imported post
jddssc121 wrote:
http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/28004631/
MSNBC posted a silly article as well about why guns are a bad idea
Mike Celizic makes the claim "I have considerable experience with guns and their care and handling", I seriously doubt it.
Why do I question his knowledge of firearms? I question his expertise because ofthe statements and advice given by him.
Celizic "Better yet, ditch the automatic and get a revolver. Then you can keep the hammer on an empty cylinder, so if you pull the trigger by accident, the family jewels remain intact."
On all of my revolvers, if you keep the hammer on an empty chamber it only reduces your firepower by one round. Pulling the trigger will not result in a quiet click, but a loud bang as the cylinder rotates a round under the hammer. This is hardly safer than keeping a full cylinder in this instance.
He then says "Finally, if you don’t want to do any of the above, at least make sure the safety’s on. When the safety’s on, a gun can’t fire. It’s that simple.."
This comes in real handy on guns that have a safety. Even if a safety is present, do you really want to trust it to keep you completely safe? Any mechanical device can fail.
Celizic "No matter how often guns get innocent people either dead or in more trouble than anyone ever wants to be in,"
Here he gives an inanimate object a great deal of power, guns don't "do" anything on their own. They can not be good or evil, they don't possess the capability.
Celizic "people can always point to an incident where they can convince themselves having a gun would save a victim’s life."
It happens every day, I would be willing to bet that there are people on this forum who can tell stories of this happening.
Celizic "In the NFL, players point to Sean Taylor, the Washington Redskin who was shot and killed by intruders in his Florida home last year. I heard a player talking about it on ESPN today: If Sean Taylor had a gun, he’d be alive today. But that’s an argument that can’t be proved."
Maybe, maybe not, but he would have had a better chance.
Celizic "If Taylor had a gun, there’s no guarantee things would have gone any differently. He still accosts the burglars and he still probably gets shot. Maybe he gets one of his assailants, maybe not."
But he would have at least had a chance to meet them with equal force.
Celizic "But he’s still dead."
Again, maybe, maybe not.
Celizic "This doesn't make much sense because guns aren’t about sense. They’re about fear and twisted concepts of manhood and being a real bad expletive."
Ah, the real truth comes out. This person with "extensive" gun experience is afraid of guns and doesn't like them. He feels intimidated by people with guns and feels less about himself.
Celizic "We’ve read of dozens of athletes who have gotten into trouble because of guns."
No, they got into trouble because they made bad decisions.
Celizic "What should stand out to athletes is that you never read about a jock whose life or property are saved because he had a gun. I’m sure it’s happened, but I can’t find a reference or remember an incident."
This is because it doesn't make the news unless there is blood. If no one gets shot, it won't make the headlines.
Celizic "One dumb belief is that a gun makes you tough."
He got this right, a gun doesn't make you tough. Toughness comes from who you are, not what you have in your hand. What a gun does give you is the ability to defend yourself against a bigger, stronger foe.
