Reactions of Friends finding out you own/carry a gun?

[boredelmo]

To be fair, I must first state that I am 18. This means my crowd usually has not yet had the opportunity to learn much about firearms.

I don't ever flaunt the fact that I own guns. I only tell my closests friends and that is usually my way of trying to introduce them to guns and offer to take them to a shooting range. Sometimes by word of mouth friends get the info that i do own many firearms.

Here is a list off the top of my head of the most ignorant/annoying comments I usually get:

"Oh my god, you have a gun? Thats.....SO.....VIOLENT!" (wow, just wow. her mom is a child physcologist that never allowed her household to even have toy guns.)

"How do you have a gun, you're not even 21?" (there seems to be a strong notion that you have to be 21 to even touch a gun)

"Do you even have a license to have those guns?"(there also seems to be a strong notion that you must have some sort of permit or license to own a gun)

"Hey man, do you have your gun on you?"(people think i carry them around with me )

"Dude, that gun is a machine gun, that's illegal (refering to my Uzi carbine)."(many things wrong with this)

"Do you have a Glock?" (apparently thats the only gun all uninformed people know about)

Him: "Yeah my uncle has a gun, its a magnum."
Me: "What like a revolver?"
Him: "No, it's a Magnum."
(Plenty of people refer to guns only by their caliber and assume its a brand or specific model)

"Have you ever killed a guy?" (People think that because i own a gun i must probably use it to kill people once in a while.)

Him: "Man, f*** that, i want a Desert Eagle."
Me: "Oh, what do you like about it?"
Him: "Because they come in shiney silver."
(I guess limited exposure to guns from movies and such)

Me: "Police officers have guns, are they bad people?"
Her: "No."
Me: "What the difference?"
Her: "Cus they're COPS! They get trained and are allowed to."
Me: "I'm trained, I'm allowed to."
Her: "But you can't honestly say you're as good with a gun as a Cop."
(That's right folks, Cops have special shooter powers, they aren't humans like the rest of us.)

My own sister: "I would never have a use for one."
Me: "What if someone was going to kill you/rape you? Would you shoot them?"
Her: "But that's a different story!"
Me: " Why?"
Her: "Because that'll never happen."
(Sad, my own sister who's about to turn 21.)

Him: "Dang did you see that? Thats a nice M16."
Me: "Oh, that's an ar-15."
Him: "Oh no man you must haven't had seen it, it was an M16, I'm sure."
(Too common).


That's all i can think of at the moment, I'm sure you guys have plenty to share as well.

-Elmer

P.S. - In each of these situations I did give them all an explaination.

 

[Snap]

I get this kind of reaction on a couple of occasions:

1. Whenever I'm shooting with friends and pull out my carry gun to shoot it, and

2. When I pull out my SKS and extend the bayonet.

Typically, it's "What the heck do you need that for?" Or, "Jeez, I didn't know you had a gun on you this whole time!" Which usually results in a short explanation, a bit of thought on their part, and an "Oh." It's fun to get people thinking, and you never know when you'll plant a seed with someone, and create another gunnie. Try to educate where you can, and forget the shrieking, illogical harpies, you'll never get anywhere with most of 'em.

 

[Snap]

Sorry, double tap. Please delete.

 

[Colonel Plink]

I don't carry.
But my wife does.
Those few friends that know it know her and knows she carries are cool with it. I guess I don't have any anti-gun friends. Family, is another matter entirely. I have a few family members that would crap if they knew.

 

[PILMAN]

Most of my friends think i'm insane to have bought a real gun. I'm not that old, i'm 21 so most of my friends are in the same age group. Most of my friends from Chicago that I went to school with play games and stuff but see no reason why I'd own a firearm.

One of my friends who I played a few RPG's online with and was a real life friend asked me what was up and I had told him about my purchase of a handgun. He started asking me "Why would you buy something like that?" and started going on how it's ok to play violent games but to actually buy a real gun was dangerous and that I should have spent my money on schooling or something. I tried to explain to him why I owned one and he gave me the usual rhetoric about how a gun can be used on you etc.

My Jewish friend I went to school with was huge in debate and had won a few awards in highschool. This kid was extremely liberal and I asked him his opinion on the 2nd ammendment and guns, it definitely wasn't positive. When I told him all Jews should be armed he started saying that wouldn't have saved the Jews from the holocaust and would have only enraged the Nazis even more. Typical victim mentality.

Other friends I have, are really a mixed bag really. Some have said "that's awesome" to "oh cool you have a counterstrike gun, but that's a newbie gun" (made me think, since when do video games depict guns correctly?). Others see no real reason why I need a gun and feel that there is no need for them in America, and the only people who would own them are criminals, skinheads, corrupt business men, and rednecks. Growing up in Chicago is disturbing, i'm glad I moved away from that dump.

 

[shadowalker]

In Boise most people I talk to are supportive of people to own and carry weapons. I work for one of the huge companies in town and found out about 60% of the people I work with have a CWL.

In fact my mother in law is in the final stages of getting her CWL (they keep messing up her finger prints) and my brother in law decided it is time to learn about firearms.

Most people I encounter are curious about the requirements, want to know if it is uncomfortable, where people are allowed to carry, ask what happens when you get pulled over,etc. I've yet to have someone go on a rant or anything less than respectful.

The only way to convert people is through education and showing people gun owners aren't any more crazy than anyone else so I'm pretty open about owning and carrying weapons. If people start talking about firearms I'll join the conversation, I explain the reasons that made me choose to carry, advocate training and offer to take them shooting with me.

There are a lot of firearms tidbits floating around like above, the idea bird shot is an effective self defense tool is my favorite to nicely dispel.

 

[strambo]

would have only enraged the Nazis even more.

"In response to the ever annoying, and sometimes effective, armed resistance...we are adopting super-secret double genocide!" "Every Jew gets killed twice!" (I'm certainly not making light of the Holocaust...just that absurd argument)

Just like not wanting to turn on an "anger rapist" by fighting back cause they like it. What's he gonna do rape you extra? Does he like having his aorta ruptured by a .38 slug, does that turn him on?

 

[PILMAN]

"In response to the ever annoying, and sometimes effective, armed resistance...we are adopting super-secret double genocide!" "Every Jew gets killed twice!" (I'm certainly not making light of the Holocaust...just that absurd argument)

Just like not wanting to turn on an "anger rapist" by fighting back cause they like it. What's he gonna do rape you extra? Does he like having his aorta ruptured by a .38 slug, does that turn him on?

Yeah I don't understand it myself, why anyone would accept what happened and wave it off saying "it was our fate, nothing could have prevented it" pisses me off. As a Jew myself, I refuse to accept a victim mentality. The best response I get is "you don't need a firearm, just trust God". Meanwhile, these people forget that our religious scriptures specifically state to defend ourselves and keep our sword by our side.

 

[Fat_46]

I haven't really had any issue with friends/family. Maybe because I have unequivocably stated to each that I posess a permit to carry, and to assume that I will always be armed, unless the situation dictates otherwise (tipping back a few, posted properties, church, and the daughter's daycare and preschool).

I had one friend of a friend start to question the need to carry vs. just having a cell phone, and my answer was "when someone decides you are to be a victim, let me know how your cell phone works as a club". She has now purchased a Beretta 92 and gone through the Minnesota carry course (but hasn't applied for her permit).

 

[robmc5]

Its funny, I live in Georgia and am a member of a gun club. We have lots of members with full auto and supressed firearms (Class 3). I routinely run into people who say " Thats illegal" or "You can't have that", I was even talking to a city police officer that told me that it's illegal to own a fully automatic firearm, I could not believe it, a police officer that did know the laws pertaining to firearms.

 

[Deanimator]

I tried to explain to him why I owned one and he gave me the usual rhetoric about how a gun can be used on you etc.

I've been hearing that crap for more than twenty years in FidoNet, then usenet. Every time somebody regurgitates that nonsense, I challenge them to provide an example which didn't involve a cop trying to subdue somebody. If somebody comes up with one today, it'll be the first in twenty years.

My Jewish friend I went to school with was huge in debate and had won a few awards in highschool. This kid was extremely liberal and I asked him his opinion on the 2nd ammendment and guns, it definitely wasn't positive. When I told him all Jews should be armed he started saying that wouldn't have saved the Jews from the holocaust and would have only enraged the Nazis even more. Typical victim mentality.

THAT is one of the stupidest things I've ever heard anyone say, and I've heard it more than once.

Nobody's ever been able to explain to me how you're worse off killing people trying to kill you and eventually being killed, than just LETTING yourself be murdered. A friend once told me that if a racist cop (There's some neo-Nazi activity in the Cleveland PD) tried to murder me, I should LET him because it'd be worse to resist. I replied, "Dude, you're an atheist. You haven't even got the decency to throw me the bone of a reward in an afterlife."

Growing up in Chicago is disturbing, i'm glad I moved away from that dump.

Chicago is bar none, the most racist and anti-Semitic place I have ever been ON EARTH. And it's across the board. Whites hate Blacks; Blacks hate Jews; Mexicans hate Puerto Ricans, etc., etc., etc. Moving out of there in '86 was one of the smartest things I've EVER done.

 

[USMC - Retired]

Rob, Roughly where in Georgia do you live? Have you checked out Georgiapacking.org?

 

[Zundfolge]

Her: "But you can't honestly say you're as good with a gun as a Cop."

If people only knew the truth about cops and guns.

I love that response because over the years I've shot with a lot of cops ... I'd put your average firearms enthusiast up against your average cop ANY DAY OF THE WEEK. To most cops their gun is just another piece of bulky equipment they have to carry. This myth that police departments go above and beyond to train police on the use of firearms is just that, a myth.

The best response I get is "you don't need a firearm, just trust God".

I have a standard response to that kind of talk ... a pastor at the church I grew up in gave the following as part of a sermon on trusting God.

Jacob is a very religious man. One day, a nearby river floods its banks and rushes into town, forcing Jacob to climb onto his garage roof. Soon, a man in a boat comes along and tells Jacob to get in.
Jacob says, "That’s very kind of you, but no thanks. God will take care of me."
So, the boat leaves.
The water rises and Jacob has to climb onto the roof of his house. Another man in a boat comes along and tells Jacob to get in.
Jacob replies, "That’s very kind of you but no thanks. God will take care of me."
The boat leaves.
The water rises further and soon Jacob is clinging to his chimney. Then a helicopter arrives and lowers a ladder. The helicopter pilot tells Jacob to climb up the ladder.
Jacob replies, "That’s very kind of you but no thanks. God will take care of me."
The pilot says, "Are you really sure?"
Jacob says, "Yes, I'm sure that God will take care of me."
Finally, the water rises too high and Jacob drowns. He goes up to Heaven and is met by God.
Jacob says to God, "You told me you would take care of me. What happened?"
God replies, "What do you want from me? I sent you two boats and a helicopter!"

 

[TIMC]

I live in Texas, I haven't seen anyone who thought carrying a gun was weird.

 

[Caimlas]

When I first started carrying, I still had a great deal of socialist, "progressive" friends. I still have a couple that I'm slowly turning; the others have since fallen out of favor (or I've fallen out with them), partially due to the solidifying of my mindset since starting to carrt 2 years back.

Initially, the responses ranged fairly broadly from, "Wow, neat, can I see it? Can I shoot it?" to rage, ridicule, and insult. Then there were the few conservative friends who didn't say much of all about it other than, "good deal, that's a nice piece".

I started carrying as soon as I was comfortable and familiar with my first pistol, which was a couple weeks after the purchase. Nobody really knew about it.

 

[ezypikns]

Glad to be a Texan mahseff.

I live in Texas, I haven't seen anyone who thought carrying a gun was weird.

My Friends and Family are supportive.

 

[TallPine]

I'm not sure if I even know anyone who doesn't own at least one gun.

As far as carrying regularly, I've never had a negative comment that I can recall (and I open carry a lot too). Usually there is no notice or comment at all, or sometimes someone will ask what caliber or "what's it for?" I always just say "snakes" or "varmits"

 

[Caimlas]

I have a standard response to that kind of talk ... a pastor at the church I grew up in gave the following as part of a sermon on trusting God.

That's what my parents were saying about a year ago. I just said, "Yes, all you need to do is trust God. Don't bother going to work, making dinner, or any of that - God will take care of you. It's not like the Bible says "God helps those who help themselves."

Now they've got a HD shotgun with some slugs.

 

[Quintin Likely]

Most of my friends and family are shooters, so it doesn't really matter. The ones that aren't, well, if they don't ask, I don't tell that I'm carrying.

The ex-girlfriend was adamantly against it; that, amongst other reasons, explains the "ex" part.

 

[Colonel Plink]

Her: "Cus they're COPS! They get trained and are allowed to."
Me: "I'm trained, I'm allowed to."
Her: "But you can't honestly say you're as good with a gun as a Cop."
(That's right folks, Cops have special shooter powers, they aren't humans like the rest of us.)

That's funny. Last year., I participated in a "Citizen's Academy" the local P.D. put on. When it came time to zero the simulator pistols, the chief told the class to "Let Andy zero that pistol. He spends more time at the range than any of my officers"

Funny. And possibly true.

 

[JesseL]

It's never been an issue for me. My long time friends are the guys that I hung out with as a kid. We all enjoyed running around the neighborhood with BB guns. Later we graduated to .22s around the same time we started driving. Soon we all had centerfire rifles and not long after we turned 21 we were all getting pistols.

My newer friends are mostly into shooting too, the ones that aren't are certainly accepting of it.

It could be a regional thing here. Open carry isn't uncommon, there are gun stores everywhere you look, hunting is popular, Ruger employs quite a few people, and quite a few 'big name' instructors live around here.

 

[Billy_H]

I've had a lot of good reactions, some indifferent, and none that were bad. I was actually kind of surprised, but even some of my friends who have voiced concerns about guns in the past, etc. have at least not made an issue out of the fact that my wife and I carry.

 

[Hemicuda]

"God helps thiose who help themselves"... SO,
I'll carry my gun, AND
I'll help myself be the best with that gun that I can be,
God can help me never to need to use it!

sounds like a good deal to me!

 

[History Prof]

I don't hang out with people who don't like guns. Makes life easier.

 

[ZeSpectre]

I live in one of the most liberal parts of Northern VA and work in DC. A few close friends and a couple of co-workers know that I participate in cowboy action shooting but I don't think their brains ever kick over to the idea that it means gun ownership.

I guess they think I keep 'em at a locker at the range or something and only get them before a match

Funny how people think.