TTAG reader Andrew Egilmez had a read of Oliver Willis’ article The Perverse Reality of Modern Gun Culture. The dailybanter.com columnist lauded by the Boston Globe (“When Oliver Willis talks, the blogosphere cares”) reckons “The gun culture is all about protecting your home from mysterious, dark figures that are always a second away from attacking/raping you and your family.” Dark figures. Geddit? Our man Egilmez does. He emailed the following literary conversation with Mr. Willis, who starts his anti-gun agitprop thusly . . .
I will concede that the left has been on the losing side of the battle over guns for some time.
Yaaaay! Okay, sorry, had to get that out of the way . . .
We should do everything we can to limit the amount of innocent people killed by guns.
Sounds like he’s against innocent people dying. Let’s hold onto this. I’ll get back to it.
It doesn’t guarantee the right to every killing implement under the sun.
Hello, Mr. Strawman, how are you today?
When the Founders wrote the Second Amendment they did so in a world that couldn’t even envision a machine gun . . .
Man, if only there was some way to easily research the history of machine guns. Some way to look up their first appearance in US history and see how it coincided with the Second Amendment. WHOOPS!
And why even mention machine guns? How many people are killed by a machine gun every year? It couldn’t have been a poorly thought out criticism of the Second Amendment? “SEE, they couldn’t have thought of this, so let’s disregard any intention they had for creating the amendment.”
Before Sandy Hook, President Obama and Congressional Democrats were not doing anything about guns. Democrats hadn’t done anything for almost 20 years on the issue.
Oh well, nothing got passed, so I’m sure they never once talked about it (::cough 2004 Democratic National Platform for America Pg 18cough::). Also, The city of Aurora, CO had no comment.
It’s the sort of thing that was likely in George Zimmerman’s mind the night he murdered Trayvon Martin.
Away with you, silly judicial system! Your verdicts mean nothing to me!
Yes, other things can kill you – cars, household accidents, etc. — but unlike a gun, none of those things is designed to kill. A gun is.
Getting back to my earlier comment, sure, more innocent people are killed by “other things” (significantly more, obviously) BUT GUNS ARE DESIGNED TO KILL. Sorry innocent people killed by other things, Mr. Willis would care more if it was a gun versus a swimming pool.
I love the casual sentence to completely cast aside the fact that innocent people die in far greater numbers by other objects. I’m pretty sure I half assed a few college papers using this method. I’m also pretty sure every professor would highlight that sentence and go “Uh…expand on this?”
Guns are implements of killing, if we are to have them as part of our society — and yes, we have — we should do what we can to limit their capacity to kill the innocent while preserving a Constitutional right to possess them. If that steps on the toes of the conspiracy obsessed or a group of people who believe false statistics, oh well.
I have to be a masochist to keep reading this stuff. There can be no other explanation. [ED: join the club]
When I was home in Oregon I hit every gun shop possible in Portland and the Eugene/Springfield area. I never had a bad experience but one store in Portland took the MSRP and multiplied by two or three on everything. There is no way I am paying $700 for a chicom SKS, or $2000 for a beat to hell Trapdoor springfield that I could buy in Springfield for around $400.
My local stores here in Kansas are all pretty good. The worst thing about any stores is waiting for your turn, but that’s not a problem for me.
So tempted to engage…
My guns were not designed to kill, they were designed to live.
Guns and Ammo, Memphis, TN
The WORST customer service.
Dominion Arms in Manassas VA. Everything is over priced and the selection is non existent. Just like the staffs customer service skills. These guys definitely gouge when ever they can. Avoid at all cost and visit Virgina Arms right down the road.
Stonewall Range and gun shop in Brecksville, Ohio. Rude staff, high prices and 1 round at a time for rifles on their range..
It was some species of hardware store in Watertown, NY that sold guns as a sideline. The events below took place in the last century, so I’ve forgotten the name of the place. One of our fellow officers in 10th MTN Div. received a revolver from his wife for Christmas. When it was his birthday, three or four of us went into town to buy him some ammunition for it as a present. We were all in high spirits when we entered the store, but when the clerk – a middle-aged, dyspeptic-looking stoat – was informed of the nature of our purchase and the fact that it was for a friend, the sun quickly set on our happiness. The little Napoleon of commerce delivered a lecture of great rudeness and condescension and informed us that it was ILLEGAL (horrors!) to buy handgun ammo for another person. Since we were all in uniform, the absurdity of this rant inspired awe that any state or salesman could be so incredibly idiotic. If we or the birthday boy ever wanted to go rogue, we could have levelled the block with the weapons at our disposal. The idea that we couldn’t be trusted with revolver ammuntion was so nonsensical that we just did a slient about-face and left the premises forever.
RGUNS.NET, I have never been to the actual store but I can only imagine from my experience with them through email, and phone. A few years back I was looking to purchase a Krebs and it seems that those Unicorns are only sold in a few places on the planet, one of them (use to be) RGuns, anyways after months of waiting to have one of their “in-stock now” Krebs shipped to my local FFL, I canceled the order and promptly received a very cordial, “I CANCELED IT”, in all caps and nothing more, the very same day my credit card info they had on file magically purchased a bunch of electronics from the Best Buy in the Illinois area, luckily my bank caught the transaction before it could go through. Oh, and their “all-nude girls and guns calenders” are hot, I’m sure those girls are clean.
Impact Arms in Ogden, UT. They have a nack of telling you what you want when you don’t want it. They have made or turned away so many people that I am quite surprised they are in business. If you visit just tell them you are looking and not shopping it usually turns them away fast.
Buck’s Gun Rack in Daytona Beach, FL. Went in looking for a light for my FNP, guy pulls a Glock out of a display case with one of the Glock-branded lights on it and starts lasering my chest. Didn’t clear the gun or nothin.
Congrats Ray. You lucky ass. 🙂
I’d be willing to give that a try. I’m still using a $20 nylon IWB that’s proven better than the more expensive stuff I’ve tried.
One more small IL gun store makes the list. D & J Guns, Lakemoor, IL. I tried to get some information on my first gun purchase while I waited for my IL FOID card to arrive. After ignoring me for some time with only one other person in the store, the gun toting salesman and saleswoman basically told me to come back when I got the card in mail. I know I need the card to handle a gun, but I was just looking for some information on a gun they carried. Maybe it was the BMW convertible I had parked in the front of their small store? I have filled two gun safes without ever going back. Go figure!
Well, that’s certainly a very phallic placement…
I had an Uncle Mikes IWB nylon holster for my Glock 19 a few years ago, I actually really liked it, the only issue was I started wearing an SOE riggers belt all the time and the clip wasn’t long enough to accommodate the wide belt. Gave it to a friend and its all he uses.
Uncle Mikes is worth it for the money, and they don’t have 8 month lead times to my knowledge.
There is a store/range in Torrington, Connecticut called Tactical Arms…. http://www.c3tactical.com/ . I am not the only one who has had issues with this place check their reviews online. The owner is a small bald man with an attitude towards customers that is unbelievable. My last visit was due to him; I went in and was looking to buy some .45GAP ammo, there were price tags on the boxes, iirc they were $24.99 ea. I brought them up to the counter and the girl scanned the boxes with a reader. She gave me a total of $89.00 I gave her $90 cash and got a buck back. I took the receipt and the three boxes of ammo out to my car and then I got my calculator out and did the math…I was charged 3 dollars more per box and tax… I went back into the store and the girl asked if there was a problem and I said yes that the price on the sticker on the box is different from the price I was charged… out of the back room comes the bald slight man with a large attitude… he says “She scanned it, that is the price” and I showed him the stamped prices on the boxes… he said No the scanned price is correct and I said that he had to honor the stamped price by statute… he turned red and said sarcastically “what do you want me to do credit your credit card?” And I stated that I payed with cash… with no eye contact he retreived a cash drawer and a calculator and made exact change about $9.50 he placed it on the counter and went back into his office…. haven’t spent a dime there since…
Spo-Compton?
If there’s any place in WA state where you’d want to own a gun, it’s gotta be close to the top of the list.
juliesa, I’d rather just shoot, shootings easier. I carry glock 22 when I hike or generally venture into the mountains
“Ok, Mr. Cheney, I’m prepared to go Duck Hunting.”
Ted Nugent’s answer to MDA’s “right to feel safe”
I believe thats Ned Kelley the famous Australian outlaw.
Attempting to assist a friend who is a loss prevention guy in subduing a particularly nasty perp I kicked the offender in the head, chest and arm multiple times each. I explained this to the responding cops who pretty well said that the knife he was attempting to draw (it was still in his pants pocket) was reason enough to shoot him, let alone justify kicking him a few times. YMMV but it seems to me that cops don’t have much sympathy for thieves and I wonder how it is that this one was able to get up and run away.
Kinsey’s Outdoors in E-town, PA. Went in there as a complete newb to handguns interested in checking out a Springfield Armory XD. Dude behind the counter totally dismissed my interest in the XD, saying he didn’t think it was a safe gun for a new shooter. Then tried to sell me a more expensive used H&K. I wound up buying an XD online. They didn’t get the transfer either.
Normalize this.
Take a moment, won’t you, to send Piers Morgan a message.
You no doubt have a plastic fork laying around the house. You know, the one from KFC or El Pollo Loco or that grease bucket down the street…
You can also write “You’re done” with a sharpie on the handle. Please, no threats, profanities or white powders.
Piers Morgan
c/o CNN
10 Columbus Cir
New York, NY 10019
The decision is a fair and valid ruling, and on the initial view of Shawn’s own admissions I would support the decision of the law enforcement agency’s objection to his license application. This is covered by the 5th Amendment (due process of law). His stay at the mental health facility is the kicker, I’m guessing. If he can show in court (also due process of law) that the stay was not in relation to any violence issues and can provide testimony from a certified mental health professional that he is not a danger to himself or others then his CCL will probably be able to be issued. It’s a fair ruling. What many 2nd Amendment supporters forget that while the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed, that according to the 5th amendment your life, liberty (rights), and property may be taken from you via due process of law. BUT you may have your rights restored via the same due process of law.
There’s more than one amendment to the Constitution for a reason, people.