Weapon or other (Firearm, Gun, Pistol, Shotgun, Rifle)?

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I called my firearm a weapon for many years while in the Marine Corps (This in my weapon.. THIS is my GUN, this is for FIGHTING, this is for FUN!)

Then, even before I became a firearms instructor (and the NRA "asked" me not to use the "W" word in training) another senior instructor told me that only two groups use WEAPONS legally. Law enforcement and military. WEAPON(s) are used in an OFFENSIVE tactic. Guns, Pistols, Rifles are used for DEFENSE (unless you are hunting). So.. since we are all being watched by the public all the time.. maybe we should use all the same speak? What do you think about using the W word?



As a pilot, for years we called airports with no Tower.. an UNCONTROLLED AIRPORT. That scared the crap out of non-pilots, passengers and those that lived close by. Now we call those airports "Non-Towered Airports" and everyone feels safer. I think the gun/pistol/firearm community should take a lesson.

Going to lunch with a sidearm or pistol sounds much more friendly that going with a WEAPON!

Ed

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I'm the same, Ed. During my Navy career, firearms were always called "weapons." Once I took the training to become an NRA Instructor, I purged it from my vocabulary, and although I'm no longer an Instructor, I still don't use the term.

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I tend to use the term Pistol or Firearm. In my mind they have less of a negative connotation than Weapon or Gun, but in a gun grabber's mind they're all equally naughty terms I'm sure.

I remember being really big into paintball a few years ago, and I too didn't use the term gun to reference my paintball marker. Marker was the more "politically correct" term and I used it to get more people into the sport.

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I say handgun, since you get a handgun permit or firearm. The NRA still frowns upon the use of "weapon"

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Personally, I call it what it is and what I use it for.

To Military/LEO folks: They are trained that it is a weapon. Whether I agree with that or not is kind of irrelavant. To them thats what it is and it will always be.

Now if your wearing a Civilian Hat, acting in the capacity of a Civilian (even though you maybe in the military) rules of engagement have changed. Your Firearm is strickly defensive. Therefore is it a weapon? I say no its not.

If one uses a pistol to defend oneself, and your on the stand, when asked by the prosecuting attorney (remember your butt is on the line) what sounds better.

I pulled my weapon, because he had a weapon.

or

I pulled my defensive firearm because he had a weapon.

You are always using it in reaction to an aggressor. Even the state of Virginia states it on your permit that it is a Handgun permit not a a Weapon permit.

Some will say its irrelavant. I say well if its my butt on the line and I'm defending my self on the stand from a prosecuting attorney, I'm going to use any thing in my tool box to save my skin both verbal and non verbal.

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rob99vmi04 wrote:

If one uses a pistol to defend oneself, and your on the stand, when asked by the prosecuting attorney (remember your butt is on the line) what sounds better.

I pulled my weapon, because he had a weapon.

or

I pulled my defensive firearm because he had a weapon.

You are always using it in reaction to an aggressor. Even the state of Virginia states it on your permit that it is a Handgun permit not a a Weapon permit.

Some will say its irrelavant. I say well if its my butt on the line and I'm defending my self on the stand from a prosecuting attorney, I'm going to use any thing in my tool box to save my skin both verbal and non verbal.

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+1 and I think we should educate the newbies on this as well.

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I agree that we all should speak and write with precision and especially on the subjects of law, advocacy and defense.

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Just on a personal note. I was in a class one time and the instructor called guns weapons.

The class was for a permit to carry a concealed firearm in that state. One of the older ladies in the class finally couldn't bear it any longer and got up in tears and walked out of class.

After stopping her, I asked if she was okay. With tears in her eyes she said she was taking the class obtain her permit to carry a firearm because of what had happened to a member in her family who was murdered. At the trial the she kept hearing the word "WEAPON" thrown around. The devicelabeled asa weaponwasactually a claw hammer which was used by the murderer to kill IIRC her daughter. She couldn't bear hearing the instructor say it anylonger because it was bringing up bad memories.

In this case the term usage made this person not want to carry a gun for a simple incorrect term usage. I know a lot of people think its not a big deal to inner change the term I say I couldn't agree with you less. Turning somebody off to carrying a gun, because somebody wants to sound cool calling a Firearm a weapon is in my mind a lack of understanding of what their actually teaching expecially if their teaching courses civilians can use to obtain a carry permit.

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The only reason I don't normally say "weapon" is because people who don't know about firearms seem to associate "weapon" with "assault", "offensive", and "criminal" even though they can be (and are use more as) "defensive weapons"

I say gun, firearm, pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, and more rarely, handgun.

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gun for handguns, machineguns, shotguns. Rifle or weapon for the rest

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"Weapon" or "Sidearm."

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Typically? Weapon.

Rarely: Firearm.

More-often-than-rarely: Gun.

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Now I pay $5.00 in my classes ifI used the W word to the student the points it out first. Some days it is really hard as I used to say W for years andyears.. but NO MORE.

Just like those of us in Virginia should call the permit a CHP and not a CWP or a CCW, etc. People learn from us.. we should teach them correctly.


EFS

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ed wrote:

Just like those of us un Virginia should call the permit a CHP and not a CWP or a CCW, etc. People learn from us.. we should teach them correctly.

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+1

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AbNo wrote:

Typically? Weapon.

Rarely: Firearm.

More-often-than-rarely: Gun.

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So I guess my question to you (and those others that use the W word in a typical fashion).. would you be willing to use it less or not at all for the greater good?

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I'm an NRA certified instructor. I had it beaten into me to say "firearm".

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Main Entry:
[suP]1[/suP]weap·on
Pronunciation:
ˈwe-pən
Function:
noun
Etymology:
Middle English wepen, from Old English wǣpen; akin to Old High German wāffan weapon, Old Norse vāpn
Date:
before 12th century
1 : something (as a club, knife, or gun) used to injure, defeat, or destroy
2 : a means of contending against another



weap⋅on 

var interfaceflash = new LEXICOFlashObject ( "http://cache.lexico.com/d/g/speaker.swf", "speaker", "17", "18", " [wep-uh n]

–noun



1. any instrument or device for use in attack or defense in combat, fighting, or war, as a sword, rifle, or cannon.

2. anything used against an opponent, adversary, or victim: the deadly weapon of satire.

You guys do whatever the heck you want, I'm going to call my weapons, weapons if that is what suits me. Arguing that a weapon is indicative of an offensive action is assinine.If someone attacks me, I intend to use whatever weapon(s) is available to defend myself with.



I would love to see a cite that indicates the term weapon is indicative of an offensive engagement.



A Weapon is a type of tool. Firearm, sword, spear, club, etc are all types of weapons. Handgun, shotgun, rifle, etc are all types of firearms, of which pistol and revolvers are types of handguns.

Think folks, think.:banghead:

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Reverend73 wrote:

You guys do whatever the heck you want, I'm going to call my weapons, weapons if that is what suits me. Arguing that a weapon is indicative of an offensive action is assinine.If someone attacks me, I intend to use whatever weapon(s) is available to defend myself with.

I would love to see a cite that indicates the term weapon is indicative of an offensive engagement.
A Weapon is a type of tool. Firearm, sword, spear, club, etc are all types of weapons. Handgun, shotgun, rifle, etc are all types of firearms, of which pistol and revolvers are types of handguns.

Think folks, think.:banghead:

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Rev.. thanks for your service to our country.

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"Weapon" carries emotional connotations. I call it whatever it is: shotgun, rifle, pistol, revolver, knife, club.

Even in the Army I never used "weapon". For one thing, "this is my weapon" implies it's the only tool at your disposal, but my weapon is between my ears. My tools that may be employed as weaponry are not limited to firearms nor blades.

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Weapon, gun, pistol, rifle, or whatever. Matters not to me.

I've never met anyone who got upset at the word weapon. Besides, emotional ninnies who'd get upset of one of those words could just as easily get upset at any of them.

Doing smallbore competition as a kid, the coaches called the rifles weapons, as in "Cease fire, ground your weapons." Maybe it was their military background, but no one was emotionally scarred by the experience.