Mir,
Its clear with your childish defensive response, condescending rhetoric and disrespectful attitude you want to take the conversation up a notch...
thats not going to happen.
btw nice straw man arguemnt around purchasing and use of automatic weapons... good it should be difficult to acquire them.
I'll leave with this parting comment
EDIT: I pressed ctrl-w by accident...
There are may dangers in most people's lives that have a much greater chance of occurring than gun violence which people do not prepare for. Yet given these statistics people continue to argue that they need to be prepared for it. This at best suggests a missed placed set of priorities and is clearly an irrational argument. One can only conclude that it is fear that is motivating this irrationality.
Indeed, there are many dangers that stalk people. That, however, doesn't mean that we don't prepare ourselves for those dangers. Simply carrying a gun does not prepare you for much. The fact is that the real preparation is mostly mental. If not mentally prepared, a firearm will not usually be of much use. I have no issue with people being armed. I do, however, have an issue with stupid people assuming that the firearm will make a difference, even if they are not mentally prepared. I urge anyone who wants to carry to get training... Train your mind, train with the firearm. Learn the skills that are necessary to function in a combat situation. People without training are far less likely to be successful than those with... If you're not fully prepared to take a life, leave the gun home.... If you cannot retain the fine motor skills required to be efficient with a firearm in a near panic situation, leave the gun in the closet. There are three types of reactions in an emergency situation. 50% of the public will panic, freeze and do absolutely nothing. 40% will do something if instructed to do so. Only 10% will act immediately, while forming a plan of action. If you're not one of the 10%, you will still be a victim. If you're in the 50%, training may just keep you alive. If among the 40%, training will go a long way towards your not only surviving, but being able to defend yourself and others. If you are in the 10%, training will make you a steely-eyed killer, someone the bad guy will regret having encountered. Before considering to carry a firearm, everyone needs to do a soul-searching self assessment and figure out which group you're in. Why? Because an idiot with a gun is still an idiot.