I mentioned this after flying to Bud6 - as I went through security at TSA, the man rubbed an alcohol sheet on my hands and passed it through a "sniffer machine" and obviously passed - even though the small carry bag I had was my Glock and ammo bag for the range which I cleaned out less than 2 hours earlier. So neither my hands nor handling my ammo/gun bag through the terminals never transferred enough smell or residue to be detected.
Then we get an opinion disguised as a zing from Down-Under where an entire continent gave up their Rights to arms because of one horrific occurrence - remember our population of 320 million compared to Australia's 22.6 million or roughly 14 times the population in the US with roughly the same land area. Sure we are spread out more than Australia's coastal hugging communities - But we have major cities in the US which have been over run by gangs who have all the guns and good law-abiding people CAN NOT get weapons because it is against their city's ordinances - DON'T you see the foolishness in that? And sadly with all the racial issues of cops killing blacks, the same news media fails to report the black on black crime, much of it is innocent blacks being at the wrong place at the wrong time. But bullets shot from drive-byes kill many people in their own homes. But if an intruder came through the door, the home own would have NOTHING to equal or surpass the thugs killing power. The madness of disarming the good citizens of our cities needs to stop! These GUN FREE CITIES do nothing butarm the gangs and thugs and telling the public, some populations in the millions, that don't worry the police will respond - and yes they will, in time to do a body count to see how many coroner wagons need to come out. Your logic fails HERE. You can not compare your situation to ours, no how, no way!
And crime isn't just in the cities, just read In Cold Blood by Truman Capote - the decades are different, but so are attitudes and I think more than ever before, people value human life less than ever before in our history. And people, countless miles from a police officer in a squad car need to be their own judge on what is life threatening. Only you can judge if the A$$ kicking you are getting is going to knock yo out or possibly kill you. We have tough rule in my state, we need to be in a situation will most likely lead to serious harm or death BEFORE we can discharge our firearms. I have weighed that issue in my mind and because of several issues of health, etc., I will not let anyone get close enough to me to knock me down or out, leaving my wife to try and fend for herself after I'm likely dead - she'll know to shoot at that point, and just from this dead man's point of view, I hope she puts every bullet where it counts until her gun is empty.
But the intruder will not get that chance with me - I will do whatever it takes to stay in control the situation, remember cops haven't even been called yet, we're still in the first minute of the first and only round - I do nothing less than stop the threat, if that is shot that missed and he/they run for the door (at which point I am not being threatened) the battle is over. If I need to take a life to save mine, it is obvious what I need to do.
Tell me please Mr. Down Under, someone comes busting in you home quiety, you are woken seconds before your bedroom door is opened, what do you do? And at this point, don't say "That could never happen hear." because maybe it isn't a gun, but it's something coming in with them to improve odds - don't you think having a handgun or other weapon might just save your life? The only alternative is to lay on the floor while they smash your head in with their boots. I'll gladly use my guns if (God Forbid) the circumstance calls for it.
I know that EVEN when in the right, people who killed another human lives with guilt, sometimes for a life time, although others can justify it and go on with life SINCE they had the ability to protect their family and did so.
There are people who can better give examples than me - I'm just a bit over a year as a gun owner and I live in a nice suburban setting, with four out of six neighbors who have weapons - yes, a militia if needed. No one has more power than those who have it and also know when to use it and importantly - know when NOT to use it.
I can see you their now thinking Americans buy old junker cars so they have something to shoot at for a few decades. Moonshine and guns, and pictures of their hound dog in their wallets. We are vast: no one shares the same story, but everyone has a story. Sure we are doing a good job of keeping terrorism down - minus the fact we don't count immigrants coming in year after year.
A few years ago a plot was uncovered just 15 miles from me, where 6 men were going to get into Fort Dix Army Base, explode tanks and Humvees and kill as many soldiers as possible. A young man in a videotape store (like Blockbusters) was rewinding a tape and stopped it to see terrorist taped planning and exercising to complete this mission - he called the police, they called the base and the terror plot just miles from my home was thwarted.
Last thing that was mentioned: if the government went rogue and called for the armed forces to turn on Americans, then the soldiers would turn on the government - to serve our country is not to protect law makers, but the citizens, their family, their friends, the people. These men and women in the service to their country are the bravest among us and they'll know what the real threat is and handle the situation. I fully agree with that.