Is it WRONG to own guns, rifles, swords, knives, etc.?

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It's not TCO's opinions which are
the problem. Everyone has a right
to argue their case. Some of the
posters were going beyond polite
debate though.

<phew!> This discussion was hot wasn’t it?
I wanted to contribute to it a bit more but the discussion moved quicker then I could keep up with.

Suffice to say my gripes about gun law bureaucracy in Australia seemed a bit small & esoteric in the grand scheme of the subject matter.
I suppose my earlier post is more a case of my dislike for a particular society trend casually referred to as “Nanny-ism”. A social structure that seems to be based on the principals of “You Cant Do This!” & “You Cant Do That!”.
This is an issue that extends further then just firearms.

In any case the whole “right to have” with firearms seems to be too vast an issue for any individual to be able to digest both intricately and holistically. Being unable to do this means that a truly informed decision that takes into account everyone’s individual situation is simply beyond the scope of human intelligence.
This is probably why we have to chop an issue up into little pieces, study the pieces, and then try to comprehend not just the parts of the system but the interaction of those parts within the system.
This is why we generalise, categorise, and often make decisions based on statistics.

Anyway, back to the gun issue.
They way I see it, there’re two opposing sides on this issue that seem to accuse one another of being unnecessary afraid.
To me both sides seem to be somewhat afraid.
You have the people that will never give up their firearms due to their need for self-defence in a presumably imminent situation wherein their life will be threatened.
On the other hand, you have the people who feel that if they are in an area where guns are legal they WILL be shot and soon..<period>.

Why is this? I think its media sensationalism again.
24hrs day, 7 days a week. “Tragedy!, Evil!, Madness!”
With this kind of stuff being blasted into your head all the time you can’t help but think that the world is a frightening nightmare.
Certain people will react to this fear differently.
Some will buy a gun in order to be prepared for what trouble this world (as the news has led them to believe) will throw towards them. They have accepted the media’s projection of a “scary world” and have adapted in accordance with their expectations.
They feel that everyone (or almost everyone) should have access to whatever means necessary to protect themselves and survive in this apparently hostile world.

Others may react differently by instead loudly advocating for a world where none of the bad things they’ve seen on the news ever happens.
They have also accepted the “scary world” model presented by the media but believe instead that they should try to change this world rather then adapt to it. Their ideal usually involves the removal of all but the most innocuous of items from common populace, a totally strict set of laws to live by, and a comprehensive system for boundless law enforcement.

Both are extremes, and both seem like an over-the-top reaction.
When I see CNN (or any other US new channel), I get the impression that they are trying to project the US (and the world in general) as an unbelievable dangerous place where no one is safe.
But I believe there are just as many quiet, boring, “nothing ever happens here”, parts of the US as there are here in Australia.
Places where the worst you might encounter on the street is a roving Jehovah’s Witness on a door-to-door mission.

I remember when my Dad went to San Francisco back in 1985.
I was a kid back then and (due to news & film) believed that living in America must have been like living in an action film.
My Dad told me that most Americans just live out their day-to-day lives without incident just like their counterparts in Britain and Australia.

Thus now older (much older) and wiser (I hope ) then I was back then, I have become somewhat sceptical of what the see or read from the mainstream media.
Although I know the news seldom lies, I am aware that they will deliberately spice up a report to make it interesting. So I always bear in mind that I may not have enough information on the full story of a report to be able to get a truly definite understanding of the situation.
I also try to ignore anything within a report which I feel is unnecessary emotive. By removing these emotional evaluations from a report, you get the bare facts.
It is surprising how many reports are made up mostly of opinionated fluff.



BTW
I’d like to say thanks to all the American’s here that managed to refrain from insulting Australia (or Australians) despite some clear provocations being slung at the US (and US culture) from certain other Australian’s here.

It's wrong and dangerous to own a mind; I propose a buyback scheme. Think ‘bout it, it’d prevent so many needless deaths -- it'd cure everything too (it's probably the only answer to all of life's problems too)!

After all, the mind is the most dangerous weapon of them all.

Agent80s: Utter genius, your post contained a lot of insight.