The other day a liberal and I ended up briefly discussing open carry. I mentioned that, by and large, most folks don't care, don't react, or react positively to open carry. I pointed out that I consider this a net positive, since those folks see a normal person being friendly and affable and going about his daily business.
I shit you not, he actually said to me that people are probably afraid of me and are only polite because of fear. He then claimed that I am "oppressing" people by open carrying because the fearful reaction it elicits restricts their behavior and speech. I think I offended him when I asked if a black man in the south who sat peacefully at a lunch counter with his newspaper was "oppressing" whites, and if, given this, the man should refrain from going about his daily business. *
You can't make this crap up. Nice enough guy and all, we get along just fine, but damn if this isn't why I have trouble having political discussions with liberals. The reliance on emotion and the complete lack of rational thought backed by facts & logic really irks me.
* I find folks sometimes hate the analogies to blacks because "being black and owning / carrying an object aren't the same" True, they are not, but then that's not the point of the analogy. The fact that race is a immutable characteristic while RKBA isn't doesn't change the validity of what are logical analogies. I also find the same resistance to the "interracial marriage" comparisons because "you simply can't compare the two. One holds far more value than the right to carry an instrument of imminent death"
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4 comments:
The people who claim that carrying a gun is a choice are ignoring the fact that self defense is a fundamental right. Is being Jewish a choice? How about engaging in homosexual behavior? Should we then be allowed to outlaw homosexuality because it is a "choice"?
What about men with long hair? Or, if we outlaw behavior to make others feel better, can we also compel something for the same reason? Mandatory church attendance? We can keep it First Amendment friendly by not requiring a particular church.
Of course not. To outlaw someone's behavior simply because it makes another uncomfortable is ridiculous.
He might have something about it being Fearful, especially in a Society who are not used to seeing weapons Openly Carried by those who aren't Police. And I see how it might be "Intimidating" among those who Historically have thought that a "Man with a Gun" had "Oppressed" them and their Ancestors in the Past. But it is precisely that kind of Mindset that needs to be Deprogrammed. That's why I wish that more People who are Women and those who are classified as "Minorities" by the Gooberment would Open Carry, especially in Large Urban Areas. When they see Ordinary People walking around Armed, just going about their Business, maybe it'll help to break the Propaganda that they need "Big Brother Gooberment" to keep them Safe.
That's the Left's equation mech = Oppression is a non-positive uncontrollable emotional response-trigger.
It's an expression of Fear - and can occur in the face of opposition or resistance or even simple disagreement.
To him, when you open-carry you oppress him, because his immediate emotional-state response is FEAR, and it kicks-in, he can't help it - and it (oppression) also works with *whatever* he wants it to work with, since he has a lot of useful fear-baggage he's hauling around.
I personally believe that the right to open carry guns is a personal one and nothing that can determined or should be determined by the government. There are people who should not be allowed but that is why you have to have a license in order to open carry.
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