M14 Shooter said:
And?
When people express dislike for homosexuals, are they or are they not labled 'homophobic'?
Not by me.
M14 Shooter said:
LOL
So, that you say it doesnt mean you really believe it.
Why then bother responding to you?
I'm not sure. Why are you?
I'm simply saying there may be a difference between the level of commitment I have to the statements I make on this forum, and the level of belief connoted by your analysis of my psyche. Are you suggesting that every word you say is a fundamental part of your being?
M14 Shooter said:
Thats because when I discuss an issue, I stick to the issue I am discussing.
I don't try to bring other things into the issue, like you do, so that the issue becomes confused and diluted, and I don't let others do it. Rather than directly address my points, you're trying to deflect, avoid and diffuse by bringing up things that arent relevant to it.
Again, only the points that you raise, only the arguments that you deem relevant, are such. If I believe another point is relevant, I am told I am skirting, deflecting, and avoiding. I have directly addressed several of your points, and I will now endeavor to do the same to the rest.
M14 Shooter said:
Read the conversation for context. It's seperate from the one I had with you.
Which I admitted in the following line. Why did you leave that part out? Irrelevant? Then why is this line in your response?
M14 Shooter said:
Do you have the intellectual honesty to admit that a lesser-armed criminal will likely leave a victim armed with a gun alone?
Absolutely. Do you have the honesty to admit that a gun is not proof against becoming the victim of a crime?
M14 Shooter said:
Thats "very likely"? Why?
Because, as you just said, a lesser-armed criminal will tend to leave a victim armed with a gun alone, and so, as I said, it is very likely that the criminal will move on to the next victim, and the crime rate will not drop appreciably, unless you arm everyone.
M14 Shooter said:
And then, what about the deterrent effect of widespread gun ownership? If a criminal knows there is a very good chance that a potential voctim is armed, will he be more or less likely to accost said potential victim? Please note that the level of owenership necessary here need not be universal, and as such, your argument to that effect is a strawman.
How widespread does gun ownership have to be? You yourself say that there are FAR more guns in the U.S. than cars; I have no idea how true that is, but I'll take your word for it. So at what point will there be enough guns for criminals to do what you say they will, and leave potential victims alone?
Absolutely, my argument a strawman; you have not given me a clear argument to fight. Give me a real figure of how many guns would deter crime, and I'll argue it. Leave it ambiguous, I'll pick the most logical figure: to ensure that crime would be deterred, you would need to arm everyone, or at least, every adult, and every child who goes about unsupervised.
M14 Shooter said:
Also note that your inevitable "no, he'll just get a gun for himself" retort doesnt hold water, as a criminal, regardless how he is armed, will never willingly go after a victim armed with a gun.
Thank you for answering for me. Do I need to be here for this debate?
Interesting that now a criminal will NEVER go after a victim armed with a gun. Wouldn't that also be an exaggeration, similar to my strawman argument? What is the fallacy when you assume an unproven universal?
M14 Shooter said:
Given the small number of accidents we have now, I don't see a problem.
Why not? What's an acceptable number? How many are there, anyway?
M14 Shooter said:
And, fpr the record, I havent ever mentioned motor vehicle accident rates -- but now that you bring it up, there are FAR fewer accidental gun deaths than accidental car deaths, with the US having FAR more guns than cars.
Absolutely. Shall we begin to discuss my theory of motor vehicle regulation now?
Interesting how you accept my extraneous, irrelevant arguments when they make a point you like.
M14 Shooter said:
If someone has to kill their assailant to stop them, them I'm completely OK with that.
But then, you're again arguing a strawman -- a gun doesnt need to be discharged to defend yourself with it, much less actually kill your assailant.
You are okay with it. I need a little more justification. At what point does someone "need" to kill their assailant? How can you know? You have carefully made the point that one needs to kill quickly and easily; so how do you know when you need to kill? The quicker you act, the greater your chances of making a mistake, assuming your training stays constant.
Are you intellectually honest enough to admit that the more gun owners there are defending themselves against criminals, the more deaths there will be? That the more gun owners there are, the more accidental shootings there will be?
M14 Shooter said:
We all, presently and unquestionably, have the right to kill in self-defense, and yet there is no anarchy. Why, if the present number of deaths due to self-defense were to quintuple, would anarchy suddenly fall upon us?
Because there is the question, in every case of self-defense, whether or not the use of deadly force is justified. Quintuple the number of deaths means quintuple the number of investigations, and at some point, the rule of law will tend to break down, as people will avoid court hassles, and will thus begin to cover up or walk away from even justified shootings. Similar to what happens now with car accidents: how many people call the police after every accident, as the law requires? How many people fail to stop at serious accidents, for fear of the punishment, or even the inconvenience, of the legal aftermath? I would hypothesize that the same would happen, were people to begin to use guns to defend themselves with much greater frequency than now, though I admit it would have to be a large leap in the number of shootings. But then, if you are arguing for a serious reduction in crime through private gun ownership, there would be an argument for a serious jump in shootings.
M14 Shooter said:
Then you're having a different conversation than I am. See above.
Gun accidents and suicides are irrlevant in a discussion about gun crime.
Very well. Unjustified shootings, however, are not irrelevant; cases of mistaken identity, perhaps, or unnecessary use of force. Do we have statistics on those?
M14 Shooter said:
Guns, being inanimite objects, dont cause anything.
What is your point?
M14 Shooter said:
As I have facts to back me up, I havent been making bald assertions; unless you DO have somethng to back up your arguments (which you admit you don't) you arent going to sway me at all.
Consider also that YOU refused to be swayed by a supported argument, while, as you admit, you cannot support YOUR argument. The facts are against you and you won;t change your mind. Doesn't that smack of bigotry?
What support, sir? You have what you consider to be facts; I don't think they are. I am not insane, nor a fool; I just disagree with you. Perhaps I have missed the scientific proof you have offered that a greater proportion of gun owners in the U.S. would reduce crime; or the logical statement as to why the number of gun accidents is irrelevant to a discussion of the general value of guns in our society, which would be our larger topic, I think. Your facts are against me, but then, they are not actually "facts." Does that really make me bigoted? Or does it mean that you are a sophist?
Let me try to step back and look at the big picture here.
We have two propositions here: we both agree, I think, that criminals with guns do damage. You believe that a greater number of guns in the hands of the potential victims, along with proper training and education, would reduce that damage, by reducing first the number of crimes committed, with or without guns, and second, by reducing the number of criminals. Is that correct?
I do not disagree with this. However, I look at this in another way.
I believe that increasing the number of guns will cause an increase in the number of deaths, and the number of serious injuries, in our society, both to criminals and, far more importantly, to private citizens. I further believe that decreasing the relative value of guns in our eyes will allow us to seek other methods of reducing crime, and protecting our populace from danger; therefore, I ask that gun owners consider the possibility that guns are not as powerful, nor as valuable, as they are made out to be, and the possibility that perhaps all of us would be better served if we could find other ways to address the issues of crime, and of gun deaths, than by increasing the number of guns in America.
Any opinion?