• shalafi@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    Sorry, but I agree with this one. Not the “great” violence part, but yeah. If you are not capable of inflicting violence, you are not making a choice. You have no choice but to be harmless.

    We used to say this a good bit in r/liberalgunowners, along the lines of, “I am a peaceful man, but that does not make me harmless.” You would have a hella time pushing me hard enough to draw, but I have the choice if it comes to that.

    This notion is exactly why conservatives think they can run roughshod over us. They see us as harmless little twerps that couldn’t fight back if our life depended on it.

    • Crikeste@lemm.ee
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      2 days ago

      I get that and don’t disagree, it’s just the way it’s worded. Reads as if a 12 year old wrote it lol

      Also the: ☝️🤓 Important distinction

      • shalafi@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        You do get it! It’s the “great” part that screams elementary-school badass.

        A more succinct way to put it: “I am a peaceful man. I am not harmless.”

        And you’ll notice that real badasses are kind and patient. They know they can wreck your shit with their bare hands, got nothing to prove. LOL, I’m tiny, need an equalizer under my arm. But I never, ever, for ever never, talk shit.

        Another thought along these lines; Carrying, let alone merely owning, a gun does not make one a badass, or even a threat. It’s kind of the opposite, in a weird way.

        For example; My conceal carry instructor, MAGA 2A kinda dude, told it like this, “If you draw, you shoot to kill, because you’ve determined that whatever you’re trying to stop is worth 20-to-life in a concrete and steel cage, because that might be the outcome.” I’m much more careful where I go and what I do while carrying. Ironic, ain’t it?

    • Benjaben@lemmy.world
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      3 days ago

      As a lefty gun owner, couldn’t agree more. Peace as a choice is only available to the folks who know how to do otherwise, and frankly even simple know-how isn’t enough. Pacifism is no virtue, peace is no natural state.

      • shalafi@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        Nope, know-how don’t get it. Refurbed a sweet box knife for my wife today. She wants to carry it, “just in case”. If I were attacking her, I’d smack that thing across the room. She couldn’t possibly threaten anyone with it. (Not at 100lbs. she can’t.)

        If you carry, knowing how your gun works is only step 1. To actually carry you have to be able to use it on reflex alone. Friends and neighbors, that takes shitloads of practice. I wouldn’t carry her gun, not familiar with the pistol itself, nor SA/DA pistols nor the safety. My Ruger 9mm and Colt .45 are less practical in ways, but I can operate them in my sleep and hit what I point at.