another bloody yank

You're in San Francisco where there aren't many law abiding gun enthusiasts. In San Francisco and many other urban areas, people with firearms are either police or up to no good. That stigma doesn't exist in most (geographically speaking) of the rest of the country.

Leslie

All I know is that it is a seriously good thing that I don't own a gun today.

Steerpike

cyanide is an inanimate object until you pop it in your mouth ... Fearing something that has a tendency to go 'bang' and cause blood to spurt may just be somewhat rational. Like I said - one under the bed is controllable, but 30, 40, 50 - how can you possibly know where they all are, keep them all safe, etc ... kinda like having one cat vs. 40 cats ... I mean, is every one of them under lock and key?

No, you are freedom and rights loving, and the guns just help you protect and defend them, right - all roomful(s) of them!

In all seriousness, if a neighbor of mine had that many guns I'd move. Having one gun I can understand, and I can imagine it will be well looked after and controlled by the owner. But if my neighbor had literally dozens, I'd get nervous that the chance of an accident would increase. Is he going to have friends over who come to admire and handle the weapons (with every 'handle' being a chance of an accident). What happens when he goes on vacation, and he's robbed ...

I realize you are a responsible person, and I'm not trying to be totally contrarian. I understand and accept your right to bear arms. But I'm trying to get my head around possession of an arsenal fit for an army. Not 'do you have the right?' but 'why?/what are the consequences?'

Ray

I am sticking to 29 then ....

Steerpike

If I went to your house and you talked about how you go hunting, and showed me a collection of rifles you used to hunt with, and maybe a weapon you used for personal safety, I'd think it was quite normal. I'd respect your knowledge of the subject and learn from you. But if I went to your house and you showed me some of the weapons in OF's collection like this one:

and this one:

I'd seriously question what was going on in your head ... I'd make some excuse and head for the door ...

Octang Frye

That is a hunting rifle, and a plinker. I wish I had the money for both.
Once again, you don't understand what you're looking at. Oh noes! It's black and looks scary.

I just don't feel like discussing this any more today. Have fun guys.

Ray

Sounds like my mate Big Derrick

anotherlimey

Looks just like one of mine.

Some people collect them, I've met people with 10 different types of the same model: http://gallery.me.com/bofrench#100117

Bill_S

Why? Because they look scary? WRT the upper picture, AR-pattern rifles are very common, and function essentially the same as any other rifle with a detatchable box magazine. The P90 in the lower pic is a full-auto military weapon. I doubt that there are any transferable units in the US. There's a semi-auto civilian version with a long barrel, essentially a novelty item, but no more dangerous than any other small-bore semi-auto rifle.

meauxna

Just to be the Devil's Advocate.. I think that you can't generalize about people based on the number of guns owned. Some are going to be whack jobs, some are going to be irresponsible (the handling you point out) but most are going to be people who've invested a lot of money in their hobby and are serious about it. As pointed out, people own multiple models of the same gun.. it's no different really than any other kind of collection.

This kind of owner is likely to have their weapons locked in a gun safe, to protect the guns and for general safety. The guns are not stored loaded and the ammo is stored separately.

I got a crash course in "crazy gun people" thanks to my ex. I simply had never been exposed to them before and so I thought he was a 'nut'. Over time I learned more about it and gained confidence.. maybe a fear of the unknown affected me. I never did agree with his reasons for a concealed carry permit & it did inhibit our dancing dates at times.

I personally wasn't crazy about having multiple weapons in the house, but I hardly ever saw them after enough years (and the novelty for me wore off).
I have to admit, I wasn't thrilled with him moving out of our shared house at my request, to a house in the next block, knowing that he was pissed off and armed. Well, let's just say, it crossed my mind.

cindyabs

It's funny. When I was down at my Mom's for Thanksgiving I actually stopped and looked at the gun cabinet in her hallway. I thought, so what would some folks on BE say if they knew my little old mother had 2 guns in that cabinet? She may have more I don't know. She's hardly a froot loop, survivalist or collector.

Bill_S

She's been added to the BE Fantasy Family as cool MIL.

another bloody yank

Why?


I'll tell you.

What you (and many others) have is a prejudice based on ignorance and fear (as most are) and fed by the amount of gun violence shown in tv/movies and the news media. How many images of a family target shooting do you see vs. instances of someone shooting someone else, even though in reality the target shooter is by far the more common? I think this is especially difficult to understand for people who come from places much more restrictive than the US.

This predjudice extends towards the physical appearance of the firearm as well. If service rifle competitions (Competitions using rifles based on military or "service" rifles such as the M-14 and M-16) were televised more I think people would have a different idea. Marksmanship is a true skill... when everything comes together right, it's almost as though you're in a medatative state. And the fact is that the M-14 and the M-16/AR-15 are two extremely accurate rifles. Check out the Camp Perry matches or competitive shooting in general to see what it's all about.


There is so much more to firearms than violence... It's difficult to explain to those inundated with daily negative messages from the media and anti gun flavored peer pressure.

another bloody yank

And sort of a mechanical marvel as well as damn expensive, probably moreso now...

Bill_S

Very well said. I left this last bit in because I wanted to stress it. The first order of business in any beginner firearms training class is the safety rules. The next is telling the students that almost everything they think they know about guns from movies/tv is wrong.