Over the last few weeks iv started to become a bit disillusioned with Gun boards and forums. It seems like so many posters like to play expert. If you don't have any significant experience with the 338 Federal, or the Mini-14, then SHUT UP! We don't need to hear your unsubstantiated rumors, or your thinly veiled political quips; YOUR A SPAMMER IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING.
Up until recently I have spent a lot of time on INGO - Indiana Gun Owners - being a Hoosier myself. At this time last year INGO was a wonderful community full of local resources and managed to host some intelligent discussion in the fields of firearms, tactics, and training.
I have noticed a trend lately on INGO that has been echoed elsewhere. As membership has risen, our percentage of IDIOTS has risen disproportionately to our gains. Im GOD DAMNED sick of rednecks trashing on Islam, or Obama and I'm GOD DAMNED sick of listening to them pine over their latest low-rent, pot-metal, Pheonix/Taurus/Charter pistol NOT because I have a horse in the race but rather because It makes us all look bad.
If these were soccer or hiking forums with political sections, Its unlikely you would see such a parade of clowns, but because these forums are about guns, THERE THEY ARE!
For some inexplicable reason, the firearms community seems to attract far more than its fair share of uneducated dolts. PLEASE people, try to give it a rest.
12.02.2009
11.16.2009
A stunning display of public stupidity
As a student of sociology, I was taught Social Construction theory in school. This theory deals with the way human beings construct their reality and how social knowledge is formed. If you are at all interested in Sociology, check out Social Construction of Reality by Berger and Luckman. The evidence put forth in that book has influenced that way I view human interactions and society knowledge.
Anyway, back to the subject at hand: normal people acting like idiots
Several days ago, I observed what I have come to see as a disheartening trend in young adult males. On many an occasion I will be in a public restroom on campus or at a mall, walk past the urinals, and use the stall for what it is intended. [Mens restrooms are normally structured so that you must walk past 5 or 6 urinals in order to reach the stalls. Even a small restroom will often have 2 urinals.] When I get into the stall, I see the seat is covered with urine. I exit and move to the next stall, where the seat is also covered in urine. Being forced to wipe up the fluid of a stranger, I relent and sit down to do my business.
It was at this point I saw it: I was the only one in the entire restroom... A fellow student entered the restroom, walked past 5 urinals, kicked open a stall door, and started urinating; he didn't even put the seat up. I was dumbfounded. Surely this was an isolated incident!?!? No.
I have observed this no less than a dozen times over the last week. I could understand using the toilet as a urinal if all of the urinals were full: iv done it before myself. When I have the need to do so I lift the seat, and clean up any splatter that results... But why in hell anyone would intentionally bypass the urinals so they can piss all over the stall is beyond me. This is gross by the social definitions of most: YOU wouldn't want to be the one to sit in it or clean it up, so why the hell would you do it?
Moral decay, and "me first" infantile'ism at its finest.
Anyway, back to the subject at hand: normal people acting like idiots
Several days ago, I observed what I have come to see as a disheartening trend in young adult males. On many an occasion I will be in a public restroom on campus or at a mall, walk past the urinals, and use the stall for what it is intended. [Mens restrooms are normally structured so that you must walk past 5 or 6 urinals in order to reach the stalls. Even a small restroom will often have 2 urinals.] When I get into the stall, I see the seat is covered with urine. I exit and move to the next stall, where the seat is also covered in urine. Being forced to wipe up the fluid of a stranger, I relent and sit down to do my business.
It was at this point I saw it: I was the only one in the entire restroom... A fellow student entered the restroom, walked past 5 urinals, kicked open a stall door, and started urinating; he didn't even put the seat up. I was dumbfounded. Surely this was an isolated incident!?!? No.
I have observed this no less than a dozen times over the last week. I could understand using the toilet as a urinal if all of the urinals were full: iv done it before myself. When I have the need to do so I lift the seat, and clean up any splatter that results... But why in hell anyone would intentionally bypass the urinals so they can piss all over the stall is beyond me. This is gross by the social definitions of most: YOU wouldn't want to be the one to sit in it or clean it up, so why the hell would you do it?
Moral decay, and "me first" infantile'ism at its finest.
10.13.2009
So I caught the Swine Flu...
Iv been coughing and sneezing with a 103* fever, cold chills, and dizziness for almost 5 days. It goes in this wonderful cycle, where you feel fine the first half the day and they everything goes to hell in the evening. The fever breaks, only to come back just as strong in 6 hours. Violent coughing spells that hit just as your about to drift off to sleep don't help much either.
3.17.2009
Here are some tools to help non gun people understand what I'm talking about when I say .22 caliber firearms. Pictured below is a Ruger MKIII pistol. It shoots the .22 Long Rifle cartridge; ".22LR" for short. The Ruger MKIII pistol is intended for target shooting and hunting applications, and it excells at those. It is an accurate pistol, it shoots and economical cartridge, and there exists a vast after-market for spare parts and upradable components.
Here is a better look at the .22LR cartridge itself:
As you can see, its not a howitzer. Report from the Rugers 6" barrel is a loud crack, but not loud enough to hurt the ears. Recoil from the 2.3 pound pistol is minimal. It doesn't "kick" at all, but merely jumps a bit in the hand. It is easily controllable by the most petite of novice shooters. As stated before the 22LR, its not terribly powerful, being designed in the early 1900s to hunt small game. In its original loading (early 20'th century) is generated about 90 foot-pounds of energy; compare that to the 350 foot-pounds generated by the 9mm Luger, or the 450 foot-pounds generated by the Colt 45. In its hyper-velocity modern loadings, available since the late 1990's, the 22LR cartridge generates about 180 foot-pounds of energy. This amounts to a 100% increase in performance, and is a vital development.
This significant increase in performance steps the 22Lr up into a new class. It is still capable of taking small game without being over-kill, but with modern loadings it is capable of much more. Previously, an animal the size of a groundhog would have been the upper limit of a 22LR under field conditions. Today, larger animals up the size of a coyote or lager can be taken cleanly with a single shot from a 22.
The FBI considers 12" of penetration in ballistic gelatin to the minimum acceptable standard for a bullet to reliably reach the vital organs of, and thus incapacitate, a human being. In the past, most shooters would have scoffed at the idea that a 22 could be used for self defense, but with modern ammunition, the numbers don't lie. Brass Fetcher conducted an independent test of various 22LR loadings from the 3.5" barrel of a Walther P-22. Of the 4 kinds of ammunition tested, 3 passed the FBI test, and the fourth fell short by less than a half inch. If you take this data, cut the penetration depth in HALF, and then lay the numbers over a cross-cut of a human torso, it looks like this:
This is conclusive proof that a 22LR, even from a short handgun barrel, will ruin your day. thats not to say the 22 is the perfect self defense tool, or even a decent one, but it is viable. The problem is that the bullets don't expend, and thus the wound channels are very small. BUT, if you place your shot well, the bullet has sufficient penetration to get the job done.
In addition to the other utilitarian uses discussed in the first part of this article, you can see why the 22LR is the most useful type of firearm. Everyone of age and sound mind should have one at their disposal.
Here is a better look at the .22LR cartridge itself:
As you can see, its not a howitzer. Report from the Rugers 6" barrel is a loud crack, but not loud enough to hurt the ears. Recoil from the 2.3 pound pistol is minimal. It doesn't "kick" at all, but merely jumps a bit in the hand. It is easily controllable by the most petite of novice shooters. As stated before the 22LR, its not terribly powerful, being designed in the early 1900s to hunt small game. In its original loading (early 20'th century) is generated about 90 foot-pounds of energy; compare that to the 350 foot-pounds generated by the 9mm Luger, or the 450 foot-pounds generated by the Colt 45. In its hyper-velocity modern loadings, available since the late 1990's, the 22LR cartridge generates about 180 foot-pounds of energy. This amounts to a 100% increase in performance, and is a vital development.
This significant increase in performance steps the 22Lr up into a new class. It is still capable of taking small game without being over-kill, but with modern loadings it is capable of much more. Previously, an animal the size of a groundhog would have been the upper limit of a 22LR under field conditions. Today, larger animals up the size of a coyote or lager can be taken cleanly with a single shot from a 22.
The FBI considers 12" of penetration in ballistic gelatin to the minimum acceptable standard for a bullet to reliably reach the vital organs of, and thus incapacitate, a human being. In the past, most shooters would have scoffed at the idea that a 22 could be used for self defense, but with modern ammunition, the numbers don't lie. Brass Fetcher conducted an independent test of various 22LR loadings from the 3.5" barrel of a Walther P-22. Of the 4 kinds of ammunition tested, 3 passed the FBI test, and the fourth fell short by less than a half inch. If you take this data, cut the penetration depth in HALF, and then lay the numbers over a cross-cut of a human torso, it looks like this:
This is conclusive proof that a 22LR, even from a short handgun barrel, will ruin your day. thats not to say the 22 is the perfect self defense tool, or even a decent one, but it is viable. The problem is that the bullets don't expend, and thus the wound channels are very small. BUT, if you place your shot well, the bullet has sufficient penetration to get the job done.
In addition to the other utilitarian uses discussed in the first part of this article, you can see why the 22LR is the most useful type of firearm. Everyone of age and sound mind should have one at their disposal.
3.11.2009
Why everyone should own a .22 caliber firearm
Yes, EVERYONE.
Every man, woman, and teenager should have one. Why? Because they do eerything that 95% of people will ever need a gun for; in both recreational and social spheres.
"But D34dly, I'm a libberal panty-waste and I don't think civilians should have guns. They cuase crime and shootings."
- Oh yea, I forgot. That must be why contries with tough gun laws, and virtualy non-existant gun ownership are so safe. OH WAIT, there just so happened to be a Columbine style school shooting in Germany yesterday, and a similar event in Sweeden a few months back. BOTH OF THOSE NATIONS have strict gun control laws and very little private gun ownership. ADD TO THAT the FACT that according to FBI crime statistics only 40% of all violent crimes invole a gun. Of all the crimes that DO involve a gun, only 1% involve "assault weapons". Add to THAT the fact that news and een law enforcement agencies commonly mis-label things as "Assault Weapons" that clearly are NOT (such as semi-automatic sporting rifles and the antiquated 70 year old SKS) and you can see how little, if any, of an impact guns have on crime.
So we have established that guns don't cause crime. GREAT. but what can you REALLY use a gun for anyway?
1) Recreation. This includes many safe, fun activities such as:
* Target shooting
* Bullseye competitions
* Plinking
* Plinking
* Benchrest shooting
2) Land and Resource management, such as:
* Pest control
* Varminting
* Hunting
3) Social uses such as home and personal defence
Anyone, no matter their social, political, or personal preference can find something on that list that they would find ENJOYABLE. If you dont know what some of those things are, google them. They are all mainstreem activities with volumes of information available.
OK, so there IS something that you could use a gun for. What kind of a gun do you need and how much is it going to cost you? There are many possible answers to that question, but all of those above can be readily accomplished with a .22 rimfire. If you don't know what is, again, google. it; ther are many different brands and styles vailible, but the short of it is that a .22 is:
* the smallest firearms cartridge commonly availible
* the quietist cartridge commonly availible
* the least powerful cartridge
* the most inexpensive cartridge
How small are they? The cartridge is about 1/4" wide, and about as long as an adults finger nail. How quiet are they? Just quiet enough that your ears wont ring if your not using ear plugs (but you should anyway). How powerful are they? While they are the weakest, they are NOT toys and will kill if you act foolishly (more on this later). How inexpesnsive are they? They are about 3 cents ($.03) per cartridge, and are genergaly sold in 550 round "Bricks" for 18-20 dollars.
What are some affordable, reliable .22 firearms? There are both rifles and handguns availible:
* Ruger 10/22 - this is made by Ruger Firearms, and is availible in many different varriants. many of them can be viewed on their web page. It has detachable magazines, and it is semi-automatic. It is also highly customizable.
* Marlin 60 - Made by Marlin Firearms, it is also semi automatic, but it uses an integral tube magazine instead of a detachable one. There are also several verieties of these availible
* Savage MK II - Manufactured by Savage, this is a bolt action rifle with detachable magazines. These are very accurate, and quite afordable.
* Ruger MK III - This is a handgun made by Ruger. It is semi-automatic, uses datachable magazines, and is noted for being both accurate and affordable.
* Browning Buckmark - This hangun is very similar to the Ruger MKIII in apearance and operation, but it is different mechanicaly. It is also very accurate and reliable. It costs a bit more than a Ruger MK III.
There are many others that i havent listed. The .22 rimfire is far and away the most popular cartridge in the world. Any and all styles of firearms are avalible chambered for it, and every firearms manufacturor seems to make some kind of .22. those that are listed above are the more common models, and they are all availible for well UNDER $300. More so, They are all built to a high enough quality standard that they will last your entire life if cared for properly. they call all be found at nearly any gun store of outdoor outfitters.
More information in following posts.
1.14.2009
Building a proper arms battery in the face of current hystaria
There has been a lot of gun related hysteria ever since Obama won the election. Gun owners and sportsmen have been buying up every kind of rifle they can get their hands on in the fear that Obama will ban or regulate many kinds of firearms out of existence. Their fears are not entirely unfounded.
The AR-15 was selected as the primary arm simply because of its ubiquitousness, and its versatility. Its 223 / 556 ammunition is inexpensive and common, and the AR-15 will readily accept NATO STANAG magazines as well as a dizzying array of aftermarket magazines. The 223 cartridge is a capable defensive round, but it also very well suited to varmint hunting and pestcontrol, as well as target shooting. If something heavier is needed, conversion kits are available to convert the the AR-15 to more powerful cartridges such as 6.8 SPC or 50 Beowulf that will take CPX 2 class game quite handily; these conversion kits are normally available for about $500, which is very reasonable for a $800 rifle. The AR-15 is really 3 guns in one, and can be even more with the addition of various caliber conversions. Even with optics and spare magazines, a minimalist AR can be built for well under a thousand dollars. The sheer amount of things that it is capable of accomplishing makes it a mush have for any shootists arsenal.
The Spartan SP100 is a single shot scattergun. Why would I choose this over something like a Remington 870 that holds more rounds and has so many neat tactical accessories available for it? Simplicity. While often parroted as the "king of home defense", the reality is that at home defense ranges a shotgun doesn't spread at all. Most of the time the shot has not yet left the shot cup, and is still traveling as a single projectile. With this known fact in mind, many savvy users load their shotguns with slugs. The question i ask is WHY? if your shooting a single projectile you may as well be using a rifle. The rifle will have many more rounds available, and frangible ammunition will not over-penetrate as slugs and buckshot are want to do. WITH THIS IS MIND, it is my belief that shotguns are not defensive weapons. That is NOT to say they are not versatile tools. The shotgun excels at hitting small targets at distances beyond 20 feet. It may not have any spread at home defense ranges, but at normal field distances of 20-40 yards they are a god-send. At those distances a 12 gauge will produce a handsome pattern that makes hitting small or moving targets much simpler and forgiving. This is where the Spartan single shot comes in. For hunting fowl or pest control a shotgun loaded with bird shot is the perfect tool. A single shot is plenty for those amiable tasks, so a 9 shot pump gun is an additional expense that is not justified by any additional utility. I am well aware that many different single shot exist. the reason i have selected the Spartan over something like an H&R or Rossi is it operation and its additional features. The Spartan simple requires you to depress the release elver, and the barrel will break open and eject eh spent hull. Simp0ly replace with a new hull and close the action. The H&R and Rossi require you to manually cock the hammer after reloading, where are the Spartan shotgun has its striker reset by recoil, and no such operations are needed. Additionally, the Spartan is commonly available with standard Remington SC-4 chokes, while most other single shot are not. This greatly increases the utility of the gun by allowing you to control the size of your patter at various ranges. The Spartan also comes with selectable extractor/ejector depending on what you want to do with your spent hulls.The Spartan offer every ounce of shotgun goodness that anyone shot of a clay pigeon fanatic needs in a scattergun, while keeping the cost well under $200. These shotguns are commonly available around $185 and offer far more utility than the $89 Wall mart specials.
The Plastic 9mm is a point that has been hashed to death, so i wont go into it too much indepth. handguns are not general purpose arms, but they do have a few very handy uses. They can be easily concealed where other arms can not. They are also much lighter weight, and they take up little room; that makes them perfect for "companion" pieces as well as a "pack gun" to take along on a prolonged camping or hiking trip. The reason I selected the Glock and similar pistols such as the XD and M&P are because they are very simplistic in construction and in operation. 9mm ammunition is inexpensive and commonly available. Spare parts and magazines are also easy to come by.
Last but certainly not least is the venerable tube magazine .22 rim fire. They use manual actions of some sort, either lever pump or bolt action, and will operate reliably with any sort of standard .22 caliber rim fire; most semi automatics do not cycle anything other than 22 Long Rifle ammunition. The manual actions are also much less prone to malfunction, and are much less sensitive to what style or brand of ammunition is used.
Another often overlooked aspect of their design is the capacity of their tubular magazines. Most semi automatics have a 10 round detachable magazine. Most tube feed rifles will hold 15 rounds of Long rifle, and as many as 25 "shorts". While loading of the tubular magazine may take a bit longer, it is not exactly time consuming; loading 25 shorts takes a minute or less. These type of rifles range in price from $190 for the Marlin 981T pictured on top, to about $430 for the Remington 572 Field Master pictured below it. All in all these are extremely versatile arms that will be doing the majority of your shooting. They are cheap to own and to operate, and they are a hoot to shoot to boot!
These four affordable and widely available arms will do absolutely everything you will ever need a gun to do, and much more. No panic needed.
While it is unlikely that a 94 style ban will be re-enacted, some new form of taxation or regulation could be in play. All of the Democrats justification for the 94 ban were proven to befalse during and after the ban; crime didn't drop once the ban was enacted, and it didn't rise once it expired. It had no noticeable effect whatsoever. Thats not surprising when you consider that the EVIL ASSAULT WEAPONS constitute less than 1% of all gun crimes. Add that to the factthat many violent crimes don't involve a firearms at all, and its easy to see what a superficial gesture such bans are. They take rights away from law abiding citizens for no public benefit whatsoever.
So, hysteria aside, what can you do to build a well rounded firearms battery? Maybe you are a seasoned veteran, maybe you are just getting into the shooting sports; either way its a goodthing that we have all our bases covered. With that in mind, i have put together a list of 4 guns that will cover nearly anything that the average sportsman or defense enthusiast would ever encounter. most of these are very standard, but they all work towards specific goals: those goals are versatility and afford ability.
In order to get the most out of a small number of firearms, and to do it for the least amount ofmoney, we need to select arms that have multiple uses. Additionally, we need to select arms that need a minimum, if any, amount of accessories.The list reads thus:
1) Budget AR-15 such as a DPMS Panther carbine, or Olympic CAR basic rifle.
2) Single shot 12 gauge, Spartan/Baikal SP100 sporting (with SC4 chokes)
3) Plastic fantastic 9mm such as Glock, XD, or M&P
4) Tube fed, manual action .22 rim fire rifle, such as the Henry pump/lever or Marlin 981T or Remington 572 Field Master
The AR and the 9mm are standard recommendations, but the single shot shotgun and the tube fed rim fire are not all that common; most would have recommended a Remington 870/Mossberg 500 for the shotgun, and a Ruger 10/22 or Marlin 60 for the rim fire. Those are all well and good, but I have selected these specifically for maximum utility and longevity, as i will explain below. Each selection in turn.
The AR-15 was selected as the primary arm simply because of its ubiquitousness, and its versatility. Its 223 / 556 ammunition is inexpensive and common, and the AR-15 will readily accept NATO STANAG magazines as well as a dizzying array of aftermarket magazines. The 223 cartridge is a capable defensive round, but it also very well suited to varmint hunting and pestcontrol, as well as target shooting. If something heavier is needed, conversion kits are available to convert the the AR-15 to more powerful cartridges such as 6.8 SPC or 50 Beowulf that will take CPX 2 class game quite handily; these conversion kits are normally available for about $500, which is very reasonable for a $800 rifle. The AR-15 is really 3 guns in one, and can be even more with the addition of various caliber conversions. Even with optics and spare magazines, a minimalist AR can be built for well under a thousand dollars. The sheer amount of things that it is capable of accomplishing makes it a mush have for any shootists arsenal.
The Spartan SP100 is a single shot scattergun. Why would I choose this over something like a Remington 870 that holds more rounds and has so many neat tactical accessories available for it? Simplicity. While often parroted as the "king of home defense", the reality is that at home defense ranges a shotgun doesn't spread at all. Most of the time the shot has not yet left the shot cup, and is still traveling as a single projectile. With this known fact in mind, many savvy users load their shotguns with slugs. The question i ask is WHY? if your shooting a single projectile you may as well be using a rifle. The rifle will have many more rounds available, and frangible ammunition will not over-penetrate as slugs and buckshot are want to do. WITH THIS IS MIND, it is my belief that shotguns are not defensive weapons. That is NOT to say they are not versatile tools. The shotgun excels at hitting small targets at distances beyond 20 feet. It may not have any spread at home defense ranges, but at normal field distances of 20-40 yards they are a god-send. At those distances a 12 gauge will produce a handsome pattern that makes hitting small or moving targets much simpler and forgiving. This is where the Spartan single shot comes in. For hunting fowl or pest control a shotgun loaded with bird shot is the perfect tool. A single shot is plenty for those amiable tasks, so a 9 shot pump gun is an additional expense that is not justified by any additional utility. I am well aware that many different single shot exist. the reason i have selected the Spartan over something like an H&R or Rossi is it operation and its additional features. The Spartan simple requires you to depress the release elver, and the barrel will break open and eject eh spent hull. Simp0ly replace with a new hull and close the action. The H&R and Rossi require you to manually cock the hammer after reloading, where are the Spartan shotgun has its striker reset by recoil, and no such operations are needed. Additionally, the Spartan is commonly available with standard Remington SC-4 chokes, while most other single shot are not. This greatly increases the utility of the gun by allowing you to control the size of your patter at various ranges. The Spartan also comes with selectable extractor/ejector depending on what you want to do with your spent hulls.The Spartan offer every ounce of shotgun goodness that anyone shot of a clay pigeon fanatic needs in a scattergun, while keeping the cost well under $200. These shotguns are commonly available around $185 and offer far more utility than the $89 Wall mart specials.
The Plastic 9mm is a point that has been hashed to death, so i wont go into it too much indepth. handguns are not general purpose arms, but they do have a few very handy uses. They can be easily concealed where other arms can not. They are also much lighter weight, and they take up little room; that makes them perfect for "companion" pieces as well as a "pack gun" to take along on a prolonged camping or hiking trip. The reason I selected the Glock and similar pistols such as the XD and M&P are because they are very simplistic in construction and in operation. 9mm ammunition is inexpensive and commonly available. Spare parts and magazines are also easy to come by.
Last but certainly not least is the venerable tube magazine .22 rim fire. They use manual actions of some sort, either lever pump or bolt action, and will operate reliably with any sort of standard .22 caliber rim fire; most semi automatics do not cycle anything other than 22 Long Rifle ammunition. The manual actions are also much less prone to malfunction, and are much less sensitive to what style or brand of ammunition is used.
Another often overlooked aspect of their design is the capacity of their tubular magazines. Most semi automatics have a 10 round detachable magazine. Most tube feed rifles will hold 15 rounds of Long rifle, and as many as 25 "shorts". While loading of the tubular magazine may take a bit longer, it is not exactly time consuming; loading 25 shorts takes a minute or less. These type of rifles range in price from $190 for the Marlin 981T pictured on top, to about $430 for the Remington 572 Field Master pictured below it. All in all these are extremely versatile arms that will be doing the majority of your shooting. They are cheap to own and to operate, and they are a hoot to shoot to boot!These four affordable and widely available arms will do absolutely everything you will ever need a gun to do, and much more. No panic needed.
4.22.2008
The words that often escape me
Check out this post:
http://munchkinwrangler.blogspot.com/2007/03/why-gun-is-civilization.html
This guy has a good handle on the situation. Many law abiding US citizens, such as Munchkin Wrangler and myself, carry a firearm legally by means of a concealed carry permit. This allows us to protect our own slice of civilized life and be self reliant; not to intimidate someone who cuts us off in traffic, or make ourselves feel macho.
When I'm outside planting my garden, a pistol rides on my hip. When i get tired of eating salads, and decide I want a cheeseburger from Dairy Queen, it rides along. The only time it stays home are when I go to church, work, or class. The reason it stays home on those excursions is simply because It it prohibited by law, and i obey the law.
The unshaven redneck shooting at street signs is no more representative of Gun owners as a whole than flamers are representative of all homosexuals. Sadly these types of stereotypes still pervade our society.
Speaking of gardens, I started planting mine today. Carrots and Peppers mostly. I separated and planted a few wild onions I found in our yard as well. I love to cook for my friends, so these will go a long way towards getting some fresh ingredients. :)
http://munchkinwrangler.blogspot.com/2007/03/why-gun-is-civilization.html
This guy has a good handle on the situation. Many law abiding US citizens, such as Munchkin Wrangler and myself, carry a firearm legally by means of a concealed carry permit. This allows us to protect our own slice of civilized life and be self reliant; not to intimidate someone who cuts us off in traffic, or make ourselves feel macho.
When I'm outside planting my garden, a pistol rides on my hip. When i get tired of eating salads, and decide I want a cheeseburger from Dairy Queen, it rides along. The only time it stays home are when I go to church, work, or class. The reason it stays home on those excursions is simply because It it prohibited by law, and i obey the law.
The unshaven redneck shooting at street signs is no more representative of Gun owners as a whole than flamers are representative of all homosexuals. Sadly these types of stereotypes still pervade our society.
Speaking of gardens, I started planting mine today. Carrots and Peppers mostly. I separated and planted a few wild onions I found in our yard as well. I love to cook for my friends, so these will go a long way towards getting some fresh ingredients. :)
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