Quote:
Originally Posted by BillJasper
There seems to be a Red Dawn-esque mind set among Americans that if the government decides to go "bad", that they will somehow be able to unite and fight off the new tyranny.
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Groundhog
Yeah, this is the line of thinking that makes most folks outside of the US back out of the conversation with an "ooooo-k there.....".
|
I live in one of the more gun-happy states in the U.S. (55% of people own at least one gun) - those people do not own guns for the purpose of taking down the government, aside from the odd weirdo. People own guns for hunting, home protection, target shooting, to protect their pets and horses and livestock from wolves and coyotes and mountain lions, etc, and some people just kind of acquired them from their parents or other family members and don't want to get rid of them.
I think some people do kind of have in their mind that their weapons are a hedge against potential economic depression and a more violent society in the future, but even that isn't a real reason for day-to-day ownership. I think people in some other countries (aside from Northern European countries) and more urban American areas would be surprised about attitudes towards gun ownership in more rural America. Hunting is a big deal, but most people don't worship at the alter of the gun and plan for the fall of the government. Guns are just around, and most people happen to own at least one.