Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 111
We still have a choice
9/1/2018 at 2:57 PM
In the US the gun debate has become so polarized that neither side sounds reasonable. The gun lobby, led by those who profit from gun and ammunition sales and fronted by the NRA, promote the self defense argument. Without a purpose why buy a gun? They have influenced state laws to make a self defense killing appear easy and socially acceptable. They don't talk about the accidental shootings of gun owners, their children, their drunk neighbor trying to get in the wrong back door or the emotional carnage that comes with a genuine self defense shooting.
On the other side the gun control lobby is trying to corral a horse that's already bolted. There are so many firearms in the US that any scheme to limit them now is probably impossible. So their arguments seem unreasonable or are seen as too draconian.
In Canada we still have a choice. If we can avoid normalizing guns as a solution. We need to uphold the idea that killing anyone in any situation is never ok. Can a killing be argued to be justified? Perhaps but we should be making that argument after the event rather than creating a culture that it is always acceptable.
This will thankfully remain a philosophical discussion for most of us. Without being faced with the real moment we can never be sure how we'll react. On the other hand, while you are waiting in your home with your gun for the statistically unlikely event you will be need to confront the choice of taking another human's life, just be sure that gun doesn't kill you or your family members. That possibility is far greater.
The only thing we have to fear is fear itself... when our fears are used against us to sell us a product, belief or politician we don't really what or need. For now I hope homeowners will invest in motion lights, locks, cameras or anything else that deters crime with out increasing the number of guns in our country to the point where their use and control become unmanageable.