells them that our daughters understand that the guns we have r for work and for self defense ,and that as soon as there old enough ( oldest is starting this summer ) we will go as a family to shoot .
She tells me that after she says this most ppl just move on to another topic. Oh well.
 
#11 ·
This is my answer too. Let them "bust" some caps. Everyone I've taken shooting LOVED IT!!! You get to do all the safety training and shooting training, thus showing just how responsible and knowledgeable you are, and they get to have a blast (pun intended). Some even ended up buying a handgun. BTW, I start everyone off with one the .22 pistols.
 
#12 ·
If someone asks me why I carry a gun and what am I afraid of, I tell them that I'm afraid of nothing. I worked for the Florida Department of Corrections for three years when I got out of the Army many years ago. Spent a lot of time in the records department reading what some of them were in for. Scarey stuff and that was back in the early eighties. Now theres more nuts running around. I refuse to be a victim.
 
#13 ·
I would agree that just bringing up the topic isnt the best idea.... Unless of course you are at the range, then you can talk guns til' they close :). People that are ultra anti-gun... Theres not really any changing them. I have a couple of friends that are very liberal; they saw my gun once, started to ask me "do you really need that?". I replied id rather have it than not. I guess since we were friends they dropped it at that and the subject was never brought back up. Had they asked anything past that with a condescending tone I would have just left.
 
#14 ·
Well the person I had to respond to was and still is my wife. I merely examined to her that it's better to have some home protection than none, she was not completely convinced and still " hated " guns, I took her to the range and she just about pooped herself when she fired my glock 23c for the first time ( she's 4"11 110# ) but now we go twice monthly and she gets a kick out of it so IMHO get them to a range and let them shoot and just be honest why you have a firearm.
 
#15 ·
This is a cut and paste from another thread I started but it still applies.


Human beings only have two ways to deal with one another: reason and force. If you want me to do something for you, you have a choice of either convincing me via argument, or force me to do your bidding under threat of force. Every human interaction falls into one of those two categories, without exception. Reason or force, that’s it.

In a truly moral and civilized society, people exclusively interact through persuasion. Force has no place as a valid method of social interaction, and the only thing that removes force from the menu is the personal firearm, as paradoxical as it may sound to some.

When I carry a gun, you cannot deal with me by force. You have to use reason and try to persuade me, because I have a way to negate your threat or employment of force. The gun is the only personal weapon that puts a 100-pound woman on equal footing with a 220-pound mugger, a 75-year old retiree on equal footing with a 19-year old gangbanger, and a single gay guy on equal footing with a carload of drunk guys with baseball bats. The gun removes the disparity in physical strength, size, or numbers between a potential attacker and a defender.

There are plenty of people who consider the gun as the source of bad force equations. These are the people who think that we’d be more civilized if all guns were removed from society, because a firearm makes it easier for a mugger to do his job. That, of course, is only true if the mugger’s potential victims are mostly disarmed either by choice or by legislative fiat–it has no validity when most of a mugger’s potential marks are armed. People who argue for the banning of arms ask for automatic rule by the young, the strong, and the many, and that’s the exact opposite of a civilized society. A mugger, even an armed one, can only make a successful living in a society where the state has granted him a force monopoly.

Then there’s the argument that the gun makes confrontations lethal that otherwise would only result in injury. This argument is fallacious in several ways. Without guns involved, confrontations are won by the physically superior party inflicting overwhelming injury on the loser. People who think that fists, bats, sticks, or stones don’t constitute lethal force watch too much TV, where people take beatings and come out of it with a bloody lip at worst. The fact that the gun makes lethal force easier works solely in favor of the weaker defender, not the stronger attacker. If both are armed, the field is level. The gun is the only weapon that’s as lethal in the hands of an octogenarian as it is in the hands of a weightlifter. It simply wouldn’t work as well as a force equalizer if it wasn’t both lethal and easily employable.

When I carry a gun, I don’t do so because I am looking for a fight, but because I’m looking to be left alone. The gun at my side means that I cannot be forced, only persuaded. I don’t carry it because I’m afraid, but because it enables me to be unafraid. It doesn’t limit the actions of those who would interact with me through reason, only the actions of those who would do so by force. It removes force from the equation…and that’s why carrying a gun is a civilized act.
 
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#44 ·
This is a cut and paste from another thread I started but it still applies.

Human beings only have two ways to deal with one another: reason and force. If you want me to do something for you, you have a choice of either convincing me via argument, or force me to do your bidding under threat of force. Every human interaction falls into one of those two categories, without exception. Reason or force, that's it.

In a truly moral and civilized society, people exclusively interact through persuasion. Force has no place as a valid method of social interaction, and the only thing that removes force from the menu is the personal firearm, as paradoxical as it may sound to some.

When I carry a gun, you cannot deal with me by force. You have to use reason and try to persuade me, because I have a way to negate your threat or employment of force. The gun is the only personal weapon that puts a 100-pound woman on equal footing with a 220-pound mugger, a 75-year old retiree on equal footing with a 19-year old gangbanger, and a single gay guy on equal footing with a carload of drunk guys with baseball bats. The gun removes the disparity in physical strength, size, or numbers between a potential attacker and a defender.

There are plenty of people who consider the gun as the source of bad force equations. These are the people who think that we'd be more civilized if all guns were removed from society, because a firearm makes it easier for a mugger to do his job. That, of course, is only true if the mugger's potential victims are mostly disarmed either by choice or by legislative fiat-it has no validity when most of a mugger's potential marks are armed. People who argue for the banning of arms ask for automatic rule by the young, the strong, and the many, and that's the exact opposite of a civilized society. A mugger, even an armed one, can only make a successful living in a society where the state has granted him a force monopoly.

Then there's the argument that the gun makes confrontations lethal that otherwise would only result in injury. This argument is fallacious in several ways. Without guns involved, confrontations are won by the physically superior party inflicting overwhelming injury on the loser. People who think that fists, bats, sticks, or stones don't constitute lethal force watch too much TV, where people take beatings and come out of it with a bloody lip at worst. The fact that the gun makes lethal force easier works solely in favor of the weaker defender, not the stronger attacker. If both are armed, the field is level. The gun is the only weapon that's as lethal in the hands of an octogenarian as it is in the hands of a weightlifter. It simply wouldn't work as well as a force equalizer if it wasn't both lethal and easily employable.

When I carry a gun, I don't do so because I am looking for a fight, but because I'm looking to be left alone. The gun at my side means that I cannot be forced, only persuaded. I don't carry it because I'm afraid, but because it enables me to be unafraid. It doesn't limit the actions of those who would interact with me through reason, only the actions of those who would do so by force. It removes force from the equation…and that's why carrying a gun is a civilized act.
sfguard, This is without a doubt one of the most well thought out and succinct responses I've read on this subject.
It isn't condescending, angry, or submissive. Thanks for your well thought out discourse. I hope with your permission
to be able to print this out and let some of my anti gun acquaintances read it.

David
aka ccoprdc
 
#16 ·
I`ve been asked why I have guns and I simply say that I dont wish to leave the safety of my family to law enforcement. If someone enters you home with your family there, it is the most dangerous position one can be in and waiting 10 min. for law enforcement won`t solve the problem, removing the threat as quickly as possible will.
 
#17 ·
Simple... "If I have to explain it.... You wouldn't understand!"
 
#19 ·
When I get asked by one of my wife's friends about why I'm carrying a gun (the wife must have mentioned it I guess) I just tell them it's my current hobby (for the last 40 years or so) and I really enjoy shooting. Costs about the same as golf and I do that too!

I then usually mention that I've been carrying as long as they've known us so I guess I've been doing my job correctly. That's why I carry a CONCEALED weapon in the restaurant!

I think they usually get it about then as the conversation either ends there and we get back to the meal or they may ask a few reasonably intelligent questions and we continue on in that direction.

I do mention that I'm always available for a short session at the range. Just enough to familiarize them and show them (via a .22) that guns are not all evil! They joke about it but some do actually ask about just "trying it out" to satisfy their own curiosity.

Now this doesn't happen every day, but once in a while it comes up and hopefully I'm ready for it.

I haven't run into anyone who wants to get into a 2nd Amendment argument or anything like that. There are a few, who for some interesting reasons, are absolutely terrified by any guns, period. However, even those people have dealt with it in a civil manner. I'm sure they're aware of my carry, but it no longer bothers them now that we've had the short talk about "why" I do this.

I try to be as "gentle" as possible with anyone who really is scared of any idea of carrying a gun. No sense in making them even more excitable!!

I think that's the secret with people who have little or no education in "our" gun culture.

AD
 
#20 ·
When asked about gun ownership. I usually tell them it's a hobby. Then they usually go into the fact it can kill people or it is dangerous around children. Then I replay by asking if they allow their children to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwiches? They usually respond with a yes. Then I talk about the dangers of using a knife and follow up with an answer of what's the differences between a knife and gun they both can kill but if they are used as a tool as they are intended their should be no problem. The problems comes when people do not respected the tool by leaning how to use the tool properly.
 
#21 ·
Good answer...

Unfortunately a lot of people feel very, very strongly against guns... If someone leans in that direction, I just drop the subject...

Fortunately, some people are the exact opposite... Was talking to a friend of a friend a while back and she surprised me by stating that she has a CWP and carries all the time... :)
 
#22 ·
So I was curious about what you tell someone or maybe discussions you have had about why you bought a firearm?

I am getting a lot of flak from people who are not familiar with firearms and against my purchase (too bad for them) and just don't understand why someone would buy a gun.

What do you guys say to someone who is afraid of firearms?
I would not have a discussion with someone that didn't like firearms or was scared of them, it will only cause negative and heated discussions. Sounds like you are between a rock and a rock with a female that you like and that she does'nt like. I personally will pick firearms over any woman in a split second. That firearm will be loyal to me and I do not need problems.
 
#26 ·
I have read quite a bit on "I carry cause ..." here and on a few other sites.

For those against guns in general there is no good reason for you to buy/own a gun !

All the "could happen" scenarios in the world will not make them waver on their stance.

The only true "view changing" that will make a difference is if they are ever exposed to a situation where a weapon will protect themselves, their family. or their possessions, and if they live through that, there is still a chance they will remain like an ostrich with their head in the sand ....

I also try to avoid discussion with those that would only attempt to persuade me to see it their way ... Talk about the weather or politics instead, plenty of argument material there !

:)
 
#28 · (Edited)
So I was curious about what you tell someone or maybe discussions you have had about why you bought a firearm? ...What do you guys say to someone who is afraid of firearms?
My reasons for having firearms include;

1. Firearms have played a role in our history, from winning our independence, to winning the West, to safeguarding our shores, to expanding our role in the world. To be ignorant about this very basic historical tool, to me, would be leaving even bigger gaps in my knowledge of American and World history than already exist.

2. Once you have decided to at least study and understand them, firearms are interesting in their own right. Owning even a small collection of guns allows you to see first hand the evolution of technology, from iron, steel and wood percussion cap rifles to steel .45 caliber revolvers to the aluminum, plastic, and steel AR15. If you do not own even a small collection, you can visit them in all of our major museums.

3. Guns, at least good ones, are just plain durable. I have an 1864 Springfield rifled musket that is just as effective today as it was the day it was first issued. If you take just a little care of them, guns have a useful life of hundreds of years.

4. I will not say that commonplace guns are a good investment, because mass production has made sure that they are plentiful and cheap. At least they keep some of their dollar value, and all of their intrinsic and historical value over time. Some day my grandsons will divide my collection of guns, and the guns will no doubt be passed along again.

5. Shooting guns of any type is a demanding and somewhat difficult discipline, and it is fun. Controlling the power of the weapon, and trying to do so in a manner that yields good scores in comparison to the scores of others is challenging. As the author Paul Barrett ( of "Glock: The Rise of America's Gun" ) has noted in an interview with Terri Gross, "It's just darn fun to fire a gun."

6. There is no arguing the fact that gun ownership endows you with the ability to defend yourself. As long as you recognize and accept the responsibilities that come with gun ownership, it can enhance your peace of mind.

7. While I am not now a hunter, in the past I did some upland bird hunting. Guns play a central role in hunting and the history of hunting in this country. From subsistence hunting on the early frontier, to the slaughter of the buffalo, to the scientifically-based game population management of today, you cannot deny the place of hunting in our history.

8. As American citizens we have what seems to be, unique among countries, a Constitutional right, guaranteed in the Second Amendment, to keep and bear firearms. As with all of my other rights guaranteed by the Constitution, this is one that I value and defend.

That is probably a two-dollar answer to a fifty-dollar question, or a fifty-dollar answer to a two-dollar question, depending upon your point of view.

Chris
 
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