“As ‘Gun Guys’ author Dan Baum has argued, much of what’s ‘fun’ about shooting an assault weapon is that it feels masculine; it’s an implicit expression of male sexuality. Some gun enthusiasts even refer to assault weapons, and especially the ARs, as ‘Barbie dolls for men’ because of their connection to sexuality and because they have interchangeable parts that can be added and removed, like Barbie accessories.” – Robert J. Spitzer in Why are assault weapon sales jumping? Because they’re fun to shoot. [at latimes.com]
[h/t Todd H.]
If guns were phallic, no man would buy one with a two inch barrel.
Perfect! I laughed out loud.
Me too! Because I can relate to that (sadly)
I carry a Seecamp .32ACP. My wife says I’m undercompensating for my extreme manhood. She’s probably right.
I carry a .380; I’m trying to get in touch with my feminine side.
It all makes sense now as to why dudes with small caliber guns keep going on and on about shot placement.
The only man that says AR rifles are ‘Barbie dolls for men’ is Baum himself.
For the LA times that’s pro gun. Read the whole thing. Or don’t.
Why would we do that when we can jump right to righteous indignation and sarcasm? Writing snarky, humorous comments is waaaay more fun than reading! Besides, it’s the LA Times. Ain’t nobody reading it besides the people who write for it. It’s pretty much a downward-spiraling, irrelevant, statist, circle-jerkin’ echo chamber.
See? That was so much more fun to write than actually reading something!
Grant that he’s right for the sake of argument.
I ask: So what? Hasn’t California led the nation in teaching us that our preferences are okay, no matter what they are?
I also ask: and why, again, should I care what you or anyone else thinks about my sexuality or expressions thereof?
Finally I ask: If a liking of AR-15s is a sexual expression for me, why is it okay for (say) gay pride parades to march in the streets but not an open carry parade?
Hypocrites.
That’s right. We have to learn to speak in Californianese:
Stop these weapon-shaming microaggressions you disarmonomative bigots! From now on, I sexually identify as a Faxon ARAK-21, and demand that you all respect my need to change calibers whenever I want. Check your privilege.
Now that’s a response to give to antis.
Ammosexuals of the world unite! 😀
Ammosexuals never shoot blanks…
*snicker*
Tolerance is only for those who abide by the leftist agenda. Actual tolerance is just another concept that leftists thoroughly fail to grasp, like freedom and responsibility.
Why are progressives so obsessed with sex? How does he explain the smiling women who enjoy shooting AR15 rifles? I have been told by liberals that conservatives have sex only in the missionary position with the lights out.
Progressives must really enjoy invading the privacy of other people to attain this information. This may explain why socialist engage in sex with horses in Washington State or golden showers. I do not remember his name but there is a university professor who supported people having sex with animals. I think he is godless. This may explain why the liberals removed the law against sex with animals many years ago in Washington state. I hope I’m not being judgmental.
Stay away from Enumclaw. A dude was killed having sex with a horse, several years ago, there.
This is still illegal in TX. A dude in Texas was recently arrested for the third time for trying to have a sex with a particular mare named Nadia. Her owner has surveillance footage that the sheriff said can’t be shown on tv.
This time Nadia kicked the guy and broke his leg. Attagirl.
Neigh means neigh.
“This time Nadia kicked the guy and broke his leg. Attagirl.”
A bushel of apples for Nadia.
SpeloFool, you’re a sick bastard.
(Fist-Bump)
I dunno. If some damn fool wants to commit suicide-by-stallion, I’m inclined to let them.
Someone who really wants to do that kind of thing is only going to be stopped by lack of access to a stallion. IMO the sooner they’re out of the gene pool the better off the rest of us are.
“A dude was killed having sex with a horse, several years ago, there.”
I remember that.
The horse gave him more than he was expecting. Septic infection via massive intestinal trauma.
Who saw that coming? The horse had a meter long tool…
Good horsie.
That is not correct, WA had no law against sex with animals until 2004, it has not been repealed, see unlike Kentucky having sex wih animals wasn’t a problem our men generally suffer from so there was never a need for a law until some guy got himself killed
I do not remember his name but there is a university professor who supported people having sex with animals. Sounds like a Title 8 housing project.
Phallic? Barbie Dolls? No, in fact way off. I’ve always thought of the AR as the Lego’s of the firearm world. You can literally build whatever suits your purpose, pistol, space gun, carbine, hell, even bolt action if you desire. Most adaptable firearm ever. The second piece of the puzzle makes it even more attractive. Thanks to the design of the action, its one of the most accurate automatic platforms in history, and that accuracy doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. GrabAGun is selling a Bushmaster carbine for $489 right now, youre only a couple parts away from a MOA rifle, and you don’t need to be a gunsmith to do it. The AR is a fantastic firearm.
I’ve always considered it the Barbie Doll of guns since it shoots a tiny easy to control bullet and everyone seems to customize them with accessories. I duracoated mine, swapped out uppers, changed the foregrip, added an ambi charging handle and controls. This guy’s sick connection of a girl’s toy Barbie Dolls with sex is disgusting though. That’s the first thing that comes to mind when he thinks of Barbie Dolls, masculine and sex? Hope he doesn’t have kids.
To get the AR15 out of this guy’s gutter, maybe I should call it the 32 Ford of guns instead.
For some, a woman, now adays, to express a desire to do womanly things, like stay at home and raise babies is considered an abomination.
For some, a man now adays, to express the desire to do manly things like be trained in the use of weapons and be ready to defend ones family, community and country from enemies, foreign and domestic is considered an abomination.
There are some, now adays, that are very confused and need counseling.
Progressives fail to recognize that varying degrees and differences of intent mark everything in life. This is because they worship the complex of guilt by association and everything they see is in black-and-white. This is especially true in their views of history, but I’ll use your example to illustrate my point more clearly: A woman who chooses to stay home and raise the kids, but is proud of other women who become lawyers, doctors, CEOs, etc still “hurts the cause” because her choice is ‘holding everyone back’. This is the progressive “only for the herd, nothing but the herd” mentality in action and it’s utterly repulsive. They might say they value the ability to choose, but if you choose wrong and they hear about it, they’ll bully you into becoming one of them or standing silently out of their way.
The article didn’t seem unfair to me. I just woke up so maybe I am missing subtle things. I’d like to see scientific proof that their is a sexual component to gun appreciation before I’d except the notion though. As I mentioned earlier, I have almost no libido at all and yet am quite a hoplophile. I also get no thrill and only the small satisfaction of improving a skill from shooting.
AGAIN, and STILL quoting guys who pull stuff off of their Barbie Dolls. . . AND the fn LATimes.
All I know is that if Barbie came with M-LOK I’d be far more interested.
Phallic, eh? How old school Freudian his thinking is. I suppose part of his rationale is the idea of compensation. Therefore, a man who owns powerful firearms is compensating for lackluster sexual performance. If that’s true, then the typical AK or AR ‘assault weapon’ fails the virility test. On the plus side, of course, assault weapons are known to discharge often, so there’s that to consider. And the interchangeability of AR parts might suggest a post-Victorian AC/DC, transgender, she-male view of all things sexual. I would think the typical progressive would applaud such open-mindedness. I suppose possessing numerous firearms is akin to having multiple sexual partners. Some are large, some are small, some are beautiful, some are ugly. At times we tend to become bored with them, so trade them off, or we keep them in our collection permanently, unfired and under-appreciated. That can’t be good. Oh well, it’s too much to ponder at one sitting. Just make sure your particular long arm has a good trigger. We don’t want it discharging prematurely, do we?
Your post may be the only good thing to come from that idiot “gun guy’s” rambling.
WHY DOES EVERYONE HAVE TO MAKE EVERYTHING ABOUT SEX?!?!?! CAN’T I JUST OWN SOMETHING BECAUSE I WANT IT?! WHY ARE GUN CONTROL ADVOCATES SO FIXATED ON MY JUNK?!! WHY AM I SCREAMING?
Trying to come out of the closet, eh?
I always liked stroking and pumping my 870. It erupts with a bang. Yes, guns are the ultimate personal phallic symbol. Of course you do have Saturn V rockets and Nuclear Submarines, but they are crew serviced phallic symbols.
What do barbie dolls have to do with sex? This guy is a creep! No way he’d come near any kid I look after if he’s making connections to children’s toys and sex.
I remember when I was a kid we would have neighborhood GI Joe squads which would be posed in interesting positions with the Barbie Dolls which were owned by the sisters of the guys with the GI Joe action figures. Sissy never was very impressed.
Gee Tom when my buddy showed me his 1st generation GI Joe “action figure” I remember saying “It’s a DOLL”. Early 60’s and I played with my Mattel Tommy gun and my brothers shiny 38snubby…No sisters so there were NO Barbies in OUR house(or my buddies )LOL…this is just phallus malice…
I’m a man. Sometimes I like to do manly things. Nothing wrong with that.
“it feels masculine”
That’s rich, because after five years of being a gun owner not once have I felt “powerful” or “masculine” when handling them. For me, shooting is just a damn good way to have fun. I once had a fence sitter tell me he wanted to buy a gun because “It would make me feel cool and manly.” I said drop that attitude outright or go find a new hobby. Based on stupidity I’ve witnessed at various ranges, people who make shooting out to be an overtly macho experience end up doing some really unsafe/reckless stuff.
Big, black, round, hard, forward thrust, shoots with a bang, full of seamen, goes up and down. It is just your dirty mind.
Notice the final sentence of that article:
“That is why gun rights spokespeople, when asked to comment after the latest mass shooting committed with an assault weapon, will never say that such firearms should remain legal because they’re so much fun to shoot.” Which begs the question “In exactly how many of these mass shootings was an “assault rifle” involved and how many people were killed?” How many lives are saved every day, week, month, year from the fact that regular people have the ability to defend themselves with guns? Always the slant on the truth to make their point but never acknowledge the other side of the argument. I have NO problem telling anyone that my AR-15 style rifle if fun to shoot because it is. And that has NOTHING to do with mass shootings. As far as the phallic symbol stuff, who cares and how is that relevant to anything at all ? Cars are considered by some to be a phallic symbol too but nobody wants to ban them.
The bottom line is that the practice of minding ones own business is DEAD. This is why I’m a liberatarian. I don’t see the trend of everyone telling me how to live my life ending anytime soon though.
People like to tell people what to do or what your opinion should be. I yet to meet one who had any balls to back up or enforce their views.
First time I ever heard anybody call any gun a Barbie doll, I think he is making it up. If anything, as another poster already said, ARs are more akin to Legos.
So… it’s phallic for men, but what about for women? Seems a bit sexist, no?
Nothing sexual in my thoughts or actions concerning weapons ownership. My entire arm collection is political speech and average one purchase per year.
As for the fear mongering about government taking away my arms…please explain why democrats now proposing to model NJ gun laws for the nation? Why accusing someone of domestic abuse leads to confiscation without due process? Why do states severely limit public lawful self defense? Why do judges support infringement? Why are retired military generals stating AR have no place in public hands?
Every answer is local, state & federal governments are systematiclly chipping away at 2A and in 100 years it will be repealed.
I do not own and have never owned an ar15. Does this make me a normal, hetero male as opposed to the rest of you perverts.
Have you looked a pictures of AR-15’s?
Does this make me a normal, hetero male as opposed to the rest of you perverts.
No.
Good. Normal sucks.
A) What the hell exactly is an ‘Assault Weapon’, Dan? I’d love to hear your precise definition.
B) So how exactly does your theory apply to the largest growing segment of shooters – women – who also love shooting semi-automatic rifles (assuming of course, that is THE ‘Assault Weapon’ you are referencing with your intellectually dishonest non-sequitur)
C) So, let’s just assume for a minute that you are correct and it’s all about masculinity/gender. So am I not allowed to enjoy a ‘masculine’ hobby/sport then? Is that deviant, or socially unacceptable in your world? I didn’t learn to shoot in the Girl Scouts or the ‘People Scouts’ you know. I learned to shoot in the Boy Scouts.
If that is the krups of your entire illogical, intellectually dishonest thesis, then ok… I’m guilty. I’m a male. I admit it. Hell, I’m even White! OMG, I should be so ashamed! I should very ‘uncourageously’ hide in the closet and be afraid to express how I really ‘feel’, right?
Want to go back to the drawing board and try again, sir?
Or want to come to the range with me and my male and female friends instead, and have an afternoon of safe, drug-free afternoon of fun in the sun?
What a sexist remark!!! My wife loves my AR so much, we are in the market to get her one of her own. Why do people buy ARs? There are more reasons than can be written in a single post. I can express why I have an AR in one word — freedom. Anyhow, his notion that people own AR’s because it puts them in touch with their masculine side really shows he hasn’t a clue about the gun or the round it is typically design the shoot. The military did not select the 5.56mm because it was this devastating round, they choose it because you can carry a hell of a lot more of it than 7.62mm.
They are a great family rifle, with the adjustable stock and low recoil.
OH – and does the same principle apply for bolt-action riflery, Dan – or is it strictly semi-auto? If so, what about auto-loading shotguns – or does it have to be center-fire only? What about lever-action rifles? …Pistols?
Your intellectual prowess intimidates me, Dan.
The got the “Because they’re fun to shoot” part right.
I just came from an indoor range where the guy next to me was firing a full-auto 5.56. When you are practicing your slow-fire pistol skills, it isn’t fun (but picking up all of that 5.56 brass was) 🙂
I did not have sex with that firearm!
The cork soakers on the left seem obsessed with our weenies, don’t they? We, on the other hand, are completely unconcerned with, say, how often Spitzer (named after a bullet) polishes his boyfriend’s knob because it has nothing to do with anything. So there.
I’m surprised none of the gun grabbers have yet accused female gun hobbyists of penis envy. I assume right now they’re too invested in the OFWG stereotype and have to deny the very existence of female and minority gun owners–which btw is a very sexist and racist attitude.
Taking the original Spitzer article to its logical conclusion, gun grabber = penis grabber.
With the crazy that the feminist movement has mutated into at its most extreme, you’re more right than you know.
What’s an assault weapon?
Anyone who associates weapons with sex/genitals is a danger to society and needs to be locked up in a padded room. There is no point in trying to converse rationally with someone who is so obscenely screwed up in the head.
If you think the barrel of my 1911 is bigger than my you-know-what; I’ve got a surprise for you, sweetie.
“A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity.” – Sigmund Freud
Viewed in light of the author’s own outspoken problems; consider the source.
The inferior seem to make a point at lashing out at their betters. If they can attack sexual inadequacy in the process…. Projection… It’s screamingly obvious, to anyone with an IQ above room temperature, that which is really transpiring…
The author’s desperate need to insult the sexual function of others, connected to the association of weapons with gender function… He does far more to point out his own seriously screwed-up brain than anything else.
The Freud quote is mis-attributed. It most likely belongs to Don Kates, who is a tireless promoter of our gun rights. He was paraphrasing the thoughts of Freud:
“The representation of the penis as a weapon, cutting knife, dagger etc., is familiar to us from the anxiety dreams of abstinent women in particular and also lies at the root of numerous phobias in neurotic people.”
With guns and power tools, the question is always asked: “is he compensating for something?”
Yes. Yes we are, because I can’t naturally drill tiny holes in wood, or fling lead blobs at a thousand feet per second. Like with all technology, I am augmenting my standard issue human body to take on more tasks.
(I posted this same comment in another thread, but it makes much more sense here)
I am trans-caliber. Live with it.
For a political ideology that’s supposed to be so religiously devoted to the sanctity of “science” (only when it fits their agenda, of course), they seem to have trouble grasping that people compensating for their limitations through the use of tools isn’t sexual. It’s smart.
Oh, I see the problem now. It’s smart, so they can’t grasp it.
Note to L.A. Times: yes, guns are fun, but you seem confused by associating male sexuality with them. Please be sure you understand the actual meaning of the term “cocking a gun” before you hurt yourselves or embarrass anyone.
Thx,
Concerned Citizen.
You know, I recently jumped off of a cliff into the ocean. I’m working in Hawaii and trying to make the most of my weekends. It’s been about three weeks and my tailbone area is still fairly sore, but all in all it was totally worth it.
The rush from jumping off of a cliff like that is fairly similar to the first time I fired a gun, or anymore, getting to do a full mag-dump.
In my mind there is no connection to sexuality with either one, nor does it involve the ability to project myself forcibly into the business of others or force my will upon them.
It’s nothing more than an intense experience that you don’t get to have every day. Why isn’t that enough?
When I shoot my rifle I never thought about feelings of masculinity and male sexuality. That is complete nonsense. Certainly no more than when I use my table saw, drill press, or router, mill or lathe, etc. There seriously is something wrong with you guys.
I have never known anyone to refer to AR’s or any firearm as a “barbie doll for men.” I never thought barbie dolls to be sexual in nature to the little girls that play with them. Again – there is something wrong with you guys.
The more I read these weird comments by anti-gun people – the more it seems they are trying to project their repressed, socially awkward, sexually inactive analysis on people other than themselves.
You must be very unusual; the drill press always does it for me.
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