Pineapple Express: Someone Is Wrong on the Internet?

[Ryujin]

I see that you live in Brampton. Pretty sure home invasions shouldn't be at the top of your list of concerns! I know you guys had one I read about last month. Recency bias? Even for Canada, an incredibly safe place, Brampton has a really low crime index.

Source: Canada Crime Report: Canada Crime Rates by City

Absolutely, though our reputation isn't stellar for some reason. Just don't do a search for "Brampton drivers"

 

[Bedrockgames]

It's not an inquisition. I just find the mindset fascinating. What prompts some people to feel like they live under constant threat? Don't feel under some sort of pressure to feed my curiosity though... you can walk away from the conversation at any time.

Why are you so skeptical when people tell you they lived in a place with shootings around the corner from them? You are attributing a mindset of unfounded paranoia to me and it is a little frustrating. I am not saying it was the highest crime area in my state. But things that were very verifiable would occur (like a guy getting shot in his bed around the corner from where I lived) and like too frequent shootings (before I left there were a bunch of shootings that made us pretty concerned: one of them at a fast food drive through window, a spate of block party shootings that all seemed related, and a string of other crimes all around the block from my house). I am not saying the place was crime ridden. I liked the area I lived, and it is where my family is all from (I was living in a house my grandfather owned and had lots of family in adjoining houses). It is a nice city, but it also does have some problems. I lived in an area of town where if I walked around the corner I would see guys standing around selling drugs, and there were gangs in the area so it paid to be mindful. But you weren't under constant threat. I never used that language

Also for clarity here, I wasn't saying people ought to own a gun or something because of home invasions. We didn't have a firearm in our house. We simply avoided doing stupid things like answering the door bell if we weren't expecting someone.

 

[dragoner]

There is a lot of ...

Let's be honest, ignorance and racism. This is the root fear of the "other." Far from new, and esp bad outside the urban areas, which are the places with a lot of guns too. I remember parades up until the 80's, KKK marches with rifles, babies in strollers.

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

There is a lot of paranoia stirred by the media and other sources that have folks on edge even in the the most remote and safe places in America.

I have the safe not because im worried about an invasion, however, I do take ownership with the utmost responsibility. My father was an avid huntsmen and left a small number to me when he passed. I would be devastated if someone broke into my home and took them and used them in a violent crime. I keep them for sentiment reasons, and occasional bonding with my brothers during trap events. Thus I felt the reasonable and responsible thing to do was to secure them.

That makes perfect sense to me.

 

[dragoner]

That makes perfect sense to me.

He's also like 99% of gun owners, shooting sports, hunting, etc.. Problem is that it only takes one.

 

[CleverNickName]

I have the safe not because im worried about an invasion, however, I do take ownership with the utmost responsibility. My father was an avid huntsmen and left a small number to me when he passed. I would be devastated if someone broke into my home and took them and used them in a violent crime. I keep them for sentiment reasons, and occasional bonding with my brothers during trap events. Thus I felt the reasonable and responsible thing to do was to secure them.

The importance of gun safety and responsible gun ownership cannot be overstated.
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

If you are a gun owner, look for ways to improve your gun safety. Even if you think of yourself as a fairly safe and responsible gun owner, keep looking for ways to do more. Buy a gun safe. Buy trigger locks. Support legislation to make guns safer. Get training, get practice, then get more. Preach to your fellow gun owners.

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

Why are you so skeptical when people tell you they lived in a place with shootings around the corner from them? You are attributing a mindset of unfounded paranoia to me and it is a little frustrating. I am not saying it was the highest crime area in my state. But things that were very verifiable would occur (like a guy getting shot in his bed around the corner from where I lived) and like too frequent shootings (before I left there were a bunch of shootings that made us pretty concerned: one of them at a fast food drive through window, a spate of block party shootings that all seemed related, and a string of other crimes all around the block from my house). I am not saying the place was crime ridden. I liked the area I lived, and it is where my family is all from (I was living in a house my grandfather owned and had lots of family in adjoining houses). It is a nice city, but it also does have some problems. I lived in an area of town where if I walked around the corner I would see guys standing around selling drugs, and there were gangs in the area so it paid to be mindful. But you weren't under constant threat. I never used that language

Also for clarity here, I wasn't saying people ought to own a gun or something because of home invasions. We didn't have a firearm in our house. We simply avoided doing stupid things like answering the door bell if we weren't expecting someone.

I'm not skeptical about what you specifically are telling me.

I am skeptical of a more generic and general fearful viewpoint: the threat of crime, violent acts, isn't nearly as high as some folks imagine it to be. There is a percentage of the population that seems to have a lens that exaggerates the possibility of harm of any type coming their way. Like an overdeveloped flight response. Handy in the caveman days, when a rustle in the bushes might mean a sabretooth tiger ready to pounce. Not so useful over the last several thousand years though.

Not saying that's you! Sounds like you lived in a rough place, and I get what you're telling me.

 

[Ulorian - Agent of Chaos]

Absolutely, though our reputation isn't stellar for some reason. Just don't do a search for "Brampton drivers"

Too late:

 

[overgeeked]

That reminds me of a conversation I overheard on the construction site a couple of years ago between two pipe fitters. They were discussing some upcoming firearms legislation or whatever, about background checks. I was just inspecting the trench shoring, quietly listening. I'm paraphrasing here, but the gist was:

Joe: "I never fill out any paperwork (for firearms) if I can help it, you never know when the Feds are gonna come around and start collecting them all. The government would freak out if they knew how many guns I have in my basement!"

Bob: "You're delusional. If the government was truly worried about your gun collection, a Marine would paint your house with a laser from a quarter-mile away, and tomorrow's headline would read 'Gas Explosion Kills Five.'"

I just shook my head and walked away. I know that all sorts of people own guns, and for all sorts of reasons...but hoo boy, I worry about some of them.

Yeah. There's a particular...mindset that comes from a lot of gun owners. Which is why 30% of the people own enough guns that there are 120 guns per 100 people. The US population is about 350 million. Which means we have about 421 million guns in the country. But that also means that only about 105 million people own those 421 million guns. So yes, the national average is 12 guns per 10 people, but the reality is that for every 10 gun owners they have 42+ guns between them.

 

[overgeeked]

Let's be honest, ignorance and racism. This is the root fear of the "other." Far from new, and esp bad outside the urban areas, which are the places with a lot of guns too. I remember parades up until the 80's, KKK marches with rifles, babies in strollers.

It's also basic tribalism. We've been dealing with that since before we climbed down out of the trees.