Differing Mindsets In Canada (And Elsewhere) And The US - What Causes Fear In The US?

[SteveGangi]

This isn't about the right to own a gun, it is about the perceived need for one and the perception that the most innocent of encounters are threatening in some way.

I beg to differ.

It IS about the right to own and/or carry, and it IS about those who would decide for us, what we should be allowed to do.

I don't carry. I have no reason or need to carry, I don't own any hand guns anymore. It's been a good 30 or 40 years (?) since I had any and they only came out at the firing range anyway. The shotguns are long gone too. But I want it to remain MY choice.

Fear has nothing to do with it, in my case. It is about being able to make my own choice to have or not have, to carry or not carry. Don't tell me what I need. I can decide for myself.

 

[KSG_Standard]

It isn't fear.

Americans have small dicks.

You'll need a bigger sample than just yourself to make that claim.

 

[KSG_Standard]

I carry because I can...you jelly Canadians?

 

[KP]

It is Friday evening. Shit stirrers always come out.

 

[Engel]

What you actually said was "Sorry bro but we are not all toting guns everywhere living in fear" which indicates that you did think I was insinuating that all of you were.

By all I meant the 47% that own firearms. Critical thinking.

 

[Skintaster]

I haven't read the whole thread but a few personal observations:

I own guns, and have had a CHL in the past, but let it lapse. I can't say I ever bought a gun out of anything approaching "fear" or even paranoia. It might be hard for non Americans to really understand, because our cultures are very different in this regard, but there are many uses outside of self defense for guns, and "being prepared" for the unlikely event of needing one for self defense is not necessarily born out of fear.

About 30 years ago, my father, his wife, and her sister were abducted at gunpoint when A guy knocked on their door in the middle of the afternoon. He was a drug addict, and forced my clean cut, middle class dad to rob a couple of hardware stores while he kept the gun on the women. Fortunately, no one was physically harmed, and the guy was arrested. About a year later, another guy was being chased by the police, and hid in my dad's storage shed. That time, my pop had a gun, and managed to hold the guy there until the cops arrived.

I've had two experiences where I used a gun to defuse a potentially dangerous situation. I've written about them before, so I won't go into detail, but one involved a guy smashing my door down in the middle of the night, and menacing a female room mate of mine until I showed up and produced a shotgun.

But here's the thing. I never went through my life fearing those kinds of events, and I still don't. Still, having a gun produced a positive outcome for me a couple of times, and I don't see any reason not to keep one or two around. That's really not living in fear.

Another thing, the number of people carrying guns legally, is a pretty minuscule portion of the population. Of the small handful of people I know that have a CHL, none of them carry often, and several basically never do. I quit because it's a hassle, and I'm pretty careful in general. There are other valid reasons for having one though. If you're say, a gun collector, it streamlines the process of buying a gun a great deal, for instance.

It's also difficult to directly compare something as complex as the US's gun laws with the situation in other countries. We have completely different populations, and histories.

Anyway, I don't fear other people enough to have that as the reason I own a few guns. I can't speak for anyone else, but that has little to no bearing on my decision.

 

[bildozr]

Some guy stole my truck last week out of my Grandfather's driveway while I've been doing Army shit. Truck was recovered the day after.

He has my keys apparently, as my parents told me earlier. They're on edge.

I own an AR15. Do I need it? No. Can I own it? Yes. Am I well trained and proficient with that weapon platform? Yes. Very much so I am.

Do I own it out of fear? Nope. I like to shoot, and I am well trained and very proficient on that weapon platform. So naturally I purchase a weapon I am most familiar with.

 

[Deus Vult]

A police officer made a routine traffic stop and asked the driver if there were any weapons in the car.

the driver said "yes officer, I have .45 on my hip, another under my arm, a .38 on my ankle and a shotgun in the rack."

the officer was taken by surprise and replied "hell, son. what are you afraid of?"

"not a goddam thing."

lolz

 

[Guitarhack]

I grew up shooting and have always enjoyed shooting. I carry off duty because it provides me with an option should I ever need to use it.

Operating under the assumption that the officer in question is a real person, I can't tell you what was going through his mind, only he can. That being said, let me see if I can try to give you an explanation of what might have gone through a law enforcement officers mind given that situation.

Probably the most important factor to understand is that he is a law enforcement officer, the kind of individuals he encounters on a daily basis are not always the greatest people in the world. The criminals officers deal with are liars, manipulators, and predators. Constantly dealing with criminals makes you weary of the public in general, it is a survival mechanism. Not all criminals are flagging gang colors. Some are harder to spot and will approach their prospective victims as if they are normal citizens but once they catch the victim with their guard down they will take advantage of them. American criminal history is filled with predators of this sort and I'm sure this officer was well aware of this.

The next factor is that he is used to carrying off duty so he was probably feeling a little naked without his off duty weapon.

Therefore, given his background, the remoteness of the situation, being out numbered, having his family with him you end up with an officer feeling that because he didn't have his off duty weapon he and his family were in a potentially dangerous situation that could've ended very badly. I'm guessing because he felt the potential for danger/disaster he was angery that he didn't have his weapon to resort to had he needed it. You always want to be aware of any potential threats and have a plan for dealing with them. I'm not sure if the officer said he would have drawn his weapon or not but I'm sure his feeling was that he would have been more comfortable to have it as an option to protect his family. Hopefully in the future the officer will stay aware of his surroundings so that he and his family don't end up with two men rushing up on them on a trail.

Not all American citizens think this way and to make that assumption is the same as me thinking all Canadians act like Bob and Doug McKenzie.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1RN3cYnY9k&feature=related[/ame]

The writer of the article is being overly simplistic in her search to find why Americans are so different from Canadians. You simply can not compare the US with Canada, in terms of its political, economic, or social issues.

 

[lespaul01]

I've noticed this in Britain as well. If you look at some of their newspapers, they constantly publish stories about crime (many of which I do not even believe are true)

You conspiracy theorists are sure nutty



lol//


You kill me

 

[singlecut]

good thing there's no guns in canada.

they haven't won a stanley cup in so long they would all be commiting suicide if they had handguns by now

 

[Deftone]

Why do you have to be afraid if you own a gun? I own guns because I like them.

And for the record, I'm an American and I have a big dick.

 

[Deus Vult]

Why do you have to be afraid if you own a gun? I own guns because I like them.

And for the record, I'm an American and I have a big dick.

I'm an American

 

[SWeAT hOg]

 

[Deus Vult]

i was thinking, maybe the "fear"is caused by the complete inadequacy of the justice system.

Man commits robbery and is out on probation. Commits another robbery (or 2) and is arrested. He then bonds out and commits another robbery at the same location 2 weeks after his first arrest. He is arrested for a second time and a week later he bonds out again.

Now in this completely hypothetical situation (), would you think poorly of the property owner for having a firearm at his place of business?

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

And if you aren't afraid of anything why carry them in the first place?

What makes you think you can read a person's emotions by their personal equipment? It's an overbroad generalization being made here.

Does using a seat belt mean one is afraid of driving? No. It means that one is taking precatuions.

 

[Electroman67]

And if you aren't afraid of anything why carry them in the first place?

I typed this lastnight and deleted it by not wanting to seem like an arse, this mornin, not givin much of a chit, so here goes.

Why use bug spray?
Why brush your teeth?
Why floss your teeth?
Why take vitamins?
Why get a checkup?
Why buy life or health insurance?
Why do you change oil?
Why bother checking oil?

If you do any of the above, you clearly live in fear. These are all preventative measures imo. Carrying a gun ( for me ) is a preventative measure, it could possibly prevent me from bein on the news w/ a picture of my face and some sad story how i got shot by a robber that i didn't hand my money to fast enough.

So why do you ask why?

 

[MineGoesTo11]

I typed this lastnight and deleted it by not wanting to seem like an arse, this mornin, not givin much of a chit, so here goes.

Why use bug spray?
Why brush your teeth?
Why floss your teeth?
Why take vitamins?
Why get a checkup?
Why buy life or health insurance?
Why do you change oil?
Why bother checking oil?

If you do any of the above, you clearly live in fear. These are all preventative measures imo. Carrying a gun ( for me ) is a preventative measure, it could possibly prevent me from bein on the news w/ a picture of my face and some sad story how i got shot by a robber that i didn't hand my money to fast enough.

So why do you ask why?

The underlying message I see in responses is that in the US, someone breaking in to rob you or you being accosted on the street is a simple inevitability, as though it were merely a routine annoyance with off the shelf solutions as readily available as bug spray or mouth wash.

 

[Electroman67]

When people tuck thier children into bed, and they do that extra tight tuck up by the chest or head area, it's not for fear your kid is gonna get cold around the upper torso or he may roll out of bed if you dont tuck extra tight, it an assurance that he/she can sleep w/out worry that you as the parent has his/her back throughout the night. That there's no need to worry if someone's gonna come into the house and harm them as you being a concerned parent, have locked the doors and the windows. You didnt do this out of fear, you did it out of concern for your childs well being and safety.
Sure, if you wanna twist the words around, I locked the doors and windows out of fear someone will try to get in. I tied my shoes out of fear of tripping, i trim my fingernails out of fear of them bending backwards or breaking, see what i'm doing here?

Enough MLP fun for me, i have to fire up my sewing machine out of fear if i dont get this job installed, i wont get paid.

 

[D-POLAND]

one would want to think about why do you need or want to have a spare tire in you vehicle!? is it FEAR or maybe is a precautionary thing ? truly if you know when your gonna have a flat you wouldn't need one! but some how, the UNFORSEEN HAS a way of happening! I WOULDT WANT TO BE WITHOUT A SPARE, WOULD YOU!?