I have been a staunch "banner" and a Liberal for a long, long time...like all my life...born and raised in two Solid Red States, lived a long time in a Blue State, have family in both Color States. My Dad, a theological seminary graduate and Christian minister, born 1911, was a Conscientous Objector in WWII, but volunteered as an Army Chaplain in Japan during the Occupation. I came along upon the family's return to the US during his John Birch/Joseph McCarthy days.
It is reasonable to assume that banning guns is a pipe dream. It is also reasonable to assume that a AK in every legal person's shoulder holster while out shopping, at school, at church, at a bar or restaurant, at a funeral, joyriding, high on alcohol or pot or drugs, in a domestic fight...which is the logical, polar opposite ... is fortunately also a pipe dream.
This is my first contact with folks in my adult life who own guns, other than hunting rifles. (I shot some cans off fence posts as a kid.) New cultural realities are requiring the "liberal" in me to kick in and listen responsibly to other opinions, learn and maybe make appropriate changes in my own opinions and sphere of influence.
Given that is highly likely the protection of your family and hunting for food are pretty much wired into our cultural psyches...not out of fear so much as in our DNA and brain structure...this is not going to change any time soon. Historically, guns have been the weapon of choice. Yet, we argue and feel threatened by each other at our peril.
Empire/war/aggression was culturally easier for many when it was "Them" that we "took out" for killing "Us." Now we are a Global Empire and have physically or politically or economically taken out most of "Them"...based mostly on the power or threat of the gun/WMD/economic punishment/whatever. Now we are facing the ultimate challenge of the existential power/responsibility/result of Being Number One...what do we do when the conversation turns inward and begins to be mostly about "Us"? It's not a rhetorical question at all.
I know almost nothing about guns, and don't really want or need to know too much more. Given that, here is my question: What baseline of protection and hunting or sporting capacity is reasonable to encourage, allow or issue to every family or everyone of age, legally...kind of if there were a Public Healthcare version of Public Weaponry.
The poor we shall always have with us and they deserve protection and so they can hunt food, rather than live in fear for their family's protection based on their economic situation. Or, those like me who resent all to hell having to even consider some gun minimum to purchase, posses and/or carry, let alone have them placed in schools, with teachers, principals and/or guards, to protect the little ones.
Nor are elementary schools the "line in the sand" to suddenly get "weapon proliferation queasy". Security companies already have plenty of weapons in inventory.
Nor are the kids dumb...they know about Sandy Hook. Officer Friendly on the playground or in the halls will be welcomed by the kids...just because he is a friendly authority. (Favorite Field Trips or classroom visits are by our Community Helpers...kid's protective heroes.)
When you've had to be trained how to help little ones defend themselves against "certain inappropriate adult behaviors", explaining that their new friend that hangs around the school is kind of like the Playground Supervisor, there to watch over them ... that's a piece of cake. Admittedly, I don't have any snappy answers or comfortable solutions for protecting against the occasional neighborhood terrorist, that may look like Us.
Restated: What is a reasonable firearm minimum that I should arrange for myself...a senior woman, living alone with currently "just an attitude" ...forget the regulations and the parsing of details for now. I would suspect this should be a minimum to sufficiently protect and or feed all our citizens/families...equally.
Thank you for reading this, if you got this far. Any reasonable thought, suggestions or input are most appreciated.
= new reply since forum marked as read
