i always imagine the Gun Nut types to be like Zimmerman , losers, cowards etc

[JI7]

he seems just like the type i think of when i think of the gun nuts. bunch of cowardly wannabe tough guys.

how much of a coward loser you have to be always feeling the need to be armed as if we are living in some place like Syria or SOmalia.

i think it makes these people feel tough and more "manly".

[flvegan]

1. To be clear

it would seem that you'd find anyone to be a "coward loser" if they had a CCW? "Tough and manly" are an issue for you on this?

Imagine. Keep doing it.

[JI7]

5. i think most are, the response in #2 shows there can be exceptions

but i think the large majority are like Zimmerman.

[William769]

2. I am a Gay Liberal Democrat and I live in Florida.

Three reasons I have a Concealed weapons permit & carry a firearm.

1. Gay

2. Liberal

3. Democrat

Add that to the fact I live in a part of "redneck country" in Florida, I carry a weapon. Has nothing to do with being "manly", it has to do with self preservation.

[JI7]

4. even in California in a liberal part we recently had an attack on a gay man

would you carry a gun if you were in los angeles california ?

[William769]

6. If I had a Concealed Weapons Permit for your State, yes.

[JI7]

7. i think there is more of a chance of those with a CCW using it against a gay person

than a gay person using it to defend themselves.

similar to Trayvon case.

[William769]

9. That I can't answer.

I can only give you the reason I carry one.

[Jim__]

20. Do you think if you ever shoot someone in self-defense the police will let you keep your gun and go

home?

I'm curious whether the actions of the police in the Trayvon Martin case are the norm in Florida. Or, is it likely that race played a role in how the police acted?

[PDJane]

3. It's the myth of the wild west, the manly, independent man

Who protects himself and his family and posesssions against the 'bad guys'.

These guys see themselves as heroes. They aren't. I believe they live in the Republican bubble, fed propaganda from childhood.

[JI7]

8. how about the ones who bring up needing it to defend against the Govt

do they know the weapons the Govt has ? the ones we use in war in Iraq, AFghanistan etc.

[PDJane]

14. There's a certain naiveté to the folks who believe themselves heroes.

They also believe themselves invincible because their heart is pure, and all that........it's just another part of the myth, and has left me amazed for years.

It's totally ridiculous, but there you have it.

[hifiguy]

27. George Carlin made this point 25 years ago

"The Army has flamethrowers. We don't. Looks like we're fucked if we ever have to fight the Army..."

[PavePusher]

29. Apparently, Carlin never really put any thought into the subject....

and it shows.

[DrDan]

23. bingo - except some live outside of the "Republican bubble"

[bluedigger]

10. What other groups do you like to stereotype, and how?

Do tell!

[JI7]

11. Republicans , creationists , drill drill drill types etc

[guitar man]

12. I don't have to "imagine" anything

25 years ago, in 1987, I was shot by an armed criminal while I was not carrying a gun. I was not carrying a gun then because at the time and place it was not legal for me to do so. I was obeying the law. The asshole that shot me was not, he had no regard for the law, none at all.

These days I pack a pistol, legally, when I think it's prudent to do so. Should I ever run across another asshole like the one that shot me before, at least I won't be standing there "naked".

Now you can "imagine" me to be anything you want, I don't care. All I know is there is nothing left for me to imagine about what it's like to be face to face with someone who intends to kill me. I'm reminded of it every day, and it's worse when the weather gets cold and damp. Sometimes I walk with a limp, sometimes I have to use a cane....

[JI7]

13. a guy broke into our home when i was a teenager

held a gun to my mom and demanded money.

the thing is with these cases including yours , how do you know when a person will shoot ? i don't always want a weapon on me and worried about whether someone is going to attack me or not.

maybe i might feel different if i actually did get shot . i'm sorry what happened to you. and i see there are a few cases like this and above which aren't Zimmerman types.

but i still think the majority are Zimmerman types.

[guitar man]

16. You're free to think what you wish

I know plenty of people who carry guns for protection and none of them are like that asshole Zimmerman. But as they say, that's "anecdotal".

The fact is, you don't know. It's not a perfect world and there are no perfect solutions. What I do know is how it turned out last time. Should it ever happen again, I know there's no guarantee that having a pistol would keep me from getting shot again, but damn I'd like to have the chance to better defend myself if god forbid I ever find myself in that situation again.

I play guitar with a classic rock/blues/variety band. We carry a lot of expensive equipment and instruments to outlying towns to do shows. About 15 years ago some good friends of mine were in rural Arkansas doing a gig. They left the club after packing up their gear. Some thugs followed them, waited for them to stop at a stop sign in the middle of nowhere, blew them away and took the van full of gear.

Such possibilities and wanting to make it home alive to my family weigh heavily in my decision to arm myself.

[COLGATE4]

26. I truly feel sorry that you suffered an attack of that

nature which has left you with physical consequences. But I would suggest to you that the shooting has probably left you with emotional consequences as well. Most of us have never fired a weapon at another human being. It's nowhere as easy as you suppose it is. Most of us do not have the psychopathic personality many criminals have, which is what permits them to shoot others with ease. My guess is that if you were confronted again by a felon with a gun your reaction might be quite different from what you are imagining it would be.

[X_Digger]

15. The math just doesn't add up.

By best guess, there are about 10,000,000 adults with concealed carry licenses. (Last I looked up all the various state stats I could find, they totaled up to something like 8.5m, and that's been a couple years.)

If you had 10 million people as blatantly racist and confrontational as Zimmerman, we'd be ankle deep in bodies.

I can't speak to the conviction rate for states other than Texas and Florida, but assuming some similarity, they (CCW/CHL holders) are multiple times less likely to be convicted of a crime than the rest of the 21+ year old public. Even if you cut the public in *half* for some kind of disqualification to carry, you're still leagues above CHL holders in crime conviction rates.



Derived from TX DPS stats

[NutmegYankee]

17. In Connecticut you need a CCW just to transport a firearm to the range.

So I have a CCW to practice a sport (target shooting). The club I am a member of has many pistol competitions, which are fun to participate in. Competitions like knocking down bowling pins in the fastest time.

I fail to see what's cowardly.

[Atman]

18. Shooting defenseless bowling pins?

I suppose that's one way to deal with a pesky 7-10 split.

[Son of Gob]

19. I like the cut of your jib.

[dmr]

21. As a liberal, I'm very careful not to generalize people or groups of people.

Calling people nuts, cowards, wannabe tough guys - what's that all about? What do you or anyone else know about people? I do think there are people like you describe, but I would never be so arrogant about generalizing groups of people, including DUers.

Decent, hard working people own guns, they certainly don't fit your last sentence - that's what Sarah Palin does when she wants to taunt & belittle men.

And for full disclosure: I hate guns, but have no problem with responsible ownership.

[Quantess]

25. Wholeheartedly agreed!

Stereotyping is a shortcut to thinking. It's also an unattractive trait, to judge people before you get to know them, to make assumptions, stereotype, etc.

I bet there are things about you (directed at the OP) that don't fit neatly into a stereotype. I know for certain there are a lot of things about me that don't match a stereotype. And then when someone assumes wrong, it just makes the person look like an ass.

Stereotyping is a laziness to be avoided.

[JHB]

24. And who do you include as "Gun Nut type"?

How thoroughly do you check how well reality matches up with what you imagine?

[Lizzie Poppet]

28. So happy for you! You found an acceptable form of bigotry!

Well, acceptable to some, anyway...