re: #231 Unshaken Defiance

Weapons as sexy are one of those “cause and consequences” aspects of our violence culture. Guns and violence as sexy instead of repulsive. Celebrating violent people, from Jack The Ripper on up to modern day gang culture.

re: #233 HappyWarrior

I have no problem saying this but I really dislike guns. I dislike gun culture and I especially dislike attacking one’s masculinity if he has the balls to say “You know what, guns aren’t all that awesome.” I’m not saying btw you’re a bad person if you like guns, I’m saying I shouldn’t be shamed or called a pussy for not liking them.

The funny thing is, I like guns in the abstract. I’ve been a gamer for nearly all my life, I’ve been inundated with guns and gun play between games, movies, television, comics, etc. But I’ve always been able to recognize that it’s all fictional gunplay. And I knew well enough, even never handling a gun more realistic than a Time Crisis arcade gun, that the real deal was no joke and it was far different than the ease in which they were used in fiction. I even understand the fascination with them as a tool, but a lot of that comes from Mythbusters, which always wholly emphasized that they were not things to be taken lightly ever, and they were lethal weapons, not toys. They were meant to kill, and even the goofy crash test dummy and ballistic gel targets didn’t gussy up the fact that they were lethal weapons.

Unfortunately, the lethality is exactly what attracts people to guns. It’s not love of guns, but love of violence and the platonic ideal of violence.