You know all those sanctimonious twits who condemn America’s gun culture as barbaric? Whether they’re Americans or foreign nationals, you and I know they’re all secret gun lovers. Why else would they spend so much time thinking about guns? Even USA Today, an anti-gun rag of the first order . . .
is turned-on by their own anti-gun gestalt. How much fun did they have assembling that video? Lots!
But to answer their YouTube video’s title’s question — which USA Today doesn’t — Chinese tourists love our gun ranges because it’s a hit of pure individual liberty. Something that’s intoxicating for anyone laboring under the yoke of statist fascism. Again, whether that’s here or abroad.
He, he,he…
I love it when a foreign tourist comes into my shop and oggles the toys plainly displayed for sale. A few common questions:
Are these real?
Can anyone buy them?
Are those machine guns?
(my personal favorite) Does everyone in Texas/America have a gun?
The answers that follow always lead to some very interesting conversations about civil rights and liberty.
Keep a close eye on them.
Chinese tourists have something of a reputation.
What is this reputation you are referring to? I have personally been involved with taking several Chinese to gun ranges and have never had an issue…
Rude, destructive, worst tourists you can imagine.
Not making it up, just Google “Chinese tourists”. They’re so notorious that’s all you have to search for. Tons of horror stories. Crazy stuff you wouldn’t believe like letting their kids go #2 in the lawn of some attractions or deface Egyptian hieroglyphs. NPR even did a story on it if you can believe it.
Having lived in China for a few years at different times I can assure you I am well aware of the reputation that they have and have personally witnessed some of “the crazy stuff you wouldn’t believe” but putting all Chinese tourists in the same group is like saying all Trump supporters are racist or all Democrats love Hillary.
Took some international colleagues to a gander mountain and spent about two hours answering questions about guns abound american culture.
A couple wondered why we would want guns. Others mentioned gun ownership was why people didn’t mind living rural and didn’t have high walls around their property.
The guys from brazil had not considered hunting as a reason for ownership since you can’t hunt in brazil. The Indian folks were amazed that we could weapons in the same calibers as military weapons.
Long live the republic.
ANY foreign national who is interested in guns and American gun culture must be given a quick history on WHY we have a second amendment and why our Founding Fathers found it so important to have a armed and educated population.
Plant that seed. So next time their country has a revolution to remove the tyrants and overlords, they will think about having written law stating the inherent right to be armed.
So far I’ve seen a couple groups of Asian businessmen come into Hoover Tactical, spend some time handling iron, and have friendly debates amongst themselves… auto vs revolver seems to be the most popular argument. They also seemed to gravitate towards the KSG and Tavors.
While down at Shoot Straight in Tampa, more than a few visiting Asians came in for some rental trigger time. One day at the range as a group was leaving, I spotted one of the younger guys taking a sniff of freedom from a spent shell casing he’d palmed. Win.
Is..is that the same company whose the shirt I’m wearing right now? Hoover tactical firearms?
I have taken several Chinese to gun ranges and all have enjoyed it greatly. Almost all wonder why most people can buy guns so I’ll explain some of the history of the US and 2A. Many times I am able to bring up things in their own history and it helps to change their mind as to the usefulness of personally owned weapons. There are a few hold outs who think if guns where legally available in China they would have a much higher murder and crime rate, and having lived in China i’m not inclined to necessarily disagree with them but I think it would be better than most think.
No doubt you spent all your time in the major cities. Entire villages have been depopulated by single crazy guys with an axe AND that’s just what the Chinese government is willing to admit.
You sound slightly uneducated about the situation in China. I am well aware of what the government has done and as been purported to have done and so are many more Chinese than most people realize. I have spent some considerable amount of time in the bigger cities as well as small ones and villages, I have traveled a lot more extensively than most foreigners who have visited China.
You said “Entire villages have been depopulated by single crazy guys with an axe…” Do you have any citations for that claim? I’m not saying it has not happened but I’d like to see what you are referring to.
Yes, need documentation from Nanashi. But I’m not sure what point Nanashi is trying to make. If some villages are being wiped out with an ax, it would seem a serious reason for those villagers to be armed and trained to defend themselves. And, of course, first they have to want to defend themselves and be willing to use lethal force when necessary.
Loved the mental image above of the person “sniffing” freedom from a spent casing. I’ve done that, though I’ve been shooting for a long time. I LOVE the smell of burning gunpowder in the morning… or any time of day. It is the smell of freedom.
I think he was reacting to “There are a few hold outs who think if guns where legally available in China they would have a much higher murder and crime rate, and having lived in China i’m not inclined to necessarily disagree with them but I think it would be better than most think.”
I do believe there would be a rise in the number of murders and homicides initially and that that rise would start to subside pretty quickly.
Some things to consider that might lead to a rise in killings is…
– current thinking about the use of guns. Guns in China are seen as an offensive weapon by many at I think some people (certainly not all) would use them to settle scores. In doing that there would be a shift away from knives and homemade bombs that are currently used.
– an extremely high level of drinking and drunkenness. Almost everyone drinks and almost all guys in particular will get completely wasted. Mixing that much alcohol and guns is not good.
– high rates of domestic abuse (and physical violence in general). As much as domestic abuse is overlooked in the US it is something that almost seems to be expected in China and the police really don’t like to get involved. (Speaking from personal experience over being attacked by someone (not quite a domestic situation) the police took about 30 minutes to show up and after we went back to the station they were practically begging me not to press charges because they didn’t want to deal with the paper work.)
– a high level of corruption. Many things happen or don’t depending on who you know. If you know the right people you can literally get away with murder.
This is why I stated that I don’t necessarily disagree with those who think the murder rate would climb with the legalization of guns in China.
One thing that many Chinese don’t think about is that guns are still available for a price and there are reports of some villages where many of the residents have their own basement workshops turning out guns to sell in the cities.
I’ve heard that the Japanese tourists also greatly enjoy our firearm culture when they visit.
While they may love to try out firearms at gun ranges while visiting the US, the Chinese that immigrate here are not that way. The Chinese community(whether they are from red china, Taiwan, or are just ethnic Chinese from another country) are the most solid population against firearms here in Ca.
They ask Real Estate agents if the potencial neighbors have gun permits and seem to be terrified of police carrying. Even in malls, banks, etc, they seem to shy away from armed guards, unless they are important people – i.e. tong leaders, they do not want to be anywhere near firearms.
And yet here in Houston I know there is a large population of Chinese who are very passionate about guns, hold frequent training, etc. Maybe it is just Commiefornia that is the problem, not the Chinese.
Almost every time I go to my local indoor range, I see at least one group of Chinese tourists on the range. Overall, they’re very polite and having a great time…lots of huge smiles. Sometimes we get to talking and even take a few spins with each other’ guns. It seems like a very special experience for them and it’s cool to see.