Gun laws in the place you live.

[Oreo]

Originally Posted by pbfoot

IMHO you've been watching too much TV

Just FYI I do not watch even as much as an hour of TV per month. There is nothing much worth watching, except History Channel, and I don't get the History Channel at my house. Even the HC is filled with a bunch of bunk at times, but sometimes shows WWII planes.

[Oreo]

Originally Posted by FLYBOYJ

Oreo, let me modify your post to a more sensible situation..

I have a gun. A burglar enters my house when I'm asleep. I hear him stealing my valuable antiques. I stealthily grab my gun from under my pillow, click the safety off, and sneak out of bed. I sneak around the door, and I find the burglar in my kitchen. I silently point the gun at him -

BANG, BANG, BANG!

I have no problem with that either, it's just that I'm probably a nicer guy than you. If he didn't put his hands in the air within .3 seconds, then your response would be my response.

[Oreo]

And no regrets.

[FLYBOYJ]

don't know if you have this law in SC...

Castle Doctrine in the US - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Hop]

Sorry, but your HO is not born up by true statistics.

Let me run you through a scenario. I am sleeping in my house...

That's not a statistic, it's an anecdote (or would be if it wasn't a hypothetical)

Statistics for 2006 in the US are:

People murdered by criminals: 17,034
Criminals killed by citizens: 241

Police officers murdered by criminals: 47
Criminals killed by police officers: 376

If you encounter a criminal, his odds are a lot better than yours. As Marcel says, the advantage is with the attacker.

IMHO you've been watching too much TV

Too much Hollywood, I think. Note how the good guy with the gun always wins. It's the old western staple, innocent unarmed townspeople terrorised by armed criminal, gunfighter turns up and kills the criminals. The guy with the white hat always wins.

[Torch]

Oreo and Flyboy here here,thats the basic scenario. Europe and the US are just on different visions when it comes to firearms. My family and I have been hunting/shooting since I was 6 yrs old. PB you bring some interesting comments and maybe i can get an answer from the NRA. I will attempt to address your point of view. As far as I'm concerned I love the hunt, the fun of shooting and collecting, and if by chance somebody breaks in it will be bang bang bang. One of the reasons I moved to Colorado is that I didn't want the government up my ass like it was in NYC. PB I refuse to be lumped into firearm owning scum that ruin it for other people, you are trying to do so and it is obvious that this discussion will last for awhile. I respect your point of view. Firearms are something your not comfortable with,so be it. Better to be judged by 12 than carried by six.

[FLYBOYJ]

Hey Torch, you're from NYC?

[Oreo]

Originally Posted by Hop

That's not a statistic, it's an anecdote (or would be if it wasn't a hypothetical)

Statistics for 2006 in the US are:

People murdered by criminals: 17,034
Criminals killed by citizens: 241

Police officers murdered by criminals: 47
Criminals killed by police officers: 376

If you encounter a criminal, his odds are a lot better than yours. As Marcel says, the advantage is with the attacker.

If the victim is unarmed, his odds are essentially zero. I'd rather have the odds against me than to not have any odds at all. And your statistics show that 241 criminals WERE killed by citizens. How many would it be if citizens were not able to own guns????? That is approximately 241 lives saved by citizens with guns or other ways of defending themselves. And the statistics do NOT show the number of criminals who were deferred from committing crimes because they knew, suspected, or wondered if a particular would-be victim were armed. Those statistics we will never know.

It is better to have it and not need it, than to need it, and not have it.

[Oreo]

Originally Posted by Hop

That's not a statistic, it's an anecdote (or would be if it wasn't a hypothetical)

And I'm sorry if I gave the impression that the scenarios I laid out are statistics. Of course not! I didn't mean they are! I know the difference between a statistic and an anecdote. Don't be silly. And they are not anecdotes because they were hypothetical. Therefore what they were are hypothetical scenarios furnished for example. Also known, maybe, as allegories.

[FLYBOYJ]

To be honest with you guys, I've owned guns since I was in my early 20s. I briefly gave them up when I moved to Canada but purchased a small collection when I came back to the states. 3 times I drew a gun on an individual where I thought my life was in danger and all 3 times the other party retreated.

[Oreo]

Originally Posted by Hop

Too much Hollywood, I think. Note how the good guy with the gun always wins. It's the old western staple, innocent unarmed townspeople terrorised by armed criminal, gunfighter turns up and kills the criminals. The guy with the white hat always wins.

I don't get my education, opinions, or even much of my entertainment from Hollywood. The place and most of the people there stink to me. When I watch movies I am constantly saying things like, "that could never happen" or "she wouldn't say that" or "that little boy is way too calm for facing a space alien" or whatever. Hollywood is one of my enemies, they just don't know it! I get my information and opinions primarily from ancient documents, like, the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bible. I am traveling to see my parents in Maine soon, when my sister gets married up there. I plan to stop in and pay my respects at the Lexington battlefield in Massachusetts on my way up. That is where the first blood was spilled for our Revolution-- if you don't count the Boston Massacre.

[Oreo]

Originally Posted by FLYBOYJ

To be honest with you guys, I've owned guns since I was in my early 20s. I briefly gave them up when I moved to Canada but purchased a small collection when I came back to the states. 3 times I drew a gun on an individual where I thought my life was in danger and all 3 times the other party retreated.

Now Flyboy, they are telling me that's only anecdotal evidence. What about that?

btw, I helped count the offering at church tonight, and after that another man and I went to the bank deposit box to deposit the (rather large) amount of money collected at our church. I don't have a handgun yet, but the other guy kept his .38 Special near at hand at all times. We circled the bank once to look for suspicious characters, then pulled up to the deposit box and he quickly put the money in while I watched for trouble. None came. If it had, we would have done as you. Drew a gun on the individual and hoped they retreated. If they were really stupid, and didn't back down,

"BANG BANG BANG, the gun will sing, an awful price to pay, pay, pay--
Bang Bang Bang, the gun will sing, an awful price to pay."-- German folk song, loosely translated.

[CharlesBronson]

Too much Hollywood, I think.

Too much stupity from your part I think, gunfights and armed crime ( unfortunately) dont happened just in TV and Movies.

[FLYBOYJ]

Originally Posted by Oreo

Now Flyboy, they are telling me that's only anecdotal evidence. What about that?

That's just the way it worked out.

The first two times I was in my 20s - not to go into detail I was in the wrong place at the wrong time trying to do a favor for someone. From across the table a guy drew a .25 Raven on me - I pulled out a good ole .45. He blinked.

About 6 months later I heard someone scratching at my door - pulled open the door with my .45 in hand - it seemed to be a homeless guy - he ran off. When I went to work the next day I found he was trying to dig out the hinges on my front door.

The last time (about 13 years ago) my neighbor was being terrorized by 3 gang bangers. Her young daughter broke up with one. They were yelling and screaming at the house, driving their car up on the lawn and threatening everyone inside the house. I came out with my SKS and shoved the barrel in the face of the driver - they never returned.

I look back and wish I could of avoided all 3 situations but in the end I was the one who came out a head. Where I live now is almost crime free but I think it is known with a wink and a handshake the majority of the people who live on my street own a firearm or some type.

[freebird]

Originally Posted by FLYBOYJ

To be honest with you guys, I've owned guns since I was in my early 20s. I briefly gave them up when I moved to Canada...

Where did you live in Canada?