Should someone be anti-gun because of personal experiences?

[crin63]

Should personal experiences with criminals using guns to commit crimes impact your opinion of guns and gun ownership?

Should you be opposed to guns if you’ve had people you love killed or injured by a gun in the hands of a criminal?



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Here are my personal experiences.

My uncle was shot in the head and killed after some punks broke into his apartment to steal the rent monies he collected as the apartment manager.

A girl that I used to go out with off and on as a friend was shot and killed by gang-bangers while working in her father’s pawn shop.

I had a gun stuck to my head when I was 15 because I unknowingly got to close to some guy’s marijuana crop. When he heard the other 2 guys that were with me talking as they were walking out of the tunnel going under the freeway (which led to his crop I later found out) he quickly left.

I received a phone call at about 1:30am that my brother had been shot in the mouth by some cryps in Galveston, Tx. It was a horrifying call from my mom. She had no other information at the time. It turned out 4 or 5 hours later it had been his best friend that was shot in the mouth so they could steal his ghetto blaster. Still the impact of thinking my brother was dying in a hospital was pretty rough.




In spite all these personal experiences I am a recent NRA Life Member. It was never the guns fault it was people using the guns.

[Kathianne]

Should personal experiences with criminals using guns to commit crimes impact your opinion of guns and gun ownership?

Should you be opposed to guns if you’ve had people you love killed or injured by a gun in the hands of a criminal?



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Here are my personal experiences.

My uncle was shot in the head and killed after some punks broke into his apartment to steal the rent monies he collected as the apartment manager.

A girl that I used to go out with off and on as a friend was shot and killed by gang-bangers while working in her father’s pawn shop.

I had a gun stuck to my head when I was 15 because I unknowingly got to close to some guy’s marijuana crop. When he heard the other 2 guys that were with me talking as they were walking out of the tunnel going under the freeway (which led to his crop I later found out) he quickly left.

I received a phone call at about 1:30am that my brother had been shot in the mouth by some cryps in Galveston, Tx. It was a horrifying call from my mom. She had no other information at the time. It turned out 4 or 5 hours later it had been his best friend that was shot in the mouth so they could steal his ghetto blaster. Still the impact of thinking my brother was dying in a hospital was pretty rough.




In spite all these personal experiences I am a recent NRA Life Member. It was never the guns fault it was people using the guns.

I'd say that we all base our opinions on a myriad of information. Obviously Jim Brady's wife derived different conclusions than yourself based on her experiences. While I agree with yours, I would support her right to voice her own. However, I think the Constitution is on your side. ;)

[Gaffer]

If all the guns were made illegal the same people that used them in your experience would be using them anyway. They would use them even more frequently. The safest population is a heavily armed population.

[5stringJeff]

Should personal experiences with criminals using guns to commit crimes impact your opinion of guns and gun ownership?

Should you be opposed to guns if you’ve had people you love killed or injured by a gun in the hands of a criminal?



****************



Here are my personal experiences.

My uncle was shot in the head and killed after some punks broke into his apartment to steal the rent monies he collected as the apartment manager.

A girl that I used to go out with off and on as a friend was shot and killed by gang-bangers while working in her father’s pawn shop.

I had a gun stuck to my head when I was 15 because I unknowingly got to close to some guy’s marijuana crop. When he heard the other 2 guys that were with me talking as they were walking out of the tunnel going under the freeway (which led to his crop I later found out) he quickly left.

I received a phone call at about 1:30am that my brother had been shot in the mouth by some cryps in Galveston, Tx. It was a horrifying call from my mom. She had no other information at the time. It turned out 4 or 5 hours later it had been his best friend that was shot in the mouth so they could steal his ghetto blaster. Still the impact of thinking my brother was dying in a hospital was pretty rough.




In spite all these personal experiences I am a recent NRA Life Member. It was never the guns fault it was people using the guns.

In a sense, all of our personal experiences shape our opinions. However, you seem to have seen firsthand that "guns don't kill people, people kill people." My only experience with firearms has been on a range, so I can't say I've seen the types of things you have. But we do have one thing in common - we're both NRA Life Members!

[crin63]

If all the guns were made illegal the same people that used them in your experience would be using them anyway. They would use them even more frequently. The safest population is a heavily armed population.

I wholeheartedly agree with you.

I watched 30 days and the woman on the show was anti-gun because her best friend was shot and killed (if I remember correctly). It caused me to think about the experiences in my life but I never for a moment held the gun/s responsible. The individuals that committed the crimes were responsible not the guns themselves.

If guns kill people do pencils misspell words?

[Little-Acorn]

Should personal experiences with criminals using guns to commit crimes impact your opinion of guns and gun ownership?
Of course. ALL your experiences, plus all you're read, heard, talked about, etc. should impact your opinions about guns and gun ownership.

You should think them through, listen to all viewpoints, decide for yourself which are the most sensible, go back and ask more questions and look up more information, and use all these to make up your mind.


Should you be opposed to guns if you’ve had people you love killed or injured by a gun in the hands of a criminal?
If you think it was the gun's fault, and that society as a whole would be better off if law-abiding people were deprived of guns (government can do nothing to deprive criminals of guns), then yes, you should be opposed to guns and support government restrictions or bans on them.

If the criminal had run over your loved one with a car instead of shooting them with a gun, would you then oppose car ownership?

See above comment on thinking things through and listening to all viewpoints. Emphasis is on thinking. If you are merely reacting in horror and fright to something terrible that has happened, as a dog will when he accidentally drinks very hot water and then never touches water again, ask yourself if that is a wise policy. And ask your friends and acquaintances etc.

If you intend to petition government to restrict or ban guns - that is, if you intend to use govt force to impose your viewpoint on others without their consent - then don't you owe them a good-faith effort to THINK things through instead of simply reacting emotionally?

[Nate]

Here's a link to the 30 Days episode that crin63 referenced, in case you're interested:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/25712/30-days-gun-nation

crin63, props on your ability to separate the evil acts from the guns. Guns are inert objects. They are neither good nor are they evil.

The women from Ceasefire Toledo featured in the 30 Days episode were your diametric opposite. They were basically bragging about being lifelong victims, and while what happened to them was tragic, I was a little bit disgusted with they way they reacted to the deaths of their loved ones.

For what it's worth, I've yet to come across a recovering alcoholic who advocates reinstating prohibition.