Took some "extremely left wing" friends to the gunrange today. . .

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Do you think they really make the jump from "gee, that was fun" to "Yes, we need the means to resist a tyrannical government"?
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Some, yes. The goal is to demystify firearms and show that firearms are just tools. Buddy of mine took a left leaning radio talk show host to the range. He shot a 12 gauge pump loaded with buckshot vrs. an AR to show the host that an AR was not the "killing machine" that MSM was lying about.

Worked. ;)
 
In my experience as someone quite a few people in this thread "wouldn't want as a friend" many people that are fence-sitters about the gun issue tend to get all of their firearms information from Hollywood or Big Media.

Hollywood and Big Media have a vested interest in keeping the general population in fear and awe of firearms; guns being magical weapons that can kill in one shot, every time, at any distance tends to make for more tension and "better" action in action movies. The news likes having big splashy headlines about "Teh Ebil Gunzzz!" and tend to throw out more disinformation than anything useful.

As such, a good chunk of my "rangetrips with newbie friends" is deprogramming from the "magical thinking" Hollywood/big media likes foisting off on the populace as fact. I like pointing out that the best silencers in the world (I refuse to call them suppressors. The patent reads silencer, and I'm not going to dishonor Hiram Percy Maxim's name by calling it something else) can't do more than a 40 decibels. Most centerfire guns tend to be in the 150 db range, which would only drop them into the 110 db range, still freaking loud, and loud enough to attract attention.

I point out that repeating firearms have been around since the late 1700s, and weren't exempted from the 2nd amendment then, no reason to now.

I point out that guns don't "Simply go off" and will demonstrate drop safety with a snap-cap loaded handgun.

I share the SAAMI ammo safety video far and wide, having introduced it to several firehouses.

I share the FBI's Crime In The United States database info and point out how pointless rifle legislation is.

I explain the physics and engineering of firearms in order to demonstrate why media talking about "copkiller!" ammo is misinformed. (I especially like the california news articles about the S&W .500 magnum being a copkiller before the gun was even released, despite tests of the .500 on type II vests showing no penetration.)

And as I am a part of the "over-educated ivory tower intellectual" crowd, I frequently end up explaining to ignorant "over-educated ivory tower intellectuals" why handguns are preferable to blades in virtually every self-defense situation, as well as why you'd rather be shot than slashed. (The college crowd has a HUGE love for swords and knives that is not justified by reality)

I have never once taken someone to the range and had it reinforce their anti-gun ideas. The reality tends to be so VERY VERY much different than what they have pictured in their heads that it can't help but change their opinion.
 
Concerning all the talk of "enemies" and such:
I would argue that there are really very, very few people who are truly enemies to RKBA. I would say that many people (like Mr. Bloomberg for example) truly believe they are helping the general population by making weapons harder to access. They are wrong, but they have good intentions. They simply are misinformed.
Very few believe "I'm taking your guns so you are helpless against government control."
 
Iramo94 said:
Concerning all the talk of "enemies" and such:
I would argue that there are really very, very few people who are truly enemies to RKBA. I would say that many people (like Mr. Bloomberg for example) truly believe they are helping the general population by making weapons harder to access. They are wrong, but they have good intentions. They simply are misinformed.
Very few believe "I'm taking your guns so you are helpless against government control."
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I disagree that they have good intentions. The politicians like Bloomberg just want to disarm the law abiding populace in order to further control and subjugate them. Good intentions has nothing to do with it. The baby boomer, liberal MAY have good intentions as they've been brainwashed into thinking all guns are bad, and it is the gun not the criminal that is at fault.
 
The first thing non-gun folks always say when handed a 1911 (or a 6 inch Python) is "It is so heavy."

And I always reply "Yep, it is a big chunk of steel.
 
I just make it a point not to have any liberal friends, or at least none that iI spend any time with.
 
Thought it was Browns Camp. I used to shoot there frequently, but about 5 years ago moved from OR to WA and now it's just too far of a drive.

I know what you mean about the idiots, seen some dumb people out there myself. Stay safe!
 
I think everyone need some friends different than they are...

IMHO

I am brutally conservative, but...... There are times when the Grand Old Party may be overstating things

I have a far left sister, who I love dearly, and other liberal friends, and it helps me to stay balanced

We agree to disagree and move on....
 
So, in conclusion...

...folk who feel "extremely left wing" people are really harmless, patriotic, freedom and liberty-loving Americans at heart -- albeit a little misguided but receptive to the influence a gunowner can have by teaching them to target shoot -- will take them to the range.

And people who think that "extremely left wing" people are blame-America-first ideolgues who are dangerous and will do whatever they can get away with personally and publicly to fundamentally undermine and transform the U.S. from a democratic republic to a perpetual dictatorial tyranny by the Party of the Left, where the right to keep and bear arms would become a state-controlled privilege, refuse to be silent any more and will not contribute to the demise of the nation, be the agents of their own and their posterity's demise, by taking radicals to a range to train using what they only think of as deadly, necessary, tools of revolution for the oppressed victim classes.
 
...folk who feel "extremely left wing" people are really harmless, patriotic, freedom and liberty-loving Americans at heart -- albeit a little misguided but receptive to the influence a gunowner can have by teaching them to target shoot -- will take them to the range.

And people who think that "extremely left wing" people are blame-America-first ideolgues who are dangerous and will do whatever they can get away with personally and publicly to fundamentally undermine and transform the U.S. from a democratic republic to a perpetual dictatorial tyranny by the Party of the Left, where the right to keep and bear arms would become a state-controlled privilege, refuse to be silent any more and will not contribute to the demise of the nation, be the agents of their own and their posterity's demise, by taking radicals to a range to train using what they only think of as deadly, necessary, tools of revolution for the oppressed victim classes.
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So do you believe that taking "lefties" to the range is bad because you anticipate a shooting war with "lefties" in your lifetime? If not, what's the harm in taking someone to the range, regardless of their opinion of firearms legislation? They're certainly not going to become MORE aggressive with anti-firearms legislation than they were beforehand, so the only practical reason I see for having a "I won't go shooting with a liberal" is if you anticipated being in a shooting war against them in the future. Is that your position?
 
I'm going to do something I usually don't do as it's kind of bad for a Moderator to do so, but. :)

I'm going to make a statement and then close the thread. Feel free to saddle your Llama and PM another moderator or hit the report button.

...folk who feel "extremely left wing" people are really harmless, patriotic, freedom and liberty-loving Americans at heart -- albeit a little misguided but receptive to the influence a gunowner can have by teaching them to target shoot -- will take them to the range.
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That's about as clear cased statement of polar thinking as I've seen expressed. It ain't either North Pole or South Pole. Very, very many of us are decidedly liberal in the old schools of thought. Taking someone who is a "left wing radical" to the range may be poor judgement - if, big if, they espouse something like true Communist beliefs. Those folks cannot be reasoned with. The person who is left wing (especially here in SC) may simply be of a different political party.

Taking someone to the range who is a Democrat (who may or may not be a "leftist") is a whole different option. Rs and Ds at state level are fairly meaningless.

Have to use some judgement. ;)
 
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