Glad to see this Page up. It’s good to see you put your views up front. Some who have read our discussions might think I don’t respect your point of view or vice versa. That would be wrong. Good people come to differing conclusions all the time.

Disclosure to those who may not know- I have personal and professional interests here. I (sometimes) make a little money teaching gun skills and I serve on the BOD of one of SoCals largest public shooting ranges. Former NRA 5 discipline certified, then later got disgusted with ILA and dropped all things NRA. My wife and I have both have been competitors in handgun competitions including the World Speed Shooting Championship & IDPA.

I had already been including use of force law lessons in JKD martial arts classes that I once taught very regularly. That’s how I regard that responsibility. It’s not terribly likely a defensive blow will kill an attacker but an abundance of caution was my decision with no regrets. A fifty something body had cut back on the hard sparring workouts. Ah youth…

In principle I agree with a lot of what you have to say Obdicut. Requiring a knowledge of the rules and a well chosen minimum skill level makes excellent sense, of course the devil is in the details. Stop short of what’s needed, and the classes and tests don’t do what they need to. Go way too far and you wind up with a different set of problems. I’m in full agreement with almost all of Californians gun control laws. I don’t approve of blanket bans. Not on guns and not on CCW.

You will notice a lack of reference to the 2nd amendment. This is because referencing the 2nd amendment is not an argument, but just a citation of fact.

To me facts like existing laws deserve to be a part of an argument like this. So many other facts are welcome. Like gun accident rates. The current status of the 2nd is of course a fact that works in favor of basic gun rights and does not impede sensible regulations. ILA lobbyists & overly compliant legislators do that.

What has been done by the court of course can be undone by the court. For todays discussion I do consider todays status of the law. That means the 2nd as an individual right and it includes many regulations that held up to legal review just fine.

So-Two words describe a good argument for a defensive weapon, gun or otherwise. Self defense. Unless you play the sport why have a baseball bat? That defense right exists so the innocent may prevail in the immediate face of a predatory assault. A fighting chance. That’s a very basic right recognized from ancient times. So far back I think the weapon at hand was probably bronze. Or a club. Like any right of any significance, judgement and responsibility must apply at all times. Hard limits. Chasing a bad guy is not defense. Neither is preemptive action. To those who would say to another person that a defensive use gun is not for them at home, what then may they have for a last resort defense? Keep both the long odds and the serious nature of an actual assault in mind, though my intent is a rhetorical question to shape the thought experiment/decision process that precedes buying a gun and discussion in general.

I like what you have to say about risks being included to the facts presented to existing and potential gun owners. I don’t agree that your argument using those hard to take gun accident, violence and suicide facts means the right path is a ban enshrined in law as some (not you) would say.

About that training for your intended purpose-I’m going to suggest to most potential gun owners that they take a defensive course regardless. Am I featherbedding for my income? Not really. Dual use-Under attack many of us will grab whatever we can in self defense. If you have a gun and hear someone forcing their way into your home or hear gunfire close by like in your backyard you might just grab that gun. It can’t hurt you to learn more. If you are a hunter start with hunter safety and rules. Then step up and take the defensive course.

Thank you Obdi for recognizing the differences among us gun owners. The sensible among us have a difficult double duty task- Encourage reason and a bit of rhetorical moderation from both sides of what can be a very divisive topic. Sadly runaway rhetoric has led to all kinds of stupid memes and a hardening of resolve to not give in to the “other side”. I try my best to educate either side of the issue. This blog helps.

Well apparently I shoot better than I tweet-Capturing the Title “My Proposal For Gun Rights” was a mistake. I should have changed that. Deleted. And fixed.

Gotta go home and see to dinner probably BBL. But just in case-
Again thanks for a good Page.