Wake up call.

 As many of you know I am a firearms fanatic. Collecting, shooting, competing, hunting I do it all. Now I know the opinions the gun control fanatics have about me, because I enjoy guns, I must be a low income, uneducated/illiterate, hillbilly/redneck with no teeth. It may surprise them to know that the members of my small shooting group consist of one Government Official, one Surgeon, and (including me) 3 Accountants. We do normally dress down to go shooting; that means polo shirts and kakis. Most of us have collections that are valued in the tens of thousands of dollars, with one member having a collection in the hundreds of thousands. All of us are highly educated, well read, and treat safety as a primary concern any time we go out.

So why is it that I had to sit through a 20min long string of accusations, insults, and profanities from someone who accused me of being “everything that is wrong with America” and was accused of being responsible for all of the violence in the world? Some of the topics she covered included “there would be no crime if there were no guns”, “the only reason people ever own guns is to kill other people”, “anyone who owns a gun should be declared mentally ill”, and my favorite “owning a gun means you are 500% more likely to die from a gunshot than from old age” (she could not provide a source for that number though I’m guessing it is over-stated by about 575%)

She focused most of her time on the point “the only reason people ever own guns is to kill other people”, Last time I checked the only gun I have that MAY have been EVER pointed at a person is a Lee Enfield that was in the service of the British Army while trying to suppress the uprising in India. Yes I carry a gun (when I’m not at work thanks to a rather pointless office policy). I carry for the purpose of self defense; specifically against the recent increase in the number of rattle snakes in the area and the continuing issue with wild dogs/coyotes. However I do not deny that I would not hesitate should my family be in imminent danger. By danger I mean severe bodily harm, if someone is willing to point a knife at me all $3 that I keep in my wallet, then fine, they can have it. But with Flash Gangs being a possibility in our area, laying on the ground and begging for pity is not always an option.

I know there are anti-gun fanatics out there (not just gun control people, but the kind of people that demand all guns be eliminated) but this is about the first one I have ever encountered. She wasn’t what I expected, and honestly I’m not impressed. I was hoping that if I was ever approached by one, they would at least have a position that could be debated as opposed to simply having to dismiss her as needing to check all the facts she spewed at me.

Speaking of guns, I have been thinking about getting a water balloon launcher and trying to see if we can shoot water balloons out of the air with a shotgun….or just set up a bunch of water balloons for some plinking fun. If nothing else, it may make for a good video.

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