You can take my Nerf gun when you can pry it from my cold dead hands.

reply to post by Xaberz
I really liked the way your presented your summation of the Nerf buy back, especially your compassion for the parents actually trying to do SOMETHING. I think we all agree parents want to keep their children safe.

The way I see the problem, this group is in effect, "throwing the baby out with the bathwater" They fear gun violence, perhaps even are opposed to gun ownership. An earlier poster said those not raised around firearms associate them to violence while folks raised to understand and use them view firearms as protection. This is very true, I think any parent raising children to fear rather than understand is doing a great disservice not only to the child but society as well. I do not mean they are bad people, they are frightened people.

I am very sad and ashamed our country is becoming more and more a society of the fearful. Many of the ills in our nation today are a direct result of fear. We are afraid to offend others and our laws reflect that. We are afraid to say unpopular things and our manner of speaking is affected. We are afraid to stand alone for what is right, so our values reflect this too. The more fearful our nation the larger this reflection of our fears become.

People even understand this aspect of fear and since no one wants to live in fear some look to others for answers. They seek the counsel of the enlightened and educated, the experts and more and more of the time these *professionals* are validating those fears. These are the ones people look to for guidance, they are looking for answers... rationalizing fear is not the answer. Making laws to validate fear isn't the answer either.

Being a mom I understand the fears that go hand in hand with raising children. Now at 50, my children are grown and having their own children, and I see my kids struggling with their fear. They fear what is happening in and to our world and how this affects their children. I see a big difference in this generation as opposed to the previous one. GRANDPARENTS.

In previous generations grandparents were a much bigger part of a child's life. Now often grandparents live nowhere near their grandchildren and have very little interaction with them. Many adults my age will tell you their grandparents were some of their best childhood friends. It is your basic fallout from break down of the family unit.

In this day and age in the United States we have been hijacked. Our news, media and schools have been hijacked by ideology...this continual rationalizing and building upon fear. We give it all sorts of names but they all boil down to the same thing. Children are not being taught to overcome their fear with understanding and reason, they are instead being taught to go with the flow, stick with the collective, not to say or think or do anything that falls outside of this new norm. fear fear fear fear.

This group doing the Nerf buy back are afraid of Nerf guns! The toys are not the problem, the fact the fearful parents are not teaching their children to overcome fear is blatantly obvious. I think the reason some of the posters on this thread are taking the stances they have is because we UNDERSTAND the outcome of this kind of thinking.

At the end of the day this country was founded on the RIGHT to own and use a firearm, the reason for it has to do with the ability to maintain our freedom against those who would take it away. We understand that America will remain the land of the free ONLY so long as we are the home of the brave. Being brave doesn't mean I am not afraid, courage is doing the right thing even though I am afraid.....

reply to post by Cinaed


Thank you very much. Very awesome post yourself. I grew up in a rural part of Wisconsin so I totally understand teaching your kids how to properly use guns. By better being acquainted with a gun, you won't fear it, and you'll understand that you can use it for protection. Growing up there was never any issues of murder or gunfire. Guns were to go hunting or for practicing marksmanship. And for some reason although lots of families had guns, the amount of people to use them to harm someone was very low.

Obviously, this isn't how it works in the city, though. More than likely it's from what you say. Parents and schools teach kids to stay away from guns, gangs, drugs, and violence. But that's because here in the city guns are frequently used to kill people. It's strange, if you walk down certain streets in Buffalo, the skin on your arm pricks up. You get this static noise in your head even though the street is quiet. The street itself doesn't look that much different from other streets. Maybe there is more garbage on people's lawns. Maybe there is some graffiti on the wall, but it's more than that. It's like you can cut the fear and negative energy with a knife. That the sound of laughter is foreign in this part of town. I'm not the only person to feel this way. I've heard other people say they got strange vibes when they walk down certain streets. But just imagine living on that street. It must be dreadful. So that's why I totally understand why it would come to this fear of Nerf guns leading to violence.

reply to post by HangTheTraitors


Illinois is what I always point too.

Strictest gun laws in the U.S.A., so if gun control works it must be the safest right?

"The city violent crime rate for Chicago in 2009 was higher than the national violent crime rate average by 162.11% and the city property crime rate in Chicago was higher than the national property crime rate average by 39.94%.

In 2009 the city violent crime rate in Chicago was higher than the violent crime rate in Illinois by 126.41% and the city property crime rate in Chicago was higher than the property crime rate in Illinois by 55.23%."

Hmm, guess not.

Originally posted by dron020
I don't mind people having guns for defense. But don't go carrying around a gun or show off any gun.

How are you going to defend yourself if you're not carrying your gun?

I don't mind people having a brain, but don't go around using it to solve problems or let people know you have it.

As a gun owner, I cry BS!!!

Originally posted by eNumbra
These are the people who lead us; the apocalypse is taking too long.

I truly, truly wish I had something sardonic, snarky or even irreverent to say here to illustrate the obvious stupidity of this notion; but I have nothing and frankly if these are the people getting into leadership positions in our world then my only recourse is to pray the doom-sayers of 2012 are correct

I don't want to live on this planet anymore.

I hear you brother. Though I would'nt count on anything happening in 2012 unless humanity is behind it!
I too am tired of this world but it seems there's nothing to do but live in pain, suffering and depression!
I hope someday we can all grow up and act like responsable adults instead of spoiled children but I don't expect this to happen in my lifetime. I feel as though in the past 50 or 60 years we have gone backwards and are less
responsable today, then back in the 50s and 60s. I don't know what it will finally take for people to grow up
but it wont be anything good!

Originally posted by FreedomCommander
reply to post by beezzer

 

oh come on!

I like the nerf guns, they are fun to play with and the darts don't hurt at all.

Sure, but think of the poor little nerfs that are sacrificed in order to provide the projectiles for your "fun".
Shame on you!

Originally posted by romanmel

Originally posted by FreedomCommander
reply to post by beezzer

 

oh come on!

I like the nerf guns, they are fun to play with and the darts don't hurt at all.

Sure, but think of the poor little nerfs that are sacrificed in order to provide the projectiles for your "fun".
Shame on you!

Just to point out, no Nerfs were harmed in the making of this thread.