I have to agree that these are all excellent points of view.
It has already been stated by a couple of others, but I would have this question for you, St. John -
If you walk into your home and find that someone is standing in your living room with a gun, knife, or any other deadly weapon trained on your spouse/significant other/child/parent/sibling/any other person that cannot defend themselves, would you rather have a firearm with you and instantly be able to remove the threat, or just hope/pray that the guy is really not such a bad person, and won't really cause anyone any harm? How fast do you think the police will be there to help you? Fast enough?
You're certainly entitled to your opinion (at least in the U.S.), but my answer is no, either I defend myself or I or a loved one (or both) is going to die, and LONG before any police are able to get there. I personally don't believe that I would ever use a gun to defend my property, but I would use it in a heartbeat to defend my life, or that of a loved one. If a situation occurs in which SOMEONE is going to die or be seriously injured, it seems to me that that person should be the bad guy, doesn't it to you?
In my mind, that reason alone is enough to justify owning a firearm. All of the other reasons mentioned are valid as well, but one is all I need.
