On Sat, 7 Sep 1996, frosty wrote:

At 07:42 PM 9/7/96 +1000, Caroline Ann Seawright wrote:

Thank Kamisama we won't end up like American with everyone and his dog
(or half of them) having guns ... Guns in the hands of a lot of people
mean that there's a greater change of morons getting guns, as well as
psychos and other such people who shouldn't be near a gun. This means
that here there will be a greater chance of morons and other such people
having their guns taken OFF them! Yay! Guns are only for criminals and
police and the military!

The philosopy is that if the people have guns, then an oppressive government
won't stand a chance in hell of existing, why?, 'cause we'll shoot them.  If

Yeah, like that has ever worked in American history.  Go read about 
Shay's rebellion, the Whiskey Rebellion, or oh, the Civil War.  An armed 
citizenry doesn't have a chance in hell against organized military forces 
with superior resources.  Especially now, when the military has tanks.  
Unless we all start carrying rocket launchers, there isn't much we could 
do but die.

The field record of armed, but untrained citizenry against anything well 
armed and disciplined sucks pretty hard.

It was indeed the philosophy behind the second amendment, but it didn't 
work even then.

we don't have guns, then only the criminals, police, and military have them,
and don't even think that the criminals wouldn't have an easy time getting
them, remember that much of the crime here is centered around IMPORTED
drugs.  And then, if our government had a chance, they'd probabally bring
this country down to martial law, but our guns keep them in check.  About
now, you're realizing that I have no faith in my government, and you're
absolutely right.

Well, I have no faith in the ability of a bunch of disorganized people 
with guns, however big, to successfully defend themselves from tyranny, 
especially when the government is so much better armed than they are.

If the philosophy behind owning guns is to defend ourselves from tyranny, 
it's a failed philosophy.

John Walter Biles :  MA-History, Ph.D Wannabe at U. Kansas         
ranma@falcon.cc.ukans.edu      bailesu@komodo.hacks.arizona.edu  
http://www.hacks.arizona.edu/~bailesu/falcon.html 
http://www.dhp.com/~wraven/john/index.html
"It's good to kill the King."  "I still think the Saxons should have 
put a higher price on our heads.  I'm more valuable than 25 librum."
--Frequent quotes from our PENDRAGON sessions.