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Just like Mitt Romney’s 47% statement, I think he’s over-estimating the percentage of the population who thinks guns are, as Johnny Cash tells it, the Devil’s right hand. But he’s got a point — logic won’t change their opinion. My own mother being a prime example. But even though she once believed that all guns are forged in the fiery pits of hell and imbued with satanic desires that drive their owners to murderous rampages, she is slowly coming around to a more reasonable belief now that guns are becoming “normal” around her. Slowly. So I disagree — normalization is the key to making people realize that they have nothing to fear but fear itself. YMMV.

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45 COMMENTS

  1. Someone who “believes all guns are forged in the fiery pits of hell and imbued with satanic desires that drive their owners to murderous rampages” should probably be unarmed.

    • I post pictures of guns and stuff all the time on FB. A few people have defriended me. Guess what? They weren’t real friends.

      People who know me know I’m even keeled and wouldn’t hurt someone unless forced to, and the thought police who think that just having an inanimate object will make me do anything can kiss my ass.

      • The only people I get shit from for posting about guns or pro-2nd amendment things are police officers (not all of them though) that are on my friends list. Needless to say, I wasn’t surprised about that one.

        • That’s what having a “close friends” list is for. I keep one of old Army buddies, and others I know are into shooting and/or hunting. They get the firearms-related posts.

    • I refrain from posting about range trips and the like on FB and other social media…just easier that way.

      • I haven’t had any people defriend me but I have had the snide remarks when talking to them on the phone about what I have been up to lately….I believe it’s just jealousy lol

        • De-friending…who cares really. The people I talk to on a regular basis know I own guns; the others dont need to know. Besides, in the unlikely event something bad happens, I dont need people I hardly know showing up at my doorstep because Im “that gun guy”.

  2. and as my former instructor once told me “God forbid you shoot another person – even a drug-crazed satanic cultist invading your home at 2 am – prepare to find out who your friends really are. You’ll have fewer than you think.”

  3. It usually starts as “I don’t like guns”
    Then moves to “Why do you carry a gun?” Note the immediate assumption that all who own guns carry them around. All of them. At once.
    And finishes with” I don’t think just anyone should be able to own a gun” This is the final stage where you have been placed on their “dislike watch list” of people.

    Visually you get rolling eyes, slack jaws, gasps for air, shocked looks.

    • No kidding. Next thing these Facebook ladies will be doing is taking each other off their Twitter lists.

  4. He’s absolutely correct.Being a gun owner today is similar to being a black man in 1930s Georgia.Too many people are prejudiced against gun ownership and will not take kindly to knowing an armed individual in their midst.

    • in 1930s Georgia, huh? If you listen to the media, the Democrats, or read almost anything that comes out of academia, you would think that the darkest days of racism are right now, in every corner of the country.

      • Which is why I always get a kick out of the fact that the Democrats had KKK members in Congress up until a couple of years ago.

        • If you’re going to spout outrageous claims, you’re going to have to back it up with proof. Since you already know that this is nonsense, I won’t be holding my breath. But, please, feel free to prove me wrong.

          Perhaps you need less talk radio and more education.

        • Peritas. Who split the union and fought a war to keep slavery? Abe Lincoln was with the gop. The south was mostly dems. How about george wallace? He was also a dem.

          I have pointed out a number of times that I was born south of the mason dixon line and am old enough to remember “whites only” signs. All those places were in tight control of the dems.

        • Peritas, try looking up a (now deceased) Senator Robert Byrd. Seeing how our absurdly biased systems means that if a non-Democrat so much as says “I don’t like that black guy who punched me in the face” is utterly ineligible for political office, it’s quite interesting to see a KKK member in office, especially since your party claims to be the ones who care about blacks.

        • Jwm, I believe you are indeed correct. My understanding is that during the KKK’s heyday the membership was largely democrats, although it was powerful enough to have both parties courting its approval and endorsement. I readily accept that.

          But the Democratic party having KKK members among its ranks up until a couple years ago? Clearly this is nonsense and Totenglocke is either unable or unwilling to check the facts for himself.

          Like I said, I won’t be holding my breath for proof, because there is none.

        • Totenglocke, I’m aware of Senator Byrd. He was a KKK member — but in the 1940s, and by 1952 had renounced his membership. Note that this is well before the civil rights movement, when there was little political repercussion to being an outright racist. Additionally, he has discussed why he made the poor decisions he did, and has regretted and apologized for it a thousand times over. I personally am not a fan of his, and think he was a self-aggrandizing megalomaniac, but I see no reason to doubt his sincerity.

          Saying “the Democrats had KKK members in Congress up until a couple of years ago” implies active membership and is verifiable false.

          As for the part about a non-Democrat making a particular statement, I see both sides getting raked over the coals equally for bigoted or ignorant statements. Unfortunately, it seems to be Republicans who outnumber others in these statements.

          Finally, I never said I was a Democrat. I am, however, a fan of facts and science, which is why I can’t stand talk radio or campaign ads from either party. They’re both heavy on manipulation or outright lies and lacking in facts.

        • @Peritas

          Byrd voted against the Civil Rights Act, was the only senator to vote against both black Supreme Court Justice’s, and even still used racial slurs in public in the 2000’s.

          Just because he changed his title doesn’t mean he ever changed his views – that’s just common sense that when a group is on the way out, you jump ship if you want your political career to continue.

          Saying “the Democrats had KKK members in Congress up until a couple of years ago” implies active membership and is verifiable false.

          Except we all know that if a non-Democrat had ever been a member of the KKK, they would’ve been hounded out of office by the media….yet no such thing happened with that racist SOB.

          You didn’t need to say you were a Democrat, your anti non-Democrat stance said it for you.

        • @Totenglocke

          Thanks for the reply. Reagan opposed the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, but I don’t think it would be fair to call him a racist. Regardless, let’s assume that Byrd was a vehement racist until the day he died. It’s still clearly false to say that “Democrats had KKK members in Congress up until a couple of years ago.” It’s simply not true.

          “Except we all know that if a non-Democrat had ever been a member of the KKK, they would’ve been hounded out of office by the media….yet no such thing happened with that racist SOB.”

          What about Strom Thurmond? He was an avowed segregationalist, opposed the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, fought desegregation tooth-and-nail, raped his black maid, and never once disavowed or renounced his racist views. He was a Republican and clearly fared quite well, serving until 2003. He wasn’t hounded out of office by the media. In fact, the media rarely ever mentioned him.

          Finally, I’ll be more explicit this time. I’m not a Democrat. It’s unfortunate you feel I have a “anti non-Democrat stance”, but I suppose I’m that rare breed that doesn’t believe either party has all the answers. I believe there are good Democrat politicians and good Republican politicians. I loathe the mindset that my party can do no wrong, and theirs can do no right, although I do recognize that most people feel this way.

  5. I think the real test is do you even care what they think? Facebook? Is that even something adults should be using? Social networks geared to the attention seeking children of all ages should not be of any concern to any non-child. A cell phone glued to the ear, texting madly, and twitter posts about a grocery trip are not the things that should interest a grown up.

    • I’ll have you know, facebook became too adult for most of today’s youth, it quickly became boring to many and twitter seems to be an “adult” thing too. “New” social networks take its place among kids and adolescents like tumblr, deviant art and anything with pretty pictures.

      But yes, what people think on ANY social network should not really matter as the internet is as inpersonal as you can get, so why take it too personal?

  6. It’s true, I did laugh at the end of the movie Titanic. It was craptacular, and couldn’t believe I spent over 3 hours watching it. I guess I paid for it, while watching it on HBO. Never saw it in the theater, thankfully.

    I don’t let it be known to some of my friends that I own guns. Many are not anti or pro gun ownership, just agnostic in a way, with no opinion. I have a few former friends because of gun ownership, and don’t miss them at all.

  7. Friends are overrated. Do the math. Even amongst your gun owning associates how many will actually stand with you when a shitstorm approaches?

  8. That dood is just cool.

    I believe very firmly that people disliking me because I’m a gunny is a real benefit of gun ownership. When new acquaintances ask me what I do for a living, I tell them that I’m a retired attorney and now spend my time as an NRA firearms instructor. Their reactions allows me to separate the wheat from the chaff real fast, without wasting my precious time on stupid or prejudiced people.

    Ignorance can be overcome by teaching, and I enjoy engaging with non-shooters and get a big charge from training noobs. But when it comes to the stupid or the prejudiced, I prefer to leave such people the way I find them, and to do so as quickly as possible. F^ck ’em.

  9. Yeah, I’m down with not being liked. Also, when stupid people say such things, it makes it very easy to not like them back… wait, does that mean they have guns? Confusing… damn this relentless anti-gun rights logic.

  10. I spend time arguing over at Mikeb’s blog because while I know that I’m not going to convince the control freaks, there are others reading the discussion who can be influenced. We can’t surrender the rhetorical ground and expect to retain our rights to own and carry guns.

  11. Strange really. I’m the “gun guy” in my circle. Whenever the “not everyone should have those” line gets dropped I inform them of real gun laws. 80% agree with those laws. 10% want less restrictions. 10% want more restrictions.

    To quote Men In Black: “A person is smart, but people are dumb.” Usually.

  12. You can generally tell the ones who are not amenable to reasoned discussion on the gun ownership issue. Their default position is “I just don’t like guns.”

    Spending any further time attempting to convert them is like arguing with a pig. It doesn’t do any good, and it just annoys the pig.

  13. I am not concerned personally if I lose “friends” because I own firearms.

    What I am concerned about is the greater legislative impact of people who don’t like firearms and urge their elected representatives to criminalize various aspects of firearms ownership. That is a huge problem. I know — the Framers intentions and the 2nd Amendment are clear and any infringements on citizens is immoral and unconstitutional. Unfortunately that doesn’t stop politicians from criminalizing armed citizens.

    My hope is that we can reach the people who are mildly against firearms and win them over to affect legislative change. Some “kid gloves” will probably be more effective reaching those people than bravado.

  14. I carry a gun nearly every day to protect myself and those I care about from mortal harm. However, as a 20-something recent college grad (and freshly-minted CHL holder), a number of my friends and co-workers are pretty thoroughly brainwashed on the supposed “evils” of lawfully and responsibly owning (never mind carrying) firearms. After having conversations degenerate into “What’s wrong with you? It’s really not that dangerous out there,” “OMG! You want to endanger our children by putting guns in schools!” and “I don’t trust guns. The only thing that kept my uncle from accidentally shooting his wife was the safety,” I’ve pretty much given up on them understanding why I carry. Instead, I’ve adopted the personal policies of “never do anything stupid with a gun,” “concealed means concealed,” and “carry always, never tell” (except for all of you, of course :D), while accepting that I won’t be Mr. Popularity (not like I ever was) if people find out I’m packin’.

    This has worked out pretty well so far (no IGOTD trophies in my name and to my knowledge, nobody has discovered that I carry), but it might get complicated if I start dating again. I tell myself that if she (whoever she ends up being) has that big of a problem with me legally and responsibly carrying, then it’s a conflict of values and not worth pursuing, but that’s easy to say and hard to follow through on, especially with intimacy and companionship on the line.

    • If the future Mrs. Gimlet isnt ok with you taking responsibility for your (and her) safety, IMHO she isnt worthy of being future Mrs. Gimlet. Im also a 20-something. My future companion will have to understand, and hopefully appreciate, the fact that I dont take the protection of me and mine lightly.

      • Guys, I hear you on the future Mrs. I was 49 when when I married my keeper wife. I told her in plain english that if my guns were a problem say it up front and we would go no further. I also told her that if things changed after we got married I would walk. So far so good.

        You have to have an honest talk with a perspective future squeeze and draw visible lines in the sand that you won’t back up over.

        • You should teach her to carry, then she can defend herself. And if she is like my wife, be a better shot than I.

  15. What C.N. says isn’t true where I live(Bismarck,ND) but I’m sure there’s not a lack of places in America that follow his vernacular.

  16. I don’t know where the attraction to social media comes from or why adults would be attracted to it so my response is biased: being De-friended on FB is akin to losing a genital wart, suprising at first, but in retrospect, a good thing.

  17. 2019 May 16
    Facebook will not let me put a link to your Youtube videos on my page. Not biased against guns or conservatives, though . . ..

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