General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: This is another gun thread for those hiding them. [View all]OneGrassRoot
(22,920 posts)Last edited Tue Jan 29, 2013, 01:43 PM - Edit history (2)
I've learned more about guns since Sandy Hook. The two takeaways that helped me see things with more of an open mind are 1) There actually are people who view it purely as a sport, like archery; 2) The gun manufacturers are the ones who seem to have made the landscape such that nearly all of the guns today are technically semi-automatic and militaristic, no doubt thinking ahead to what's happening right now.
So my focus isn't so much on the guns themselves right now, but instead this culture of irresponsibility and callous disregard for life (oh, the irony since most of the people I speak of would consider themselves "pro-life" cloaked in Second Amendment, patriotic BS.
What bothers me more than anything is the growing number of people (especially women, and gun/accessory marketers are taking advantage of their interest, big time) who seem to have a lack of respect for the power of the weapon -- and even seem to try to deny it IS a weapon by how nonchalant they are. I know there have been toy guns around forever, and we've had a gun culture in this country forever, but if you look at the graphics below, you'll see what I mean.
And I also think there is a decidedly racist aspect to much of what we're seeing concerning guns from the right-wing (I think there's a decidedly racist aspect to most everything concerning today's right-wing/Tea Party faction). In the first graphic, the white people posing with guns would likely look at the young black man as a "thug," but they don't see themselves that way at all.
(NOTE that the Dewalt nail gun shown below is actually a hoax, per snopes; I'm surprised there isn't such a product being sold since so many have said they would love to have this. My point in including it in the graphic is the same.)