Everyone wants to save the damsel in distress. Everyone wants to slay the dragon. Everyone wants to be the one to save the world from a great evil. This desire can be seen in our movies. It can be seen in our books. And it can be seen in our gun culture.
I have a gun in my house so I can protect my family. I carry a gun with me to protect myself from killers. I will be able to use this gun to stop that mall shooter. These are all the thoughts of an individual living out a Dungeons and Dragons fantasy. Every single one of those scenarios only has a slightly greater chance of happening than you having the opportunity to slay a dragon.
That stranger in your house is not there to kill you. That person robbing you on the street does not want to kill you. You will never see a mall shooter. Statistically speaking, those statements are all true. If you confront and kill a burglar, chances are you’re killing someone who had no intention of killing you. If you confront and kill a mugger, chances are you’re killing someone who had no intention of killing you. You will never see a mall shooter.
It isn’t that you shouldn’t have these fantasies. They are good fantasies to have. I have them too. It’s fun to imagine saving the day, protecting your family, routing evil. But please, for the love of all that is good in this world, please recognize them for what they are. And that’s fantasies! Using these scenarios to justify owning a gun just shows you as a person who can’t escape from their fantasies. And that makes you much more dangerous than the pretend person who is going to kill you.
yeah. Some people want teaching staff to be armed. jeez.
everybody wants to be a rockstar… but owning a Fender stratocaster guitar – or the Rock Band game – does not make you a rockstar.
In fantasy, you own a gun and you think in moment of crisis, you’ll be able to pull out your weapon and be a hero. In reality, this woman is a victim of her own guns. She owned several and kept them in her home ‘for protection’… according to gun-for-self-defense theory, she would defend herself from the perpetrator and in killing him prevent the mass murder of school children. how can these people still be convinced in this fantasy/theory?
People forget that criminals don’t make their own guns, but rather they either have somebody else buy them for them or just steal them from somebody who owns them legally. If we did ban all hand guns and assault rifles in the country, sure that would mean the ratio of armed criminals to armed citizens would go up…but it would cut off their supply chain and over time there would be fewer shootings.
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Good analogy. Though it must be said that there is nothing wrong with playing D&D as an adult. But yes, it is pure magical thinking. Statistics show owning a gun increases your chance of being killed.
Ha! Yes, it certainly should be said. Maybe I should have compared it to that movie from the 80s where the kid believes that his dungeon fantasies were real. Because that’s the problem, not recognizing reality from fantasy.