This topic has me considering a reliable firearm as part of my latenight rides. Way too many Methheads here in northern cali.
How many of you carry a gun as part of your cycling equipment?
- Thread starter Joe West
- Start date
I think we have a bona-fide smartass here. I must admit this type of commentary is of the type that I enjoy writing myself. However, if you read the original post that spurred this thread on, the gentleman is simply asking a legitimate question. He asks for the opinions of others. I think although you do write with humor intended you're obviously one of those folks that think anyone that would own a gun is some sort of ignorant psychopath. It is unfortunately a fact that we live in a dangerous world where taking a human life is often just a means to an end. I ask these questions to "Hitchy". Have you ever been car-jacked? Have you ever been violently mugged? Have any of your loved ones been the victim of rape? Worse yet at gun or knife point?Hitchy said:
I know you probably have a difficult time with this concept but these things actually do happen. They happen VERY often as a matter of FACT. I will also assume that you have yet to be a victim of a violent crime. If you ever had been I can virtually guarantee that your attitude towards carrying a means of personal protection would change drastically. Unless of course you have a similar mentality to Gandhi or Martin Luther King that is. Most people aren't capable of being repeatedly beaten without defending themselves however. I am not by any means knocking how these two illustrious gentlemen were able to inspire the great changes they did. I simply bring them up as a tool of comparison. Not every ugly human condition can be altered with love and kindness. Would apartheid be a thing of the past without violence? I somehow doubt it.
It's a matter of again, fact, that the counties in which handgun carry is legal have virtually no car-jacking or muggings. Why? Because the criminals that prey upon innocent folks know that the chances are too high that they'll be shot if they were to attempt their crimes in these areas. In counties that have allowed handgun carry in recent years the rates of these violent and horrific crimes have all but disappeared. (I believe there's even a county that REQUIRES gun ownership and qualification.)
If you think that anyone who carries is an ignorant fool that's of course your prerogative. Let's just hope that if anyone ever tries to liberate you of life, limb, or property, that one of these EVIL rednecks is there to protect you. They may live in a trailer and wear a confederate flag "T" shirt, but most of them would give you the shirts from their backs if you were shivering and their last morsel of food it you were hungry.
How did you become such an elitist anyhow? And, how is it that RENTING an apartment, house, or "loft" makes you smarter than OWNING your own trailer? If you ask me, the renter is the fool. How did WHAT you live in become synonomous with I.Q. or much more importantly the quality of your soul?
Carrying a gun is not of course the answer to our world's woes. But until our leaders enforce the laws that we already have, I'll be the first to admit that I carry often whether it's legal or not. And what do you know? In twenty-five or more years of carrying I have never pulled my gun. Ever! However, the evening that my beautiful blonde wife and I were stopped in the middle of nowhere and were approached by three very questionable looking gentleman looking for "Gas money", I was very happy to have my trusty pistol in my jacket pocket. You see when these gentleman got very close and were definitely posturing in a menacing manner, I only put my hand in the pocket wherein my 45 was resting. I'd say it was obvious to my new friends that I may indeed be carrying. The very second that my hand went in to my pocket all three men stopped in their tracks. When I told them that I could not on this evening help them out, they simply turned and walked away. (No car to put any "gas" in was anywhere to be seen by the way.) They went back to the rear of the closed business that had originally came from and we continued on our way.
Of course I realize that they may have simply been trying to pan-handle for some beer money. But the way they were looking at my wife made both of us very nervous to say the least. There you go! I believe this to be a typical story which I'm sure is repeated in many variations and often. If indeed these gentleman were up to no good than just the appearance that I "may" be carrying was enough to stop any ugliness from happening to begin with. If there were no evil intentions than that's O.K. as well. No one was hurt or even threatened. We all walked away unscathed.
So Mr. "Hitchy", you just keep on making fun of us evil gun toters, and we'll keep on carrying. Even if you and the politicians your kind lobbies into office makes it illegal to do so. Just remember that regardless of what your definition of "a well formed militia" happens to be, it was lowly farmers with their hunting rifles, handguns, axes, pitchforks, or whatever they could get their hands on that made up part of the forces that sent England packing. By the way, the English also made it illegal for the Scots to carry weapons. If William Wallace were alive today folks like yourself would want him locked up for being an ignorant Sword carrying psychopath.
Protecting one's self is as ancient a God given right as the right to be free. Throughout history whenever a government sought to oppress or even completely wipe out a people, the first task on their agenda was always to disarm it's citizens. Will people ever learn this lesson that history continues to teach us over and over again? The next time you feel compelled to write down your feelings for public perusal Mr. Hitchy try to remember that if it were not for a bunch of ignorant weapon toting peasants you would quite likely be jailed or much worse for spouting your opinions if they didn't jive with the current administration's ideals.
NORECUMYET said:
Oh dear. If there's a criminal waiting to rape or shoot you or your loved ones VERY OFTEN, or at least you seem to have a good chance of meeting one on every ride or your family will be raped and murdered whilst you are out on your morning ride, why are you riding at all? Why are you living there? You'd be better moving to somewhere safer like Baghdad.
Another post to the Thread That Never Dies. "Very Often" is a relative term. There is less than .1% of the population involved in a violent crime in any given week, but we have a lot of people here. I think the biggest part of our problem is from the Aussies who emigrate to the US specifically so that they can legally possess AK47sProfTournesol said:
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I thought this was a "joke" thread.
Damn, guess I am glad that I live in South Korea currently and in rural New England before that.
Carry a weapon while riding has never even crossed my mind (And I've deployed with Special Forces to some crazy places in my Army career. It's not like I have never carried or fired a weapon.)
Time to move or find a new place to ride if you seriously worry about your safety to the point that you feel you need to carry a psitol on your ride!
Damn, guess I am glad that I live in South Korea currently and in rural New England before that.
Carry a weapon while riding has never even crossed my mind (And I've deployed with Special Forces to some crazy places in my Army career. It's not like I have never carried or fired a weapon.)
Time to move or find a new place to ride if you seriously worry about your safety to the point that you feel you need to carry a psitol on your ride!
kdelong said:Another post to the Thread That Never Dies. "Very Often" is a relative term. There is less than .1% of the population involved in a violent crime in any given week, but we have a lot of people here. I think the biggest part of our problem is from the Aussies who emigrate to the US specifically so that they can legally possess AK47s
sounds like there's an armed Aussie waiting for every cyclist and robbing every home. We have crime here, we have murders here, but if I ever felt that I needed a gun to ride safely, I'd either move or emigrate. I'd certainly make sure that I voted!
I used to know a friend who used to carry a glock 27 when he was cycling home and would have no choice but to pass through the rougher areas of town.
He mentioned that he wasn't looking for a reason to use his firearm, but wouldn't hesitate if the situation arose. Unfortunately, he lived in a city in the U.S. that is notorious for averaging more than 1 documented murder a day!
People can voice any opinion they want of course, but until you've lived in a particular area/city/country, you may not know of someones particular circumstances and reasons for doing what they do.
He mentioned that he wasn't looking for a reason to use his firearm, but wouldn't hesitate if the situation arose. Unfortunately, he lived in a city in the U.S. that is notorious for averaging more than 1 documented murder a day!
People can voice any opinion they want of course, but until you've lived in a particular area/city/country, you may not know of someones particular circumstances and reasons for doing what they do.
I guess it's all a matter of the odds and what risks you are willing to accept.Scotttri said:
The odds of getting struck by a car are likley greater than being assaulted while riding a bike. You can wear bright clothing, ride at the far margin, use blinky lights, etc., but that fool who is bending down to pick a CD off the floor and weaves over might still run you down. In some cases it's what the other guy does that decides your fate and your plans, choices and actions make no difference at all in the outcome.
Same thing with criminal assault - nobody leaves the house planning to run into a whacko or violent punk, who decides you are today's victim. And there's not a single danged thing you can do about it - you did everything right and the freak odds of this happening to you were one in tens/hundreds of thousands. So the best you can do is hope you survive. And if you don't, your fate is still a statistically rarity, with no likley impact on society as a whole.
And carrying a gun, while potentially an option to defend yourself, has so many iffy possibilities of success/failure, and so many potentials for negative societal impact, has to be rejected in the broader balance.
Right?
I'm still waiting for Beretta to design a .380 'compact geometry' that doubles as a tire pump when i rack the slide.
Just insert a CO2 cartridge in the magazine well and a presta adapter in the barrel and you're good to go.
Hey, by the way...how's that whole 'world peace' thing coming along? Let me know when you've got everyone singing Kumbaya together. Until such time, I'll continue being responsible for my own security.
While I'm waiting for the temperature to come up to something I can ride in, I'm off to a local firearm auction this morning. There's over 300 pieces up for bidding, including eight brand new Sig pistols (the model 239 would be perfect for a cyclist)...wish me luck!
Just insert a CO2 cartridge in the magazine well and a presta adapter in the barrel and you're good to go.
Hey, by the way...how's that whole 'world peace' thing coming along? Let me know when you've got everyone singing Kumbaya together. Until such time, I'll continue being responsible for my own security.
While I'm waiting for the temperature to come up to something I can ride in, I'm off to a local firearm auction this morning. There's over 300 pieces up for bidding, including eight brand new Sig pistols (the model 239 would be perfect for a cyclist)...wish me luck!
Hope you had some luck at the Auction Bob. Get anything good?
Right now I'm trying to find a way to mount my Army Surplus M-30 light Machine Gun to my handlebars on my Raleigh. I'll have the only 80 Lbs bike on our group rides but I'll bet nobody laughs at me .
Right now I'm trying to find a way to mount my Army Surplus M-30 light Machine Gun to my handlebars on my Raleigh. I'll have the only 80 Lbs bike on our group rides but I'll bet nobody laughs at me
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kdlong,
I scored a NIB Savage Mark II GL .22LR bolt-action rifle...a left-hand action!
http://www.savagearms.com/markiigl.htm
Only $105...never even had the bolt in it. I got the box, manual, trigger lock, etc with it. The box had a shipping tag stating it was shipped to the North Canton Gander Mountain store on 01-03-2007, so the original owner had it for maybe 10 months without ever using it. They sold off about 100+ firearms that belonged to that one owner.
The Sig 239 I wanted to snag went for $450...not bad, but just about $50 more than I wanted to give for it.
It was 47 degrees as I took off for a 31-mile training ride. I went without shoe covers and my toes got a bit cold. Other than that, it was a perfect fall ride!
I think I'll try a little pheasant hunting tomorrow morning while I play the 'c'mon 50 degrees!' waiting game!
Regards,
Campybob
I scored a NIB Savage Mark II GL .22LR bolt-action rifle...a left-hand action!
http://www.savagearms.com/markiigl.htm
Only $105...never even had the bolt in it. I got the box, manual, trigger lock, etc with it. The box had a shipping tag stating it was shipped to the North Canton Gander Mountain store on 01-03-2007, so the original owner had it for maybe 10 months without ever using it. They sold off about 100+ firearms that belonged to that one owner.
The Sig 239 I wanted to snag went for $450...not bad, but just about $50 more than I wanted to give for it.
It was 47 degrees as I took off for a 31-mile training ride. I went without shoe covers and my toes got a bit cold. Other than that, it was a perfect fall ride!
I think I'll try a little pheasant hunting tomorrow morning while I play the 'c'mon 50 degrees!' waiting game!
Regards,
Campybob
You seem to find my statement that rapes and muggings are common occurrences to be erroneous, or that I live in a bad neighborhood therefore causing the rate to be artificially elevated. Apparently you don't watch the news, read a newspaper, or listen to a radio. You don't carry a weapon because you fear that a criminal waits for you on every ride. You carry one because of once in a blue moon situations. Do you drive without insurance? If not why? Is it because accidents only happen in relatively rare instances? Or do you do without because you live in such un upscale area? (Poser) You know better than that. At least I hope you do. Also, the neighborhood you live in has absolutely nothing to do with this. Crime happens everywhere. Out in the middle of nowhere is a place you are most at risk. I think the original post in this thread was speaking of that kind of situation. Oh and thank you for referring to me as an idiot. You know I've never in my life had someone try to make fun of me for using "experience" as a weapon in a debate. Most people with any wisdom under their belt at all KNOW that EXPERIENCE is the greatest teacher of all. Obviously Mr. Experience and you are not acquainted.ProfTournesol said:
I guess life must be nothing more than a journey through Utopia where you live. I know for myself I'm moving to rural New England where they check you at the border for criminal history, weapons, and HIV. I'm pretty sure you also can't enter if your not the right shade of white there as well. I can't speak for South Korea. Maybe things there really are THAT different than here. To repeat myself from another post though. Some of the scariest situations I've ever been in have been when out in the middle of nowhere.Karl Hungus said:
You know what? Damn! How 'bout we just stop this ridiculous rhetoric about you folks that live in CRIME FREE AREAS. I'm sorry, they don't exist. I really am sorry. "Show me a sin free church deacon and I'll show you a guy that's porking someone in the choir." "Show me a priest and I'll show you a molested choir boy." Pull your heads out of the sand people. If don't choose to carry protection none of us that recommend doing so will have a problem with that. Just don't expect us to walk around believing that nothing bad will ever happen to us like you seem to be doing.
Carrying a gun to those of us that do is about deterrence, not violence. The last thing in the world that any one of us WANT to do is to fire that gun at someone. We do it because like or not Pollyanna, there actually are nasty, violent people out there that would just assume kill us as look at us. I'm sorry to bring up........REALITY, but the "glad game" can't always put a nice light on the kinds of Monsters that inhabit our prisons. Inhabit that is until their "life" sentence is reduced to a couple of years on account of "good behavior".
I live in Ottawa, Canada.
The idea of packing a gun for a bike ride is revolting, ediotic, repulsive, rediculous, retarded and offensive.
The fact that some people either support or practice this idea is a testimony to how SICK parts of the world have become. Blaming other sick segments of society to justify doing so may seem reasonable to simple minded, like minded sickos. The rest of us on the outside looking in see you for what you are.
All this time i thought cycling enthusiasts were a different breed.
It's clear there are exceptions to every rule.
The idea of packing a gun for a bike ride is revolting, ediotic, repulsive, rediculous, retarded and offensive.
The fact that some people either support or practice this idea is a testimony to how SICK parts of the world have become. Blaming other sick segments of society to justify doing so may seem reasonable to simple minded, like minded sickos. The rest of us on the outside looking in see you for what you are.
All this time i thought cycling enthusiasts were a different breed.
It's clear there are exceptions to every rule.
Yeah, some of us who aren't lucky enough to live in Ottawa just like to continue to breathFudge Monkey said:
. If you are confronted by a lumberjack who is all liquored up and intent on killing someone during one of your rides, you will wish that you had one and knew how to use it. Just because you live outside of the US doesn't mean that you are immune to violence. Also, the US is not as violent as the media would make it out to be. The media in this country has always mainly focused on the worst of our society and make it out to sound 10 times worse than it actually is. We have a very large country with a lot of people in it and much more dense media coverage than any other country on Earth. If you could get accurate numbers, I would bet that violent crimes committed per 1000 residents of the US and nearly every other civilized country in Earth will come out to be close to each other. Just remember, there are a myriad of other ways to end human life than with a gun. It is just a tool to do it with, just like a knife or sword, crossbow, or even a rock. Lets see you get rocks banned in Canada
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