What Guns are to America--And Why

While on an international locksmithing forum, in the wake of the Aurora shootings, those of us in the US were asked by a British locksmith what it is it about the "gun culture" in the US, that ownership is such a "hot button" in politics.

Sad to say, a lot of it turned into a bashing of the UK and Europe, with some personal (and uncalled for) sniping.

So, I wrote this commentary as a statement as to this country and its guns. It reads as follows

John, let me try to explain the “gun culture” here in the US, best as I can.

The gun in this country is many things to many people.

The gun is some people’s food market. From here in Wisconsin, for the annual deer hunt, to the bays of the coasts where waterfowl are hunted, to the mountains, where elk and goat are to be found, there’s a gun to be seen and food to be put on the table. Has been for over two centuries, and don’t see that changing soon.

It also insures some folk’s food supply, dealing with marauding animals, be it a raccoon in the corn fields, a fox in the hen house, or coyotes checking over a herd of cows or a flock of sheep. More than a few animals that would consider H. sapiens a nice snack think twice, and it’s the sharp crack of the gun, and the smell of blood mixed with the acrid tang of burnt cordite, that reminds them why we have the last word. From the big cats, to grizzly bears, from alligators to rattlesnakes,  wolves and coyotes alike, all consider a meal of a human to be an act of desperation.

The gun is tradition, what bonds many families, from three generations going on the annual deer hunt, to a family with generations in law enforcement, with the youngest member carrying his father’s or grandfather’s sidearm, keeping tradition alive in service to his city or state.

In some parts of this great nation, the gun is law. Where any form of legal authority is miles and hours away, the gun is the defining factor as to how man will deal with his fellow man. There was a time in this nation when attempting to steal or rob one’s fellow man blatantly would be dealt with rather harshly, if not terminally. The courts also looked at this as simply an occupational hazard of committing a felony, and that was the last to be said of it.

The same could be said at sea, or on out Great Lakes. A man was the master of his vessel, and any attempt to board and seize it, would result in a miscreant becoming fish food.

The gun is freedom to many people. From the Continental Army in the 1700’s, to the Civil War, from WW1 and WW2, to Iraq and Libya, the gun is the last hope of freedom from an oppressive dictatorship, and a chance for all at a new and better future. And after having won that freedom, the gun is the first line of maintaining the hard won freedoms.

Much of Europe simply sees this country and its gun culture as little more as a extension or substitution of a man’s anatomy, forgetting it was as much the machinists and steelworkers making those guns, as it was the soldiers and sailors putting them to use, when it would have been far safer and more prudent not to rush into harm’s way to defend another nation.

It was also the gun, that brought technology advances, from using stampings to replace complex castings and machined parts, to produce better and stronger metal alloys, and faster means of working them to suit our needs, be it armaments, aircraft, or the lowly automobile. It drove chemistry as well, through better powders and lubricants, which begat offshoots into better varnishes and lacquers, and better oils and greases for aviation, automotive, and marine uses, giving us durable goods that really were durable.

No, our gun culture goes far beyond simply self protection. And that’s just the way it is.

-A. D. Murphy©,  23 July 2012