Is the gun culture contagious? perhaps...

[Pendragon]

For all the public rhetoric and bumper stickers, web debates, etc, all that happens is that we more thouroughly convince the thouroughly convinced.

I think we should all make a commitment to "bring people in".

Look at religion, network marketing, Avon, etc - when people are motivated by spiritual or financial goals, they can, one by one, win people over to their cause.

I think that we as gun owners should develop a creed - a modus operandi - a method of slowly but surely bringing people in to an understanding of what it means to value the second ammendment and value and exercise their right to keep and bear arms.

The thing is - it will not happen with NRA ads and arguing - it will happen when we, as upstanding members of our community, calmly and politely work to change the hearts of the people who fear armed citizens.

If we all just took 2 anti/neutral people shooting each year, maybe we could grow our numbers - maybe we could civilize the discourse and make them understand that armed citizens are not a threat to the law abiding...


I don't mean to sound all touchy feely - but it is easy for them to call us reneck gun nuts when they have never shot a gun or been around "gun people" much before. We should calmly assault their prejudices by living outside their preconceptions.

 

[Waitone]

There is a lot of what you describe goin' on in the TFL. Some of the best threads are TFLers bragging on an anti or ignorant type that goes shooting and comes out with a different mindset.

You are right; actual shooting is the best way to introduce reality.

 

[TheBluesMan]

Don't waste your time on "True Believers."

Read The Five-Minute Handbook to completely understand what I mean.

Basically, in the time it takes to convert one anti, you can help 20 "fence-sitters" come over to our side of the barricade. There are a TON of NRA members who don't vote and don't care about the RKBA. These are the people we need to motivate and get involved in our fight to retain and regain our rights.

 

[KPS]

I think what we need to do is start teaching our children gun safety in the schools while they are young.Gun education would teach people to respect firearms and not fear them.Kids are taught at an early age about drugs so why not teach them safe gun handling as well.

 

[sapienza]

I fully agree. In the last month alone I've pulled about 4 of my fence-sitting friends into the fold, and that was simply by taking them out shooting and showing them how much fun it is.

... heck, *2* of 'em have already bought guns of their own!

It's simply a matter of showing people who aren't decided strongly one way or the other our side, and then letting them know that there's a good chance, unless something is done, that they won't be able to enjoy firearms for very long.

It works, it really does. All it takes to get people on our side is an afternoon and a hundred rounds or so (... the first one's always free ... )

sapienza

 

[Kaylee]

Of course it's contagious.. not only that, but in some ways it's a "gateway disasease" as once you get into the gun thing you see just how over-lawed we are, which has a tendency to push you in either the hard right or libertarian direction.

There's an interesting book out there by the name of "mind viruses".. touches on exactly this sort of thing.

-Kaylee,
infected 1996-1998 or thereabouts. Before that, a confirmed anti.

 

[thumbtack]

I have started taking people that I work with shooting with me and all have asked to go again. I carpool with a one of then and he is always saying let’s going shooting after work, or let’s go shooting before work. He is about to buy his first handgun and he is really getting into shooting.

When he started he was trying to emulate what he had seen in movies, example I have two Ruger P89s, I let him shoot both at the same time. He said "how the hell do I aim with these" and my response was "you can do anything in a movie" and he tried holding the gun side ways. He has realized that Hollyweird does not portrait shooting that way it is in real life and likes it more now that he has realized that there is a lot of skill involved. He is quickly becoming a good shot. Once he gets his own gun I told him I setup an IPDA type scenario and let him go through it. Then once he has gotten better we would go to an IDPA match. He is very excited about it. Now, he was never an anti gunner, he was just neutral about them until now.

The most important thing I stress when taking someone shooting is safety. I am not so overbearing with it so that it is not fun, but I will pack things up and leave if someone does not respect the power of a gun.

I had to tell one guy that I could not go shooting with him because he is too dangerous, and I did not want to get shot by him.

 

[KPS]

After working on my boss for about a year now, he finally started going to the required gun safety courses to get his CCW permit.Next victim.....his son.