[Vision2020] Isn't it about time . . .

[Joe Campbell]

Paul,

Again you are mistaken about the facts. Do some research. If you live in a
high crime district, having a gun might provide more safety than potential
for harm. If not, the potential for harm is greater. Those are the facts.
No matter how much confidence you have in yourself, living in Moscow, ID
your gun is much more likely to do you harm than good. I promise you that
(unfortunately) we are much more likely to read about someone committing
suicide with a firearm, or harming another, than protecting him- or herself
in this particular town.

Think of this analogy. Would you ever think of bringing a parachute aboard
an airplane? Well, there was a time when it was much more probable that you
would die in a plane crash than via a home invasion. (I'm not sure of the
statistics now; not many people die on commercial airlines.) If you were to
bring a parachute aboard a plane, you would be perceived as suffering from
wild paranoia. Of course there is a chance the plane will go down but (a)
it is very unlikely and (b) very unlikely to help were a situation to arise
(remember the point I made yesterday that in order for a gun to be useful
it has to be loaded and available for use, yet that increases the
likelihood of accident).

I'm sorry but you and others who are unyielding about gun control seem as
paranoid as a guy with a parachute boarding an airplane. The analogy is
very close. But the difference is that the proliferation of guns increases
risks of gun violence for all of us, as the Sandy Hook episode shows. It
isn't just a personal liberty debate; it is a public harm debate, as well.
We have a history of sacrificing liberties in order to prevent harms.
Again, I don't always agree with these choices and we need to be very
cautious about how to proceed. But to dismiss gun control as an option
based on some flawed view of liberty is unwise.

Joe

On Wed, Dec 19, 2012 at 9:23 AM, Paul Rumelhart <godshatter at yahoo.com>wrote:

> What was I thinking?  Home invasions never happen.
>
> Paul
>
>   ------------------------------
> *From:* Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com>
> *To:* Paul Rumelhart <godshatter at yahoo.com>
> *Cc:* Joe Campbell <philosopher.joe at gmail.com>; Sue Hovey <
> suehovey at moscow.com>; vision 2020 <vision2020 at moscow.com>
> *Sent:* Wednesday, December 19, 2012 8:44 AM
>
> *Subject:* Re: [Vision2020] Isn't it about time . . .
>
> Paul Rumelhart tells us:
>
> "Yet I'd still prefer having one available if I ever needed one."
>
> Paranoia . . . Self-Destroya!
>
> Seeya round town, Moscow, because . . .
>
> "Moscow Cares"
> http://www.MoscowCares.com
>
> Tom Hansen
> Moscow, Idaho
>
>
> On Dec 19, 2012, at 8:37 AM, Paul Rumelhart <godshatter at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> > Yet I'd still prefer having one available if I ever needed one.
>
>
>
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