How can Hoplophobic people overcome their anti-gun mentality?

Question

-"You don't need to have a gun; the police will protect you"

-"If people carry guns, there will be murders over parking spaces"

-"I'm a pacifist. Enlightened, spiritually aware people shouldn't own guns"

-"I'd rather be raped than have some redneck militia type try to rescue me."

How often have you heard these statements from misguided advocates of victim disarmament, or even woefully uninformed relatives and neighbors? Why do people cling so tightly to these beliefs, in the face of incontrovertible evidence that they are wrong? Why do they get so angry when gun owners simply point out that their arguments are factually and logically incorrect?

How can you communicate with these people who seem to be out of touch with reality and rational thought?



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplophobia

Answer 1

take them out of their comfort zone, and put them into a high crime area. Preferably one surrounded with sex offenders.
Tell them the truth about what just happened down the street to the family, being terrorized by one of those sex offenders. Tell them the truth that nearly every female in that area has been sexually assaulted and/or raped and that in order to be safe from rape they have to try to call the police and hope to god that one of the 12 policeman they have working can get there before the offender gets your door broken down and rapes them and their children. I know that I wouldn't be standing there waiting for the police while sombody raped my child. If I couldn't get a gun, I guess I'd have to risk more to stop it. You have to get a whole lot closer to stab somebody than you do to shoot them.

Answer 2

Interestingly I live in an area that has tried to have very strong gun controls and have not heard any of the statements you quote. Not one of them. People have reasons for not wanting guns or controlling them.

Personally I see nothing wrong with someone owning a gun or two for hunting, target shooting, and protection. I don't believe one needs an AK47 or bazooka but a rifle, shotgun or handgun should be no problem. If they are properly secured so childeren can't get to and play with them or some crook can't get them and use them in a crime they should be fine in one's home. I don't think someone should be allowd to own a private arsonal but one or two of each rifle, handgun, shotgun is okay by me. Gun collectors, with special permits, would be the exception.

One final thought. While I do not own a gun I don't feel it is right for me to forbid you from having guns within reason as stated above.

Answer 3

I've heard them several times. And I think they're every bit as weak as the arguments being used by the pro-firearm crowd. It apparently hasn't occured to anyone that arguments like 'if we take away all the guns, only the baddies/police/ will have them', and 'there have been x number of violent gun deaths in Y area last year alone' are incredibly weak and don't stand up to even a few moment's thought.

It is obvious that we can't simply force everyone to give up their firearms, and there's no reason they should. It's equally obvious that not everyone is capable of handling a gun, just like not everyone is capable of having a driver's license. The solution to this, I think, is not any extreme actions like forcibly taking away people's right to 'keep and bear arms', it's a re-working of current gun control laws into a system that allows any responsible, capable person to own a reasonable number of firearms for recreation/self defense.

Answer 4

Most Hoplophobes haven't come to the realization that the ultimate responsibility of protecting one's self and loved ones rests solely on thier shoulders. The recent debacle in New Orleans should have made that point pretty clear.
Guns are tools-nothing more.
I believe that personal firearm ownership is the "canary in the coal mine" of a truly free state.
Unfortunately, the "guns are evil" propogandists have a different agenda.
I don't think much can be done to change the hoplophobic mind set.
My 2A right to protect myself and loved ones is also non-negotiable.

Answer 5

I have noticed on here that those who go on and on about the arguments against gun control being weak, then rant on and on without giving any actual credible evidence to support their argument in favor of disarming law abiding citizens. It stands to reason that if you disarm the lawful, the balance of power will swing in favor of the lawless. If you think you can rely on the "officials" who are only interested in taking care of their own nest to protect your family, you may be fatally disappointed some day. Where I live, the response time for the police can be measured in hours some times. That is if they show up at all.
As far as guns being used for self defense or to prevent crimes, that occurrs about two million times a year. I have had personal experience in which the fact I had a gun in the first place meant that I did not have to harm the perpetrators in my family's defense. These guys were much more scared of my being armed than they were of the police. That is the ONLY reason they left us alone.
Those of you who placidly pass judgement from your upscale gated communities need to get out into the real world and see for yourselves whether or not a form of self-defense is needed. Unlike the Upscale Icons of Gun Control, not all of us can afford a bevy of armed body guards. For the rest of us, defending our families is a do-it-yourself proposition.

Answer 6

The country's founders guarenteed the right to bear arms as a safety valve against government aquiring totalitarian power. Hitler outlawed guns in Nazi germany, which allowed him to rule with an iron fist and enact any atrocity he wanted without fear of reprisal. Surely liberals want something to counter the possibility of tyriannical rule? Surely?

Answer 7

Guns in the hands of the incompetent are more dangerous than not having guns at all. There is very little "incontrovertible" evidence that crime is diminished by gun ownership. I don't own a gun, but it is not because of any fear of the silly things. Quite frankly, when was the last time that you used a gun for self defense?

Answer 8

Gun control should be about the bunch of wackos hiding out in concrete bunkers full of assault rifles in the middle of the woods.

If something happens to the government those freaks are taking over and nobody wants that.

Ha Ha Negative Votes, I see I stepped on some toes about the "bunkers"

Answer 9

Very few people don't believe in the right to bear arms. I own 2 guns myself...and I'm a liberal.

Liberals don't want guns in the hands of wife beaters, felons, and other violent criminals. And we need better enforcement, and gunshow regulation too. Nothing wrong with that.

Answer 10

You can't reason rationality with an irrational person. I dare them to try to take my weapons, or my right to own them.