An annoying anti-gun argument

We all know that pretty much all anti-gun arguments are emotionally based and devoid of logic, however some of their arguments are more ridiculous than others. I wanted to share one such argument.

It's no secret that my dad is very anti-gun. I've talked about it before and discussed it on BB& Guns. Most of you also know that I bought my first gun back in 2007 while I was still in college and living at home. Prior to that purchase I had sat down with he and my mom and discussed my intention to buy a Walther P22.

If you've ever been around someone who is both vehemently anti-gun and narcissistic you can imagine how that "discussion" went. It essentially ended with my father forbidding me from buying a gun, my purchasing a Sig P6 anyway and keeping it in a lockbox in the bedroom. Did I go against his wishes? Sure, but I wasn't about to forgo the correct course of action because of his irrational, emotional, angry ramblings. I should thank Dad one day for keeping me from purchasing a potmetal ZAMAK gun as my first.

Anyway, back to the point of this post. One of the arguments he made back then for why I couldn't buy a gun was that "criminals break into houses looking for guns, so you shouldn't have one." This is, without a doubt one of the most inane positions imaginable. I actually almost laughed at dad when he said this, but I restrained myself since that'd be disrespectful.

The idea that you shouldn't own a product because it's often stolen and used in crime is simply bizarre, yet that was one of dad's key reasons for not wanting a gun in the house.* A huge percentage of traffic fatalities are alcohol related. Does that mean we shouldn't keep booze in the house? Honda Civic's are often stolen, so by Dad's logic no one should own one and I should've gotten rid of mine.

Truth be told Dad was right, guns are a favorite thing for criminals to steal, but you're no more likely to be burglarized due to gun ownership than you would be because you own any other valuable good. I could have said that maybe he should sell his flatscreen HDTV, since that's a favorite of burglars and is just asking to get plucked.

I didn't use the TV argument or anything similar because it was clear there was no point. My dad tends to be emotional and irrational on certain issues and on those issues he's generally ignored by the rest of the family. Not maliciously of course, it's more of a lying by omission tactic. When you know full well how someone is going to react keeping them in the dark can be beneficial to all parties involved. I'd liken it to the way you'd respond to your crazy uncle. Just say "OK uncle Jessi" politely dismiss his comment and then get on with whatever you were going to do / say.

To this day I keep him in the dark about my gunniedom. He has no clue how many guns I own, how much ammo I have, that I have a CCW permit, or that I've ever carried a gun. It's easier than dealing with someone who is so obviously emotionally unhinged on the gun issue.

*The real reason of course was projection. He doesn't trust himself with a gun, therefore he doesn't trust his son with one and doesn't want one around.