Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Britain says "Burglars Need Protection" <or> The lunatics Have taken Over the Asylum

Lebell · 05-10-2003, 09:59 AM

Dragonlich,

I think we understand each other even if we don't agree.

I would like to say that contrary to what some of our brothers over on your side believe, Americans are generally not a 'fearful' people, at least not as I see it.

I don't walk out the door or around the lake expecting to be attacked. Nor do I spend nights craddling my pistol, staring at the front door just waiting for home invaders or burglars to "plug".

But what I do recognize is something you mentioned yourself. We're at the mercy of criminals.

To me, this means you have two choices. You can adapt a sheep mentality and hope that the size of the flock can save you by making it statistically less likely that the wolf will pick on you or you can grow teeth so that if the wolf DOES pick you, you have a chance and can fight back.

There was a court ruling a few years back that is often tossed around gun circles. I forget the exact details, but the heart of it was that the police do NOT have a legal obligation to protect citizens (I recall that someone was sueing the police for failure to respond to a 911 call).

Think about it.

The police aren't obligated to protect you. Not to mention, if they are busy, they might take quite a while to respond.

So no, I don't wholly rely on my government to protect me. Nor (given past indiscretions), do I trust them always to not abuse their powers. We have laws that say they can't, but governments are made up of very fallible human beings, and that means that some are good, and some are not.

While you worry about being at the mercy of criminals, I worry about being at the mercy of my government.

Strange isn't it? You grew up with your system and accept it as the right one, while I've done the same. Yet they are very very different.

05-10-2003, 09:59 AM	#19 (permalink)
Lebell Cracking the Whip Location: Sexymama's arms...	Dragonlich, I think we understand each other even if we don't agree. I would like to say that contrary to what some of our brothers over on your side believe, Americans are generally not a 'fearful' people, at least not as I see it. I don't walk out the door or around the lake expecting to be attacked. Nor do I spend nights craddling my pistol, staring at the front door just waiting for home invaders or burglars to "plug". But what I do recognize is something you mentioned yourself. We're at the mercy of criminals. To me, this means you have two choices. You can adapt a sheep mentality and hope that the size of the flock can save you by making it statistically less likely that the wolf will pick on you or you can grow teeth so that if the wolf DOES pick you, you have a chance and can fight back. There was a court ruling a few years back that is often tossed around gun circles. I forget the exact details, but the heart of it was that the police do NOT have a legal obligation to protect citizens (I recall that someone was sueing the police for failure to respond to a 911 call). Think about it. The police aren't obligated to protect you. Not to mention, if they are busy, they might take quite a while to respond. So no, I don't wholly rely on my government to protect me. Nor (given past indiscretions), do I trust them always to not abuse their powers. We have laws that say they can't, but governments are made up of very fallible human beings, and that means that some are good, and some are not. While you worry about being at the mercy of criminals, I worry about being at the mercy of my government. Strange isn't it? You grew up with your system and accept it as the right one, while I've done the same. Yet they are very very different. __________________ "Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience." – C. S. Lewis The ONLY sponsors we have are YOU! Please Donate!