There are over 800 gun stores on the border between the US and Mexico. It’s called the Iron River. These store owners know damn well those weapons will be used against law enforcement officials and innocent citizens (on both sides of the border) and they couldn’t possibly care less.

But, hey! The second amendment.

As for guns in general, if people want to play with guns in the woods or at ranges that’s cool. And for reasonable uses of self-defense at home, that’s fine too. But, don’t be so shocked that people express some worry about the proliferation of guns in America, especially with many states in recent years enacting concealed or open carry laws, including last year in my state of Wisconsin. You cannot deny that there are safety issues that at least should be raised and that it is reasonable for some people to be concerned. There is potential for accidents to happen and what if people engage in vigilantism. Okay, the last point may be a little crazy, but why not raise these questions when the issue of publically arming the citizens comes up

Beyond my concealed carry tangent, I sometimes get concerned that such proliferation of guns could have the effect of heavily arming nutty, anti-government groups who may some day actually use violence as they sometimes seem to suggest could happen.

At the end of the day, though, I am okay with responsible people who have clean criminal records and who do not show signs of espousing or committing violence to have guns. Is is asking too much to require a gun safety course (or session) or at least the demonstratation of good gun safety knowledge and habits, though?

As for concealed carry, I think it should be referendum issue that goes directly to the voters. In Wisconsin’s case, I believe it was passed through an act of state congress.

Am I right to think that even if it is against the law, people will still carry anyhow?

And it should be acknowledged that Obama hasn’t been on a crusade to take everyone’s guns away as many people predicted.

And finally, if you own guns, just be smart with them, please.

But please do not tell me that I cannot use historical references to have a reasonable conversation about a heated topic.

You know this topic is very personal to you.
You know this thread is dealing with both sides of this topic.
You may want to skip over it from here on out if you don’t want to discuss it.

Again, I am sorry for your loss and any sad memories that this thread has revived. But, and I say this with as much compassion as I can muster, we can disagree and speak (or type) publically about a hot political topic that has real life implications in your life,

However, with all this chatter about Hitler and Ghandi and the 2nd Amendment:

WHATEVER. Bottom line for anti-gunners like me is that somebody does not have the “right” to purchase a weapon in order to shoot people dead. This apparently needs to be repeated over and over again on a baseball blog that has a plethora of gun toters who parrot the same, tired lines of how Obama is going to take your guns so that you are easy pickings for FEMA camps. Not quite. Gun legislation is so people, like a certain someone I know, DON’T BUY A GUN SPECIFICALLY TO SHOOT SOMEONE, LIKE A MOTHER, DAUGHTER, SISTER, FRIEND; OR A FATHER, SON, BROTHER, FRIEND.

How much is a life worth? $1 million? $10 million? It’s almost impossible to place a monetary value on a life, but bullets– well, those bullets cost $5 a round? $15? So when my stepfather, may he continuously burn in hell, bought a gun for less than $200 and 5 bullets for less than $75 AND USED THIS METHOD TO END MY MOTHER’S LIFE because, shit man, George Washington said it’s okay to do so. Some pro-gunners have the audacity to suggest that my mother was her own enemy by living in the same house as a crazy man. Somehow, though, that first date didn’t involve any discussions about how he was going to end up shooting my mother in the face five times while she was sitting in the kitchen trying to speak reasonably to him. So, apparently, this bares repeating:

GUN CONTROL IS SO OTHER PEOPLE DON’T HAVE TO HAVE THEIR LIVES ENDED BECUASE SOME SICK FUCK DECIDED THAT ENOUGH IS ENOUGH, AND THAT PERSON DOESN’T HAVE THE BALLS TO GO TO HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT, BUT RATHER PUSSIES OUT BY SHOOTING THE VICTIM FROM 5-15 YARDS AWAY.

So save the Hitler bullshit. If you really want a discussion, then listen. If you don’t, don’t. But if you don’t, stop acting like you do. Because reality has always been much larger than politics.

(Read with a forceful, yet choppy, epiphianic voice.)

There is the thing to argue with. There seems to be a lot more reactionary thoughtless posturing and stupidity than informed decision making.

It the American way and has been sine the days of Hamilton and Burr.

And I will thank you people to show a little more courtesy to my state. I want you to note that the worst thing I have called anyone so far in this site is “provinicial.” And any generalizations about the second most populous state in the country are going to be – by definition – wrong.

There is a certain association with a cultural image that everyone likes to jump on. But don’t jump on it so much. It’s a convenient construct for thinking of people with, not much more.

Then you are probably accurate.

But don’t feel alone: the entire country is trying to get the taste of his catastrophic eight years out of its mouth. It should maybe just try swallowing and then defecating.

Oh and you gave us W. No offense, but I’m still trying to get that taste out of my mouth.