Guns

[MN Dave]

Like 'em? Don't like 'em? Own one? What's it for? Fighting off Indians?

[Montpellier]

I'm ok with guns from an 'academic' viewpoint.  We aren't allowed active firearms in the UK so collectors turn to deactivated and replica gas-powered weapons.  I've always liked the Beretta 92F.  A little heavy maybe, almost the size of a Desert Eagle and it's easy to catch on something when making a draw but I like its looks and weight.  I fired one many years ago before the UK law changed.   I quite like the Sig P229 in the line of 9mm.  Never got into Glocks.     

The last active weapon I had was a Luger P08 - not to be fired somewhere closed-in: deafening!  My favourite is my (non working but genuine) Mauser broomhandle.   

Also interested in rifles, SMGs LMGs. 
Don't often get a chance to wax lyrical on firearms these days.

[Heather Harrison]

Since I live in a gun-friendly state in the U.S., I have a wide variety of guns to choose from.  I have about 20, most of which sit and collect dust deeply buried in a messy closet.  I'm drawn to old technology, so about half of them are muzzleloaders, including a flintlock pistol and a flintlock rifle.  Since I don't like to clean guns, I don't shoot them very often.  On the occasions when I do, there are desolate wastelands less than an hour away, so I can go shooting and not have to worry about idiots at the shooting range.  I'll probably buy even more guns eventually.  High on my list is a working replica of a flintlock blunderbuss.  They aren't very popular nowadays, so finding a good one might be a bit of a pain.

Aside from old, obsolete types of guns, my favorites are probably revolvers.  I have the usual range of popular calibers (.22, .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum), all of them Rugers.  The .44 is fun to shoot.  I have a concealed carry permit, and for this purpose I have a tiny Smith & Wesson .38 Special revolver.  I typically only carry it in wilderness areas; in urban environments, the potential for harm is too great.  If I feel like I might need it in a particular urban location, that is a clue to me that I should probably just not go to that place.

Heather

[SonicMan46]

Hi, Heather - loved your post! 

I enjoy the history of guns & armory (myself, I own only a BB/pellet rifle & pistol - mainly to shoot dogs getting into my garbage cans!) - I've wanted to purchase some 'replica' old guns just for display - an excellent DVD that I own is 'Guns of the Civil War' w/ Charles Martin Smith, for those who may be interested; living in North Carolina, I've visited many battlefields & cities w/ Revolutionary & Civil War museums - plenty of gun exhibits - I'm not really an advocate of gun ownership, but find the history fascinating (and of course in early North America, pretty much a necessity for those who know the history) - Dave 

[david johnson]

s/w .38 special, remington bolt action .22, shotguns in my house.
mr x comes in to rape/murder, he has a hard time leaving.
the best is a pump shotgun...a spooky sound for the bad guy to hear in the dark...he'll run.

dj

[Mark]

I wouldn't trust myself to own a gun (not that it's legal here in the UK, outside of certain circumstances). I just know I'd flip out in a moment of panic in the dark and blast some innocent 'intruder' who was really a neighbour busting their way into my house to tell me my kitchen is on fire.

[Great Gable]

I wouldn't trust myself to own a gun (not that it's legal here in the UK, outside of certain circumstances). I just know I'd flip out in a moment of panic in the dark and blast some innocent 'intruder' who was really a neighbour busting their way into my house to tell me my kitchen is on fire.

Agreed - good thing they are not legal here. Although I doubt that anyone I blasted would  be "innocent". I meet people on a daily basis whose demise would get me a commendation.

[Great Gable]

Mark, by the sounds of your recent posting regarding how people conduct their business, you would be dispatching people at work - by any accounts poor business practice.

[Grazioso]

Proud gun-owner and supporter of the 2nd Amendment here. I'm glad I live in a "free state" in the US that still respects the fundamental human right to protect one's life and to (more or less) own what you want without having to justify it to your government first.

And outside of those concerns, guns are just fun They're interesting as machines, at times beautiful examples of industrial design, and a rewarding mental and physical challenge to shoot with consistent accuracy at the range. To me, it also speaks well of a person's character if they're confident, responsible, and mature enough to own and employ a potentially deadly weapon in a legal, moral manner.

[Harry]

My take on this is, no guns, means no harm from them.
Why are we making weapons to defend, and why should we defend ourselves.
No guns no war, disagreements have to be settle by fists, so much better, don't you think.
The reality is that people enjoy to kill each other.
Enjoying the industrial design of guns, I think is macabre.

[Danny]

No likey guns, ma-self.

[Mark]

Proud gun-owner and supporter of the 2nd Amendment here.

Yeah, I'm no expert on the American Constitution, but doesn't the Second Amendment mention something about bearing arms only as part of a militia? Not exactly what happens though, is it?

[Mark]

Mark, by the sounds of your recent posting regarding how people conduct their business, you would be dispatching people at work - by any accounts poor business practice.

It'd be like a scene from Pulp Fiction:

Accountant: 'But I put the cheque in the mail.'

Me (into innocent admin clerk's body): BLAM BLAM BLAM!!! 'Oh, I'm sorry, did I break your concentration?'

[carlos]

Don't like fire arms much. They are dirty, noisy and
difficult to use. But always carry a spanish knife on
my belt,heavy and sure.

[Mark]

Don't like fire arms much. They are dirty, noisy and
difficult to use. But always carry a spanish knife on
my belt,heavy and sure.

That reminds me of a line from Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels: 'Shooters for show, knives for a pro.'

[Great Gable]

No-one would need a gun to "defend themselves" if the criminals didn't have the damn things in the first place. I can see no good reason for any human being to posess firearms except the military. The Amercians have had this "right" for so long that it's ingrained in their psyche. Gun culture is folly and can only lead to one thing - death.

[Gurn Blanston]

I have about 2 dozens guns of various designs and calibers. My main pleasure from them these days is target shooting, long distance type. I have been through the various phases of hunting and mainly outgrown them. They are finely crafted machines that are a pleasure to possess and use. Contrary to the prevailing notion that having a gun = finding it irresistible to kill someone, I have never particularly felt the urge, and AFAIK, no one I know who is into guns has done so either. Braining them with a cricket bat has potential though...



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Now playing:

Tokyo Metropolitan SO / Wakasuki - Strauss Romanze in F for Cello & Orchestra

[Great Gable]

I have about 2 dozens guns of various designs and calibers. My main pleasure from them these days is target shooting, long distance type. I have been through the various phases of hunting and mainly outgrown them. They are finely crafted machines that are a pleasure to possess and use. Contrary to the prevailing notion that having a gun = finding it irresistible to kill someone, I have never particularly felt the urge, and AFAIK, no one I know who is into guns has done so either. Braining them with a cricket bat has potential though...





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Now playing:

Tokyo Metropolitan SO / Wakasuki - Strauss Romanze in F for Cello & Orchestra

Blimey Gurn you sound like a right thug. What on earth are you doing with a cricket bat?

[Gurn Blanston]

GG,
Well, you know, basic human urges and all that. It if fortunate for the miscreants of Nacogdoches County that I DON'T have a cricket bat. I have forsworn their presence in my house solely for that reason.



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Now playing:

Haydn String Quartets Op 50 - Tokyo Quartet - Haydn Op 50 #1 Quartet in Bb for Strings 2nd mvmt - Adagio non lento

[Great Gable]

Thank goodness you only have the guns!