Are guns some kind of new age religion?

It seems that guns have been elevated to a level of spiritual prominence that few inanimate objects have reached.

Guns are integral to certain peoples' self image and internal sense of well being. People pose with them, and fondle them and just generally love them. I've heard more than one person spouting about how they would die for their guns. Really? Is that the choice you would make? To me, that's some sick fetish [snipped]. It's a god damned piece of steel. I own a few. Big whup.

Can someone explain this weird behavior? The US already has 2x more private guns per person than any other nation. Sales are still going through the roof. Some kranks in AZ now mandated that guns taken through buybacks be sold or given away to put back into circulation WTF? How many is enough? It's madness.

Lay those stoopid half brained insults on me. I like a good chuckle.

Originally posted by InverseLookingGlass
Guns are integral to certain peoples' self image and internal sense of well being.

In this world they are the only reason people are able to have a self image or well sense of being to begin with.

An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life. Robert A. Heinlein

reply to post by Klassified


That's not the planet I live on. I politely decline to visit you on your gun planet.

Originally posted by InverseLookingGlass
It seems that guns have been elevated to a level of spiritual prominence that few inanimate objects have reached.

Guns are integral to certain peoples' self image and internal sense of well being. People pose with them, and fondle them and just generally love them. I've heard more than one person spouting about how they would die for their guns. Really? Is that the choice you would make? To me, that's some sick fetish sh#t. It's a god damned piece of steel. I own a few. Big whup.

Can someone explain this weird behavior? The US already has 2x more private guns per person than any other nation. Sales are still going through the roof. Some kranks in AZ now mandated that guns taken through buybacks be sold or given away to put back into circulation WTF? How many is enough? It's madness.

Lay those stoopid half brained insults on me. I like a good chuckle.

Religion? No, no more strange than peoples attachment say to their cars, or to a lesser extent their animals.

Its more a cultural thing than a religious though the two are not mutually exclusive.

Guns if people like it or not are ingrained in the American culture, much like "freedom" and Liberty, they tend to go hand in hand with Gun Culture for better or worse.

Just because you do not understand it does not mean their cultural experience is any less valid than your own.

There are large chunks of the US away from the east and west coast where a gun is a valuable tool for peoples day to day life.

One could also say that this Freedom of speech thing is elevated to the level of "religion" here in America as well, but like guns ultimately it is one of the fundamental founding rights here in the US.

Of course gun ownership is a religion.

The Constitution is their Bible (although they pick and choose which parts to practice) and they live by the motto "Don't miss a chance to shoot someone!"

Having different view than the pro gun culture is like talking to a religious fanatic about weather or not god exists. They start getting mad then name calling , intimidating ,and act like they are superior to anyone that thinks differently.
I have noticed this from many debates/ arguments on ats . It is exactly the same thing and all logic goes out the window when you start to question their beliefs.

Originally posted by freedomSlave
Having different view than the pro gun culture is like talking to a religious fanatic about weather or not god exists. They start getting mad then name calling , intimidating ,and act like they are superior to anyone that thinks differently.
I have noticed this from many debates/ arguments on ats . It is exactly the same thing and all logic goes out the window when you start to question their beliefs.

I think that's true of some on both sides of this debate. I don't think you can truthfully generalize everyone on either side.

Originally posted by Klassified

Originally posted by freedomSlave
Having different view than the pro gun culture is like talking to a religious fanatic about weather or not god exists. They start getting mad then name calling , intimidating ,and act like they are superior to anyone that thinks differently.
I have noticed this from many debates/ arguments on ats . It is exactly the same thing and all logic goes out the window when you start to question their beliefs.

I think that's true of some on both sides of this debate. I don't think you can truthfully generalize everyone on either side.

Absolutely look at the Vitriol and rhetoric already coming out against gun supporters in this thread, yet none from the other side have come out frothing at the mouth for pro-gun stance.

Might as well have started screaming "Think of the children" already...

Are guns some kind of new age religion?

No...

Guns and an armed citizenry are the reason the US exists.

I believe in my right to protect myself, and my family, and my children, and my freedom

.....that is not a religion

It makes me wonder who is really obsessed with firearms.

The one who keep firearms for self defense?
Or the ones that try to control, regulate, register, prohibit, tax, ban, and/or confiscate them?

Just food for thought. Thanks for the thread. Star and flag for you.

Originally posted by freedomSlave
Having different view than the pro gun culture is like talking to a religious fanatic about weather or not god exists. They start getting mad then name calling , intimidating ,and act like they are superior to anyone that thinks differently.
I have noticed this from many debates/ arguments on ats . It is exactly the same thing and all logic goes out the window when you start to question their beliefs.

I don't have a belief. I am not part of a pro-gun culture. I will not call you names. I will not
get mad or try to intimidate you. I will employ logic and reason in my defense of personal
defense.

My opinion is, however, superior to your opinion...I will give you that one

Originally posted by InverseLookingGlass
It seems that guns have been elevated to a level of spiritual prominence that few inanimate objects have reached.

Guns are integral to certain peoples' self image and internal sense of well being. People pose with them, and fondle them and just generally love them. I've heard more than one person spouting about how they would die for their guns. Really? Is that the choice you would make? To me, that's some sick fetish sh#t. It's a god damned piece of steel. I own a few. Big whup.

Can someone explain this weird behavior? The US already has 2x more private guns per person than any other nation. Sales are still going through the roof. Some kranks in AZ now mandated that guns taken through buybacks be sold or given away to put back into circulation WTF? How many is enough? It's madness.

Lay those stoopid half brained insults on me. I like a good chuckle.

Are Guns Some Sort Of NewAgeSewege Religion, hand to hand combat? The hand gun or long arm,just allows for a long distance disassociated kill; are you speaking of (Just like weapons used by others self-defining themselves as nation crushers for the Good of God), the maul, the bow and arrow, the mace, the dagger, the cannon, the catapult, the sling shot, the hot oil, the moat with crocodiles, the spear, the hatchet, the asp, the sword and the earliest? THE CLUB. I suppose there is more honor in killing humanbeings for God if its up close and personal (God not present, only in misguided ideals). What changes with technology, the ideal is the same, to kill Gods Creatures and IT seems strangly acquiecent to these futile goals. Who is in charge here, nations or God, and why is there the determination ALLOWED to extinguish fellow men in the name of Religion?

I am of the oppinion that it is the anti gun types that are fanatical about the subject.

They always claim it is to save lives, and then point to gun bans resulting in few gun deaths, all while completely ignoring the fact overall crimes andmurders seem to increase, and all the many ways that people die without guns, which take many times more lives every year, yet somehow seems to be just fine to them, as long as guns aren't involved.

Seems very fruity to me, I mean honestly more people die from doctors, cars, and prescription drugs, yet nothing from them.

They just seem fixated on guns, obsesive even.

No it is definitely not the pro gun crowd that is obsessed to the point of religious fanatics with guns, it is anti gun folks that are obsessed and fanatical, about taking things away from others, and trying to control others lives.

I like to hunt. Knowing nature and how to provide for self. I'd hate for that to be taken away and be further dependent on corporation.

I'd hate to be a cattle rancher - say in Montana - lose a foal and go out to retrieve it only to come face to face with a mountain lion or grizzly and think - that man's dead now because they weren't allowed to carry a firearm to protect themselves...

But I also don't own a gun currently. I have children. But I still go hunting....

I don't have a problem with guns. My problem is with people's very failing trait of irresponsibility. It is a problem. For example. If a teenager gets a gun and goes on a psychotic shooting rampage - those parents should be held criminally responsible for negligence, improper safe handling/storage of firearms... etc. etc.

It's just not that hard. This fight is no fight. It's about holding people personally responsible for their actions. If your a dumbass with a gun and irresponsible - you should be charged and your right to bare arms revoked or at least suspended until proper hoops that cost a fortune (like mandatory gun safety classes) are jumped through.

Harsh? Good. Tough! Gun laws should be. But I don't believe guns should be withheld or banned. You just better know what the heck your doing, and if you don't and somebody is hurt - you should be held responsible.

Cirque

reply to post by rival


thanks for that one

reply to post by inverslyproportional


The US has 2x more private guns per capita than any other nation on Earth except Yemen (keep in mind this is 2007 so who knows now). The US is in the top 5 in gun homicides and #1 in incarcerated population/citizen. Those are facts not opinion. The question that demands a logical answer is how many guns will it take for the nation to be "safe". 2-3 for every person 5, 10? Everyone walking and driving with machine guns? So the point is, if you can't articulate the limits of a belief or value, it is on the imaginary axis, not the real axis. Consider that while you are fantasizing about that next lethal toy you want to acquire.

www.nationmaster.com...

BTW, One symptom of "gun love" that is similar to religion is self aggrandizing. In other words, pretending everyone is against you to make yourself feel more important. There isn't a gun grabber or an "anti-gun" person around every corner. That's irrational self aggrandizing. Most people are reasonable and would apply "common sense".

reply to post by InverseLookingGlass


It's American Heritage. Whether they are pro or not gunner the U.S was build on terrorism and the bearing of arms. Some take it to the extreme, yes but some kind of new age religion? Hardly in my point of view.

reply to post by InverseLookingGlass


First, I only own 2 guns, neither of which are of the "assault" style. I do not have any in my home, nor do I use them often.

I am not a "gun nut", I am just not dumb enough to believe the .gov restricting the peoples rights will help anything in any way.

As to how many guns? Well, how many freedoms should we have? How many times should one be allowed to use free speach?

This is a free society, unlike every other one on the planet, so you can not compare them to mine, they are apples and oranges.

Why not compare the amount of firepower a nations government has, and compare that to the civilians ability to resist it?

This would be a much better metric than overall guns.

I don't follow your assumption we should place limits on freedoms of ownership.

Place limits on the amount of wealth any one individual and or corporation can have first, and crime will dissapear almost entirely in a generation, as most crime can be traced to hopelessness, in hunger, and need.

If ones children are hungry, they will steal, kill, sell drugs, their own bodies etc... to feed them.

I don't ever hear anything about that though, because having millions of times more than billions can ever touch in their lives is just fine. I couldn't explain why that is, but society is messed up.

Walmart makes hundreds of billions, and has millions of employees on welfare, meaning a lot of those hundreds of billions comes right from government subsidies, because their wouldn't be anyone working for them, and making them that money, if their families were starving even though they work.

If they don't work, they can't get the welfare in most states, so they are forced to work in impossed slave wage jobs, dependant on the .gov to feed them.

Fix those 2 problems, and fix the human race, fix the human race, and you will end the need of guns, and violent use of them against other humans.

Try to cure the problem, not complain about a symptom.

reply to post by inverslyproportional


"Why not compare the amount of firepower a nations government has, and compare that to the civilians ability to resist it? This would be a much better metric than overall guns."

Valid suggestion. At least it's bounded. Try to quantify that though. You'd have to give each block an M1-A1 or Bradley. At least allow full auto 0.50's. I know someone reading this is thinking that sounds good. Maybe on "planet of the guns" not where I want to live my life.

"I don't follow your assumption we should place limits on freedoms of ownership."

I don't believe I stated that, but it's actually more than an assumption. I would first look to the 2nd amendment for the guiding limits then apply limits that meet community standards. i.e. common sense. The 2nd amendment is not unlimited or absolute. So felons are not free to gun up. Neither are people with clinical mental illness. My neighbor can't own a full auto mini-gun. My fellow citizen's freedom can't subordinate mine.