this post was submitted on 08 Apr 2021
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Yeah I've been somewhere in the Southern US where you could legally give a gun to any family member, no paperwork or anything. It was a common thing for a kid to get a .22 rifle or a 12 gauge shotgun as a birthday present or something. I'd been offered to buy a gun illegally several times from people I met working at a couple of jobs, usually people fresh out of school who just casually buy guns literally just because "Why not?" In that location, if they banned guns, it would start a civil war, no doubt about it. I've spoken with so many people there who would be entirely prepared to have a shootout with the police if they tried to take their guns. Kind of a scary place. I don't personally like guns but it's so ingrained in that culture that it was something I had no choice but to deal with. I'm very torn on gun control, and I don't feel as though I have an opinion of any worth about it, but I figured I'd share that experience.
With a culture like this it makes sense that they would want to protect their rights to own a gun. If receiving their first gun is a special milestone during their youth, and the person grows up shooting guns with family and friends, I can see how guns can become part someone's identity.
Most of my life I have lived in countries were guns are banned, so from my perspective it is easy to say "No, of course that I don't want it to be easier for the people around me to own guns!". But I can appreciate that it is different when you talk about removing a freedom that is accessible at the moment.