My main point was that the actual reasons for both owning and using guns are not related to the reasoning of the 2nd amendment eventhough it is the law that makes all of this possible. And how could they be related - that reasoning is centuries old and simply nomlonger valid due to the way power is exercised in the 21st century.
I’ll agree with that.
Interestingly, you can hunt or go to a shooting range in most other developed countries and the fact they don’t have an extensive right to bear arms enshrined in their constitution doesn’t seem to be limiting that entertainment value.
Is this true? A very common type of visitor to USA gun ranges are tourists from other developed countries. I wouldn’t expect this if these were equally accessible in other countries.
Culture and ideology are the primary words here, I think. As the epistemological crisis deepens, I fear ideological violence will continue to rise, and guns will be a very combustible ingredient in that dynamic.
I certainly agree this is a real risk. We’ve seen isolated events of this already with teenager Kyle Rittenhouse traveling across state lines to another city to put himself in a position to wield his semi-automatic rifle in a highly charged situation leading to him shooting and killing two people. There was no home defense there, no “well regulated militia”, there was a young man that wanted to be in a probable place where circumstances would arise he’d shoot someone and be protected by the law.
Oh yeah. There are tens of thousands of gun ranges throughout Europe. Hell, you can do crazy things at ranges owned by companies that provide shooting and combat training, like firing from a helicopter or learning to use an APC machine gun. These sorta services are available to any adult citizen that wants to use them (and can pay).
A very common type of visitor to USA gun ranges are tourists from other developed countries. I wouldn’t expect this if these were equally accessible in other countries.
I mean, specific regulations and accessability will vary from one country to another, and I assume the same applies to US states. But in general - yes, shooting ranges are available at most any major town and city. Hunting is of course a different set of regulations but yeah absolutely you can hunt, assuming ofcourse you follow basic hunting laws.
I think the main difference comes down to culture. While gun ranges are readily available throughout Europe, I’m guessing the demand for them is significantly lower compared to the US, as is the demand for gun owning and using overall. And I believe the reason why is at the crux of the issue.
My guess is that a lot of tourists use gun ranges in the US because its “part of the experience”, not because they don’t have gun ranges back home. From a European perspective, and looking at google maps, seems like most Europeans have a gun range less than an hour drive away.
Edit: just to stress the point about how widely different things are compared to some US states. In Europe, you can shoot an AR-15 at a gun range (with proper training first) but you can’t buy one, keep it in your car and go grocery shopping with it. I mean, I’m sure people and the police in the US won’t be happy about you wandering around with an AR-15 but the fact that you can even do it is striking from a European perspective. And the fact that this activity is protected under the guise of “democracy” and “self-defence” makes it that much worse. Sure, the AR-15 might be an exxagerated examples (but only slightly) but the same applies for hand guns - it would be seen nearly the same way.
Seems to me like the only logical reason to own a gun in the US (unless, say, you use it professionally) is to defend against all the other people who own guns and might decide to use them for all sorts of reasons, including highly irrational ones. So we’re back to the highly insidious cycle I mentioned before. There is only one way to stop the cycle and I don’t see a logical reason why tougher gun laws haven’t been enacted.
I’ll agree with that.
Is this true? A very common type of visitor to USA gun ranges are tourists from other developed countries. I wouldn’t expect this if these were equally accessible in other countries.
I certainly agree this is a real risk. We’ve seen isolated events of this already with teenager Kyle Rittenhouse traveling across state lines to another city to put himself in a position to wield his semi-automatic rifle in a highly charged situation leading to him shooting and killing two people. There was no home defense there, no “well regulated militia”, there was a young man that wanted to be in a probable place where circumstances would arise he’d shoot someone and be protected by the law.
Oh yeah. There are tens of thousands of gun ranges throughout Europe. Hell, you can do crazy things at ranges owned by companies that provide shooting and combat training, like firing from a helicopter or learning to use an APC machine gun. These sorta services are available to any adult citizen that wants to use them (and can pay).
I mean, specific regulations and accessability will vary from one country to another, and I assume the same applies to US states. But in general - yes, shooting ranges are available at most any major town and city. Hunting is of course a different set of regulations but yeah absolutely you can hunt, assuming ofcourse you follow basic hunting laws.
I think the main difference comes down to culture. While gun ranges are readily available throughout Europe, I’m guessing the demand for them is significantly lower compared to the US, as is the demand for gun owning and using overall. And I believe the reason why is at the crux of the issue.
My guess is that a lot of tourists use gun ranges in the US because its “part of the experience”, not because they don’t have gun ranges back home. From a European perspective, and looking at google maps, seems like most Europeans have a gun range less than an hour drive away.
Edit: just to stress the point about how widely different things are compared to some US states. In Europe, you can shoot an AR-15 at a gun range (with proper training first) but you can’t buy one, keep it in your car and go grocery shopping with it. I mean, I’m sure people and the police in the US won’t be happy about you wandering around with an AR-15 but the fact that you can even do it is striking from a European perspective. And the fact that this activity is protected under the guise of “democracy” and “self-defence” makes it that much worse. Sure, the AR-15 might be an exxagerated examples (but only slightly) but the same applies for hand guns - it would be seen nearly the same way.
Seems to me like the only logical reason to own a gun in the US (unless, say, you use it professionally) is to defend against all the other people who own guns and might decide to use them for all sorts of reasons, including highly irrational ones. So we’re back to the highly insidious cycle I mentioned before. There is only one way to stop the cycle and I don’t see a logical reason why tougher gun laws haven’t been enacted.