Mr. Spivery - it’s a tough question. I grew up in the mountains where guns were so common, we figured everyone had one and acted accordingly. When homes are miles away from each other, it’s easy to stay away from the crazies and folks who can’t control themselves.
I don’t mind shooting dinner and I love trap shooting. But most of us don’t shoot cougars, bears, rattlers, and coyotes for fun – we shoot them to protect livestock and little kids.
In the country, guns end suffering, not cause it.
When we put livestock down, I promise you, its mercy (and doing it hurts so bad it makes most people cry). If you can’t make a kill shot with one bullet you have no right owning a gun – and that’s the way people judge you and the way you judge yourself. I missed one shot and watching the consequences was enough for me. I’ve never missed again. If I can’t make a kill shot, I do not squeeze the trigger (that’s kindness talking, not pride).
My feelings changed when we moved to the city. What do you need a gun for in a place full of people? Back then we lived in rough neighborhoods and I spent three years learning martial arts. No one could take that training away from me – the way they could a gun.
When I moved back to the mountains, I discovered two cougars and a bear, with cubs, lived on my property. Martial arts won’t stop bears or cougars, so I bought a rifle.
I was living in town when Trump was elected and bought my first pistol. That pistol weighed on me something awful. When I moved to Kentucky, I took my rifles and left my pistol behind. Somewhere along the way, I’d decided I was not going to kill human beings.
From what I’ve seen, the police are “frightened for their lives” because they are overweight, out-of-shape, carrying too much gear, wrapped like mummies in uniforms, their guns are too big, too bulky and too heavy to maneuver quickly, and they cannot hold their own in a physical contest. If every police officer was the exact opposite of what I just described, they would be fully capable of protecting us – instead of themselves.
Well, I did it again and went on too long. Instead of a gun, or in addition to a gun, I merely wanted to recommend some martial arts classes. What that training does to your self-perception is magical.
