alienjesus wrote:[...]unlike the US, we can't walk into a supermarket and buy a gun.
They actually took a major part of gun selections out of most stores (some stores entirely)... at least in my area. Never looked at 'em honestly.
I don't normally buy a box of shotgun shells with the gallon of milk I came for.
Actually the only supermarket I know of that you can walk into and buy a gun is in Wal-Mart, and Wal-Mart only offers a limited selection in the sporting goods section, similar to a stripped down hunting supply store. The firearms stuff is generally between paintball and fishing and has hunting equipment and sport shooting gear mixed throughout. For the record, the sporting goods is usually between electronics and automotive, so you can buy milk, a DVD-player, a shotgun, and new tires all in one trip. Beyond that, you can generally only buy guns in either sporting goods or hunting supply stores, gun stores, or from private collectors.
At least, that's my experience with them here in Alabama.
Yup, it's like that here in Texas as well. I didn't buy my gun at Walmart. I bought mine at a brick-and-mortar GT Distributors.
I currently don't own a gun since the process of getting a license is a pain in the ass where I live, and I don't have a pressing need to own one so I have not gone through the process. I do like shoot though as some of my friends own firearms.
Ack wrote:I haven't been to the range in ages, as there wasn't any I had access to in Tuscaloosa, and with all the gun shops in Auburn closing, the only way to get a pass to the outdoor range here is to go buy a year pass at the Forest Ranger station in nearby Tuskegee. I own a Ruger Security Six .357, a SIG Sauer P226 9mm, as well as the traditional 12-gauge pump shotgun. I've taken the shotgun hunting before, but I've only been once, so it's a new experience for me.
Of the three, I prefer the Ruger. I prefer revolvers to automatics. Guess I'm just old fashioned.
Sweet Jeebus! Don't piss off Ack!
You assume he can shoot straight.
Personally I only own an assortment of shotguns - 12 gauge pump, coach gun, and single. Though a long rifle and a pistol of some kind are in my future. My girlfriend owns about a dozen personally and a couple dozen in her family - her father is a sheriff deputy in the boonies. The worst Ive seen is a friend of mine who owns twenty something, including a Dragunov and HK91. Yeah, the Dragunov is a scary gun.
Im not a gun collector, the shotguns came from my grandfather. The rifle will be for recreational shooting and the pistol for home defense and because I have always wanted to buy a pistol.
I grew up in a VERY rural part of Kentucky where every man I knew owned at least one gun. When I was 13 I got my own BB gun and loved shooting cans and little green army men.
It was not until my dad let me shoot his .22 that my life changed. I hit a hedge ball in the center and large chunks came flying off. Then I was hooked.
Is it possible that our love for guns stems partly from the stories and lifestyles of the old west?
PixelPixii wrote:Is it possible that our love for guns stems partly from the stories and lifestyles of the old west?
It is certainly possible. My passion came from when I went to a friend of my fathers workshop and got to shoot a bazooka. I guess I was six at the time, and no it wasnt a real payload, just a dummy shell - real payload is a scary feeling. I dunno, there is just something about shooting cans/targets that never gets old to me.
Im going to the range in a couple weeks with the crazy friend and some others. I get to fire the Dragonov for the first time, and a M16.
PixelPixii wrote:Is it possible that our love for guns stems partly from the stories and lifestyles of the old west?
It is certainly possible. My passion came from when I went to a friend of my fathers workshop and got to shoot a bazooka. I guess I was six at the time, and no it wasnt a real payload, just a dummy shell - real payload is a scary feeling. I dunno, there is just something about shooting cans/targets that never gets old to me.
Im going to the range in a couple weeks with the crazy friend and some others. I get to fire the Dragonov for the first time, and a M16.
I definitely think that the old west influenced our gun loving tendencies as Americans. There was a time in our history when a man defined his stature by having a really good gun. Not only did he need one that was reliable but also added to his value. (Not to mention made him more attractive to the ladies.)
Can finally add myself to the club of proud American gun owners. Been wanting to get a shotgun since I own a home. Unfortunately, I have to save money right so my fiance told me she didn't want me to buy a gun right now. My grandfather had a Winchester model 97 12 guage. He got it on his 10th birthday. It was his responsibility to shoot a squirrel for breakfast. My dad was going to give it to my brother but his old lady didn't want another gun in the house. So lucky me I get a family heirloom shotgun. It hasn't been fired in 30 years and needs a good cleaning.
Everyday civilians shouldn't be able to carry around guns, I'm all for rights and all that but this is one right I think people should not have.
If you use them for fun in gun ranges or to hunt that's cool, and I'm sure that's what only the members on this forum use them for. There are a lot of very bad people out there though, and they abuse this (muggers, gangsters etc).
The only people who should be able to carry these around with them everywhere they go are the Military and the Police.
PixelPixii wrote:
Is it possible that our love for guns stems partly from the stories and lifestyles of the old west?
I'd think the same could be said about samurai swords and suits of armor. The legends and commercial fiction play more than a small part in our romance of these military contraptions, at least for most of us.
I mean, hell, you know why I wanted to get an AK-47 more than most other weapons? GoldenEye. Counter-Strike. And bits like this.
