Well you are leaving out something, you discounted it, but it is why I owned guns, I bought my first gun(that was not a hand me down from my old man) when I was taking classes, to become a reserve cop.
I would have bought it eventually anyway, I just love guns, I like taking them apart to see how they work, like Laz says the are a mechanical Marvel. I have taken every gun I own apart, almost all the way to clean them and see what makes them tick, the only one I didn't was the 1911 my dad built and had a custom trigger job done on it. He told me NEVER take it apart and I respect that since I may not be able to get it back together as well as the pistol smith did. The gun was built for one thing, putting .45 inch holes in paper.
Their are two primary reasons I own guns, one they interest me and I like seeing how they work.
The second is to shoot for fun, both my Girlfriend and I enjoy shooting allot, and when I was doing it all the time I was shooting close to 400 rounds a week, just for fun.
Maybe you are a responsible citizen. But to keep a gun to ward off a threat from outside undermines the belief that gun owners are safe and responsible. If you really believed that, you wouldn't need a gun because the only other people with guns would be safe and responsible. But you do keep a gun for self defense, and the answer must be that you know there are criminals out there with guns by whom you feel threatened, i.e. American gun control laws don't work.
I have felt threatened, but not recently and my guns stay locked up, but if I need them I know they are there, and do not assume the only threat to worry about is a man with a gun. A man with a knife within 20 feet of you is just as bad. ANY intruder in my home is a threat, and I would like the odds stacked in my favor if I have to deal with it.
You don't really feel threatened, but you own a gun because the law allows it, and you want nothing more than to exercise your rights.
Not at all, I truly like guns, I wish I had the cash to truly collect them.
I do cherish the right to bare arms though, and I do believe at some point, (I hope not in my life time) They are going to be needed to put a new government in place.
Paranoia. I said that many Americans visit London/England, but the number is down 20% since September 11th, 2001. People are afraid to fly these days. In the aftermath of the al Qaeda atrocities last year, many people went out and bought guns. Why? Were they expecting bin Laden to show up on their doorstep? Or do they have conceal/carry permits and fancy themselves as self appointed guardians of the law?
I am not paranoid, but I do believe it is better to have a gun and not need one then be dead cause I didn't have one when I did.
The news media in the country sucks, it is all about ratings, to get ratings they scare people. I flew on sept 11 and was not worried at all.
You did not live here long enough to understand why this is really important to many people.
I do believe, that if this right goes away, the rest will follow.
