How many of you carry a gun as part of your cycling equipment?

Irish Indurain

AHH terrorists!!!! Protect your Country by carrying firearms during your leisure activities!! Help win the war on terror! Turn your road bike into a mobile field unit. Your country needs you!

Seriously though, its sad to think that some people cant go out on a leisurely cycle without carrying a live, and potentially lethal firearm. Its a shame to see america becoming so paranoid about homeland security. When i cycle its an opportunity to forget everything and just push myself to my limits, placing all my concentration on each stroke.
I could never feel comfortable carrying a gun on a cycle. But i live in a different cuclture i suppose..

boudreaux

I rode in Texas for 11 years without one. Ya afraid of crazed armadillos or what??

Joe West

alienator,

Here's the link to the distortions and lies:

http://www.bowlingfortruth.com/

Now... I'd like to point out something concerning "fine intellectual American discourse"

You take a poke at someone who says "and the guy sucks" Then, at the end of your post, you refer to me as a "yahoo". How appropriate that you raised the issue of intellectual discourse when you yourself appear to be somewhat unable to carry on a discussion without (how shall I say this politely) making it personal?

I said this once, and I'll say it again... if you feel the need to make it personal, please email me at:

joew@diveaz.com

I'd be happy to have an offline discussion.

Regards,

Joe West

Joe West

hehe...

A different culture indeed... where in the not too distant past the IRA was placing car bombs?

We all have our crosses to bear... in America, we have two legged predators who would think nothing of taking a life. Perhaps it is all the inbreeding... I don't know... regardless, the good news is that we are empowered by our second amendment to take care of the problem ourselves rather than depend on "officer friendly" to show up and protect us.

Let me paraphrase one of my favorite quotes:

Those willing to sacrifice freedoms for security deserve neither freedom nor security.

JW

Joe West

Well put...

Doctor Morbius

Well, I honestly don't think Europeans can comment on the carrying of firearms in the U.S. You have no idea what kind of culture (or lack thereof) we have over here in some neighborhoods. There are people (many of them just kids) that would kill you for your tennis shoes over here. The inner city gangs grow larger every day and it's only going to get worse not better. The U.S. has more people in prison/jail per capita than any of the other industrialized countries. It's sad but it's a fact. We need to protect ourselves here. It's not about being like John Wayne or being macho. It's practically a necessity here.

Although I don't carry when I ride, I keep a loaded shotgun by my bed. I bought it when I lived in Atlanta Georgia where the crime and murder rates are disgustingly high. Thank God my job got outsourced to India and I moved to a more sane place! All I need to worry about here are idiot drivers. Talk about a lethal weapon ... a driver behind the wheel of 2500 Lbs of automobile that's not paying attention (or drunk!) ... now that's a lethal weapon!!!

And I know it doesn't make sense, but the places with the strictest gun control laws are the most violent and crime laden places to be. Washington DC has been the murder capitol of the country on and off for years. L.A. is another place I wouldn't get within 100 miles of.

cheapie

i'll bet tinker wishes he had one on him!




i don't carry one. where would i hide it under my spandex???

i don't have a problem w/people carrying one but as a christian i believe that in non-violence. the Bible says that if someone tries to steal your shirt, give him your coat also. so if someone takes my bike do i have to offer him my hrm? lol.

cheapie

who said anything about homeland securtity? i don't get worried about terrorists wanting to rob me. i worry about riding through the wrong section of town and someone taking a fancy to my 5200.

boudreaux

And what would Tinker have done.Tried to pull his piece and got a brain full of hot lead.....LOL. If someoe just wants yer sheit and has the drop on you why try and be a (dead) hero?

dhk

Just to correct the record for those outside the U.S., not all of us here sleep with shotguns or carry pistols when we ride our bikes or drive our cars. Some of us in the U.S. even take the view that having everyone armed is not the solution to gun violence but rather the cause.

It may sound "cool" to brag to people in other countries about how easy it is to have guns here, but the result is of course we have the highest gun murder rate of any "civilized" country.

Lastly, I've never equated the gun-toting mentality with bike riders. Why would anyone that paranoid risk riding a bike on public roads....where an evil driver could easily run you over any day of the week?

cheapie

until we can keep guns out of the hands of criminals, we shouldn't try to keep them out of law-abiding citizens.

SF_Vitus

What a strange discussion. It never occured to me to carry a gun while riding through Golden Gate Park. I guess the herd of buffalo that live there are more dangerous than I thought. If someone is going to steal your bike, is it worth killing them? These are sad times we live in when the value of a bike is worth more than the value of a human life.

Here's a concept: Securing America through armed cycling.

__________________
May all be happy and aware.

cheapie

i don't think it's a matter of killing someone to keep your bike. imho, most people who carry guns do so to keep from getting killed, not just robbed.

boudreaux

Take a look at gun crime in Switzerland, where I think every able bodied male is trained in markmanship and required to have a rifle. Disarmanent of law abiding citizens doesn't have alot of impact on crime and violence unless you also come up with a suitable program for getting rid of the bad guys.