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If we had similar laws to US would you own a gun?

dulpit

Hey,

I was watching an interview recently and one of the people being interviewed mentioned offhand that he owned a shotgun. This was a bunch of liberal Americans, living in California (I think) and the offhand manner which they mentioned their shotgun for home security, it was like me saying I have a house alarm.

It got me wondering, if for some bizarre reason we adopted some of the US's laws re. gun ownership - would you own one? If so, why?

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seamus

No.

All of the statistics from the US show that one way or another, owning a gun makes you or a family member more likely to be killed by a gun.

Ireland is not dangerous enough in any respect to justify owning one. We don't have high rates of violent crime outside of specific pockets of gangland crime and we don't have any wild predators that pose a danger to humans.

The DayDream

No. And if we did change the laws I would consider moving away. I grew up in a large US city as the son of Irish immigrants in a rough area. Had a gun pulled on me on the train in a stick up. I was 15. I had nothing on me but a train token and my skateboard. Which the robber didnt believe, and after checking my pockets cracked me with the butt of the pistol on the top of the head several times in frustration. Having a gun wouldn't have helped me, he had the drop on me from the getgo. Lucky I wasn't capped (I've often wondered if the gun was loaded or not).

Kid I went to high school with went to college near a super dangerous part of the city. He was robbed for the price of a six pack of beer he was on his way to the corner pub to buy. Gave the cash and ran off and they still shot him in the back. He crawled into the pub and died just as his twin brother who heard the commotion and sirens came into the pub looking for him. He was on the phone to his gf when it happened, the last thing she heard him say was, 'What? I don't have any money. Here, that's all I have.'

It was a 17 year old and 15 year old kid that robbed him. They only caught them bc the 15 yr old, who wasn't the shooter, recognized John. He used to go into the pizza place John worked at and say he was hungry and had no money and John would give him a free slice of pizza. He felt guilty and rang the cops and confessed.

The funeral was so incredibly sad. A 19 year old boy from a single parent family with a twin brother cut down in his first year at college. And I know people always say this when someone dies, but he really was a nice guy who never had a bad word to say about anyone, true gent.

These kind of stories are common place in America where guns are legal, not to mention the mass shootings that are becoming more frequent. I love not having to worry about gun violence here. Having a gun might make you feel safer but none of the situations me or my classmate were in would have been saved by having one. You're very unlikely to ever be able to get your gun and point it at the bad guy and shoot them before they shoot you, they will catch you by surprise and have it pointed at you first. So what's the point? Guns being plentiful and easy to access just makes life so much more dangerous. Anyone who thinks that having a gun makes them safer is a pure idiot who is ignoring statistics and watching too many Hollywood films.

JustAThought

seamus wrote: »

No.

All of the statistics from the US show that one way or another, owning a gun makes you or a family member more likely to be killed by a gun.

Ireland is not dangerous enough in any respect to justify owning one. We don't have high rates of violent crime outside of specific pockets of gangland crime and we don't have any wild predators that pose a danger to humans.

oh yes we do. problem is, they’re the two legged kind.

[Deleted User]

I live in the US for a number of years.

I did not own a gun, none of my friends owned guns.

I know more gun owners here in Ireland than I ever knew in the US.

Effects

jam_mac_jam wrote: »

Yeah I can see why you would have a gun in that situation. It's a different situation from living ten minutes away from a Garda station in the middle of an estate.

That's not really how it works. Even living ten minutes from a Garda station doesn't mean there's Gardaí available when you need them.

I'm two minutes from a Garda station and it can take them an hour to respond to calls sometimes.

Harry Palmr

Given how (by reputation) coked up much of middle class Ireland seems to be I think we'd be wise to say no to guns in the hands of weekend warriors post pub and clubland either fractious cos they are high or suicidal cos they are low. Not to mention the disfunctioning alcoholics, abused children now grown up carrying demons with them, and then there's "Anto" who is always looking for a fight but might have no police record.

Gruffalux

The DayDream wrote: »

Anyone who thinks that having a gun makes them safer is a pure idiot who is ignoring statistics and watching too many Hollywood films.

Reading this makes me revise my opinion. I would now accept a secret gun that only I know about.

murpho999

Sam Quentin wrote: »

Yes I would and I'd have no hesitation using it if anyone came at me in my home or was taking my property without my consent.

So where would you keep this weapon so that it's out of reach of children but also quickly accessible for use against the intruder in your house?

ELM327

Yes, I would own several.

murpho999

Outside of work related reasons ranging from farming ,security forces or sport I just cannot think of one valid and logical reason to own a firearm.

Just totally not necessary for anyone and does not offer any extra protection and levels of serious crime in Ireland is at a very low level so chances of actually every needing to use it to protect yourself, family or property is very low.

Feisar

Does the OP think guns are illegal in Ireland?

Panthro

I wouldn't own a gun..

I'd own loads!

Pew pew mother puckers!

Mad_maxx

dulpit wrote: »

Hey,

I was watching an interview recently and one of the people being interviewed mentioned offhand that he owned a shotgun. This was a bunch of liberal Americans, living in California (I think) and the offhand manner which they mentioned their shotgun for home security, it was like me saying I have a house alarm.

It got me wondering, if for some bizarre reason we adopted some of the US's laws re. gun ownership - would you own one? If so, why?

id absolutely own a gun if the laws here were more similar to the U.S

Deise Vu

whisky_galore wrote: »

Farming background, never had a gun on the household in my lifetime.
There were bits of war of independence guns lying around, all the complete ones were handed up to be destroyed maybe 50 or more years ago.

As a nation, don't have the hard-on for guns and their ownership that Yanks have and that can only be a good thing.

There was an amnesty to hand in unlicensed guns in the early 70’s alright. My dad was a guard and he brought home the gun register one time which I immediately devoured.

It included a list of the amnesty guns as well as the registered ones. Two things I recall was someone from Tramore handed in a Schmeisser machine pistol (!!!) and Stanley Kubrick got a shotgun license when he was filming Barry Lyndon. Didn’t think they would give an Irish license to a foreigner but I read it myself. So much for the difficulty of getting a license.

Sandor Clegane

Yes.

I believe in the idea of being able to defend yourself/family/home/possessions from potential threats, you can't rely on the law in this country, all you have to do is look at the free ride travellers, scumbags and drug addicts get in this country.

ThewhiteJesus

i would 100% own a gun, probably a rifle to do some hunting

kal7

No, Too dangerous for all involved to have guns around, in any country, and especially in US with the attitude of some people.

They should make bullets really expensive too.

I have shot all sorts of guns at ranges and in uk army cadets as secondary school teenager. So they can be stored safely, but not in every house.

Although there is I believe a high gun ownership in Switzerland and very little issue with that.

Nobody needs an assault rifle for hunting, if you do you are a crap hunter.

RobbingBandit

Nope all I need is my trusty murder of crowbars

YellowLead

I’d be more likely to consider leaving the country.
I’d be worried about not having a gun in a country where they were freely allowed for fear of them being used on me. On the other hand I don’t think I’d want to be pointing one at any intruder for fear I would shoot them dead (yes I know they shouldn’t be in my home trying to steal my car etc but I still wouldn’t want to live with the guilt of shooting a human and depriving somebody of their father/son.)
So if gun ownership became widespread here (outside of the farming community) I might move. Though interesting to hear on this thread that Switzerland have a high level of ownership if that’s true, and they don’t have an issue. We might be less disciplined however...

Gruffalux

America has a lot of guns, undoubtedly. But they like to go hog on everything. Too many pancakes. Cars too big. Etc. There are lots of ordinary quiet countries where there are a fair amount of guns, eg Iceland, Sweden, Norway, Canada, Cyprus, Austria, Malta. All of those countries have about 1 gun per 3 people. That is a reasonable amount of firearms and they are not savaging each other.

On a lighter note I have worked out the scenarios. You can have windmills, polytunnels, goats, acres of permaculture forest, and you can know how to knit your own shoes, but if there is ever a serious crises guns are your only key to self sufficiency.

ps I don't have a gun.

[Deleted User]

I am trained in the use of four different firearms, and I have shot a few more different types. All through work.
Carrying firearms is not fun, it's a pain in the ass, tbh.
There are enough firearms in the country and I'm delighted that we are not like the USA.

If it wasn't for work, I would never hold a gun again.

thomil

I'm torn, to be honest.

Back in my younger days, I worked as an armed security guard in Germany, so I'm trained in the proper handling of pistols. Part of me would definitely jump at the chance of legally getting a similar gun here. In fact, there are a few oddities that I wouldn't mind having in my collection.

Then again, that same training has also made it clear to me that they're effectively useless for home defence unless you keep it within reach at all times, which brings with it the issues of self-control or someone gaining access when they really shouldn't. Overall, I think I'm better off without one, but the interest in firearms is certainly very much alive for me.

RandomViewer

Wouldnt have one,

lotmc

Q: How many Americans does it take to change a light bulb?
A: More guns

You see, no matter what the problem is in America, the answer always seems to be more guns.

I prefer things the way they are here.

endacl

No.

heroics

Needs a poll! I’d 100% own at least 1 probably a couple if the laws were similar to US.

LeBash

kal7 wrote: »

Although there is I believe a high gun ownership in Switzerland and very little issue with that.

Theres also conscription in Switzerland. They're armed to the teeth cause several of their neighbours have been trying to do the whole world domination thing.

B.A._Baracus

Mad as it sounds but if it were like America you'd have to own a weapon yourself. Some nutters and scumbags out there.

Sure you can buy shotguns in Walmart in the states. Just need some ID etc. That would be like buying them in Dunnes Stores over here

imagine that!!

Strumms

probably / maybe.... actually definitely...

If illegally or legally held guns were more prevalent in society, I think it would be prudent to have access to a legal firearm... I’d be diligent as regards storing it in a safe under lock and key or code... Whatever would be required by law...

You’d want to insist people are in receipt of checks, not only unannounced door to door audits of gun owners to check the safe storage, paperwork etc but also seriously diligent background checks on somebody applying for a license...

Having a family member / friends connected to organized crime would need to discount your ability to own one...

Certain medical / psychological illness / conditions would remove your ability to own one too.

murpho999

Sandor Clegane wrote: »

Yes.

I believe in the idea of being able to defend yourself/family/home/possessions from potential threats, you can't rely on the law in this country, all you have to do is look at the free ride travellers, scumbags and drug addicts get in this country.

When is the last time you faced a threat that required you to shoot someone?

I bet never.

I'm glad to live in a country with restrictive gun laws.

If you liberate it like in America you then see what happens.

The weakest and most damaged people can go on rampages and kill innocent people in mad moments.

Been seen far too often in the US . Sandy Hook is one of the saddest things I've ever seen and can never be justified.