Rational discussion needed about guns, personally and nationally
Guns. My feelings toward them are quite confusing. Despite the fact I played with toy guns when I was kid, I am very leery of real guns. We never had guns at home when I was growing up and I have never gone hunting. And though I have held a handgun and “homemade” AK-47, I have never pulled a trigger to shoot a gun.
I do not understand the enthusiasm and fascination others feel toward guns, nor the hobby of collecting. However, I am sure many cannot understand my love for books and beer. The cliché is lame but true: different strokes for different folks. I understand there are people who are interested in guns and want to own them, and those who enjoy hunting, and to that effect I have no problem with responsible gun-ownership. At some point I would like to tag along with J-Rod and his dad when they shoot targets at their family farm and take a couple shots myself.
However, the personal leeriness remains. Seeing guns and being around them makes me uneasy — and much of that may have to do with the fact I have never had any constructive experiences with guns, and because they are usually portrayed as tools of malice and murder. I, for one, am far from entranced by depictions of violence in the media. Movies like Django Unchained, with loads of gun fighting and blood, do nothing but bolster my leeriness.
I am at a loss for words regarding the contentiousness that has resurfaced in the wake of the Sandy Hook tragedy, and with all the purported solutions to gun violence. Given my personal conflict regarding guns, I feel like I am caught in the crossfire (excuse the pun) between the two extremes: Second Amendment dogmatists and those who believe in gun control to one degree or another. I also feel like I have nothing to add to the debate because I have no experience with guns. Sure, I have questions and observations, but though I do not understand gun enthusiasm, I am also unsure how restrictions can stop gun violence.
This is obviously something I need to dedicate more thought and discussion on, much like the rest of the nation. Hopefully we can all do it with respect and reason.
I do not understand the enthusiasm and fascination others feel toward guns, nor the hobby of collecting. However, I am sure many cannot understand my love for books and beer. The cliché is lame but true: different strokes for different folks. I understand there are people who are interested in guns and want to own them, and those who enjoy hunting, and to that effect I have no problem with responsible gun-ownership. At some point I would like to tag along with J-Rod and his dad when they shoot targets at their family farm and take a couple shots myself.
However, the personal leeriness remains. Seeing guns and being around them makes me uneasy — and much of that may have to do with the fact I have never had any constructive experiences with guns, and because they are usually portrayed as tools of malice and murder. I, for one, am far from entranced by depictions of violence in the media. Movies like Django Unchained, with loads of gun fighting and blood, do nothing but bolster my leeriness.
I am at a loss for words regarding the contentiousness that has resurfaced in the wake of the Sandy Hook tragedy, and with all the purported solutions to gun violence. Given my personal conflict regarding guns, I feel like I am caught in the crossfire (excuse the pun) between the two extremes: Second Amendment dogmatists and those who believe in gun control to one degree or another. I also feel like I have nothing to add to the debate because I have no experience with guns. Sure, I have questions and observations, but though I do not understand gun enthusiasm, I am also unsure how restrictions can stop gun violence.
This is obviously something I need to dedicate more thought and discussion on, much like the rest of the nation. Hopefully we can all do it with respect and reason.
