Firearms???

[ZR440]

Here is a good article that pertains to gun laws in England.

 

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,59866,00.html

[justb]

My opinion is a gun at close range is about as dangerous as a knife is at long range, given the appropriate training. You have to match (or change) the situation to match the weapon. If you are inexperienced then you're probably going to die anyways.

 

Guns are great, people have known it for centuries. If they weren't why would the military use them?

 

Thanks

 

B

[kicker]

Well I kind of agree that a firearm is the best weapon for self defense.

 

But you have to be a pretty good shooter to hit something from a long range. The better you shot the better of a weapon for self defense the firearm is

 

justb, Well In the military they use guns for training and if they ever had to use them like during a war, They well have the experience to use the gun and not get themselves killed.

[ckdstudent]

A firearm is the best weapon for self offense. Its not a defensive weapon. A defensive weapon is one designed to remove any threat to your person with minimal injury to all parties. A firearm is designed to put lumps of lead into people very fast.

[unknown]

only two types of people carry guns: law enforcement officials and cowards

[justb]

Why is it cowardly to carry a gun? Are you calling law enforcement people cowards?

 

A gun makes tactical sense in a modern society. Does that mean that people who carried swords 300 years ago were cowards as well?

 

You may be suprised to know that as the gun became more popular in Japan and East Asia, it had a dramatic influence on armor and therefore tactics of the classical Ryuha. I would imagine that they have had a similar effect throughout the ages and cultures.

 

Thanks

 

B

[ZR440]

If you are calling the responsible citizen who has completed training for a conceled weapon a coward, you can go ahead and rely on your police department. Good luck. I'll just continue being a coward for a long time.

[Don Gwinn]

Aw, geez. I leave for a little while and you bring the gun issue back without me? I ask you, is that fair?

 

In no particular order, I offer the following thoughts:

 

1.

My opinion is a gun at close range is about as dangerous as a knife is at long range, given the appropriate training.

 

What, pray tell, is the appropriate training? Jeff Cooper would not agree with you. Nor would Gabe Suarez or Mad Dog. Ayoob would laugh out loud at that statement. Clint Smith would probably just lift one eyebrow and give you his look, but the meaning is there. These are the finest firearms trainers and tacticians alive, and none of them would claim to be able to give you any training which would make a gun at close range practically useless (you said as useful as a knife at long range.) How is it that you know this secret and they do not?

 

2.

Guns are great, people have known it for centuries. If they weren't why would the military use them?

 

Prezackly. Was Musashi a coward? How can using a different weapon to do exactly the same thing make someone a coward? I don't want to hear about people being ambushed from afar, because bowmen did it all the time.

 

3.

Its not a defensive weapon. A defensive weapon is one designed to remove any threat to your person with minimal injury to all parties.

 

BS. There are no defensive weapons. There are only weapons. Guns, like all other weapons ever used by human beings, can be used either offensively or defensively. The warrior makes the choice.

 

4.

only two types of people carry guns: law enforcement officials and cowards

 

Riiiiiight. So, today, I'm a coward for carrying a gun. But tomorrow, if I go out and join the local police force reserve, I won't be a coward anymore and I can still carry my gun? Does that strike you as stupid?

 

Q. Why do law enforcement officials carry guns?

 

A. Because they may have to defend themselves when they encounter criminals.

 

Q. OK. Then why shouldn't citizens carry guns?

 

A. Because citizens never have the need to defend themselves from criminals. Criminals never attack citizens; only police.

 

5. ZR440, at least, understands the problem with which we are confronted. To wit, we all know we could be attacked, right? Now, do we all believe that the police department can protect us? Even though it only takes a few moments to beat someone within inches of his life, or a few seconds to stab, cut or shoot one to death? Even though the best we can hope for is an ultra-fast 3-5 minute response time from the police? Even though they may all be across town responding to the last emergency?

 

Of course not. This is no slur against the police; it is simply not humanly possible to do what most people blithely assume the police do routinely. The police exist to apprehend and punish people after they commit crimes. They are there to stop the NEXT crime, not the one currently happening. If you don't believe me, ask a few. They'd really, really like to interrupt your murderer in the act and save you, but they know it's most often impossible to do so. Time we all admit that to ourselves too.

[justb]

What, pray tell, is the appropriate training? Jeff Cooper would not agree with you. Nor would Gabe Suarez or Mad Dog. Ayoob would laugh out loud at that statement. Clint Smith would probably just lift one eyebrow and give you his look, but the meaning is there. These are the finest firearms trainers and tacticians alive, and none of them would claim to be able to give you any training which would make a gun at close range practically useless (you said as useful as a knife at long range.) How is it that you know this secret and they do not?

 

Thank you for an intellegent reply to my post. I don't know who any of the people are that you describe, so unfortunately I am not able to accomodate your implication that I know less than they do on the subject. I am not stating that proper training on how to shoot a gun will keep a person alive, I am stating that proper training on the appropriate way to react when a gun is brandished increases the chances of coming out alive (especially if the defender is professionally trained on how to respond and the attacker is not properly skilled in their firearm). I apologise if I was not clear on that point. I don't know if those people you mention advocate that or not. One of the most important things to realize when facing a gun or knife, or any weapon for that matter is the understanding that you will get hit/cut/injured. Understanding that point & reacting with the intention of minimizing damage will undoubtedly assist in preserving the defender's life, though of course nothing is certain & there is a very fine margin of error when facing any person with any weapon, especially with one is not armed. Good fighters/soldiers get injured and killed all the time.

 

Also, I don't believe I said a knife is useless at long range, please understand the difference beween what was typed and what you inferred. There is obviously no secret, only an understanding of how weaponry is used and their relative strengths and weaknesses. Assuming there is a secret to any combat tactic other than that is delusional.

 

I wonder if bowmen carried knives as well of if Musashi was skilled in archery?

 

I look forward to your response.

 

Thanks

 

B

 

https://www.seishinkan.com

[amp]

I don't think that all people who carry guns are cowards. I don't think there's anything cowardly about absolute resolution to a life or death situation, like an armed robber coming into your home to rape and kill your family, then loot your belongings.

 

If someone like that came into my house, I'd rather blast them and have it done with than chance my hypothetical family being brutalized because I decided to act like a Samurai or demonstrate my technique only to be shot in the face or stabbed in the stomach.

 

But, most people who carry guns are cowards. Especially inner city youth. It's easy to act tough when you have a hand cannon. It's hard to be tough when all you have is your fists. But these kids usually have a Catch-22 to deal with: put down the gun, be a man, get shot; or pick up the gun, be a coward like everyone else, live. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.