Does an interest in firearms lead to paranoia?

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FTF

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First off, I'm an average THR member. Gun owner, both traditional and 'assault' weapons, CCW permit and carry regularly, newly minted "cruffler" working to support my milsurp habit as well as an active letter writer to any person/representative/business that I think goes against my beliefs on gun control.

That being said....

I wondered lately, as the years go by and my 'collection' grows and I become more active and aware in politics and news in general... Am I getting too paranoid?

I'm so damn fast to jump on anything and think they are 'coming after me'. I love my guns, I love going to the range, I am glad I have the ability to protect myself where I live. Lately, with this spat of school shootings and the resulting gun-control arguments, I'm fixing to buy a few thousand rounds of ammo and a couple more guns "just in case" they try to make them illegal again. I live in a crappy, violent town and I'm seriously looking into more carry pistols that expand my options for carry in places that walk that thin line between legal and illegal with my permit. I think it's good to be paranoid when it comes to safety, but now I'm just paranoid over the entire system.

I just don't want to end up one of those whackos who wears the tin foil hats and thinks I'm the target of some kind of government conspiracy. Is this normal???
 
Even paranoids

Well, as Kissinger once said about Nixon, "Even paranoids have enemies."

I'm guessing you're just fine.
 
With all the anti groups out there, wanting to ban all sorts of guns, you ought to be worried. They got that stupid AWB passed, and want it back again. Governments tend to be happy to revoke rights for the sake of the 'children.'
 
It may be normal to some, but abnormal to others.

I'm not a psychologist or anything, but it seems that you love the gun hobby a little too much. Take a break and find something else to preoccupy yourself like sports or something...without loosing your passion for guns.

I've fallen into your situation also. Even though I'm not in Law Enforcement, I feel like I am because I own a gun. But like certain thing not to share at the office, keep it to yourself.

If finding another hobby doesn't workout, then maybe you should take tactical handgun training class. Your paranoia will diminish when you're actually getting a first hand look at handgun combat scenarios.

That's my opinion. Hopefully, I won't see you at the looney bin.:neener: Just kidding.

Take care my paranoid buddy.
 
Just because you are paranoid does NOT mean THEY (you know...THEM) are NOT out to GET you!

Depends.....Good protection for a false alarm. :D NailGun
 
The short answer is no, you aren't paranoid, they really are out to get us. Unfortunately we've seen increasing controls on the population (both Democrats and republicans), the courts just approved domestic spying, people no longer believe in personal responsibility, things are pretty much going to hell in a hand basket. Most of the sheeple don't see it, they are becoming immune to the whole idea of personal liberty, and the attached responsibility. The Democrats in particular push the idea that the government will take care of everything and some people buy in to it, no matter the cost.

We'll soon be like the UK, you get fined and an anti-social order for telling people to stay off your property, and for all practical purposes it's illegal to defend yourself or property.
 
You're not paranoid if they really are after you.


"I am like a kind of paranoiac in reverse. I suspect people of plotting to make me happy."--J.D. Salinger
 
As previously mentioned, there are several organizations & groups who's sole purpose is to disarm the American people of privately owned firearms.

Unfortunately those organizations have the support of tens of millions of voters, which translates into a real, tangible threat.
 
The line between parinoia and perception is open to Interperitation.

The simple fact is that if you are a gun owner, then alot of people are out to get you, disarm you, and villify you in the news.
 
And what, EXACTLY, do you really mean by that???????????????????????:scrutiny:


hillbilly (which is not my REAL name, just in case you're wondering)
 
Sometimes awareness looks a lot like paranoia.

Before you got interested in guns you likely didn't realize how big the assault on gun rights was and/or it didn't bother you because you didn't stand to lose anything.
 
Decide for yourself, FTF. Paranoid is a relative term, it really depends on how comfortable you are with it and how comfortable the people in your life are with it, and how that affects your relationships.

If you think people are shying away because you're becoming the creepy arsenal-in-the-basement guy, it might be worth it to shove off and take a break for a while. Reconnect with people, let the cosmoline do its job for a couple weeks.

Bottom line is if the way you feel bothers you, directly or indirectly, you should take some action to change it. If it doesn't bother you, then don't sweat it, just keep your eyes peeled for when it does.
 
There is a fine line between paraniod, and prepared! :uhoh:

I hope you enjoy other hobbies besides guns!

You might be paranoid if:

-You sleep with a gun under your pillow
-you have one hidden in every room in the house
-you carry one everywhere you go (including the shower :confused: ?
-you think every responsible person should be armed at all times
-the number of guns you own is "classified" information

BTW, what is this talk of 'zombies?' What IS a zombie supposed to be? Are there people out there that think the dead are going to walk the streets? Or are there some sickos trying to classify people as "non-humans" so they can justify a twisted fantasy of killing people? Just like fanatics label infidels as 'sub-human' so it's ok to kill them. Could somebody help me with this please? :banghead:
 
Interesting concept. I only started getting into firearms a year ago, and as of now I only own 3, 2 pistols and a shotgun. Ever since I started carrying though, I find myself looking at situations differently. Before, when I would go to a gas station at night and see bums or shady types hanging around, I really didn't think much of it. But now my eyes are open to all of the terrible things that the criminal mid is capable of. I find myself evaluationg everyday situations as if something bad were going to happen. I go out to eat with my family and I'm looking for exits and such. I take my gf to a movie and I look for parking spaces that are well lit and and visable from many areas, even if they aren't the closest. These are things I never even thought of before I started getting into guns.

The question is, what view is closer to reality? I think before, I was just naive. My view of reality then was skewed to unsafe proportions, not now.
 
For some reason, as I get older, I'm more interested in news and politics, and less interested in other stuff.
 
DRMMR02 said: The question is, what view is closer to reality? I think before, I was just naive. My view of reality then was skewed to unsafe proportions, not now.
Click to expand...


You think its bad now? Wait until your 15 year old daughter says, "Daddy, there's this really cute boy at school that . . . . "
 
Then I'll have something to post in the "Have you ever used your collection to intimidate..." thread :evil:
 
Paranoid

It is not an interest in firearms that brings on the feeling of paranoia, it is the awareness of history, and of present conditions that firearms ownership can bring about.

As stated before, you aren't paranoid if the really are out to get you. Paranoia being defined as an irrational fear, delusions of persecution, etc.

There is nothing irrational or delusional about it, Brothers and Sisters, WE ARE PERSECUTED! Simply because we own firearms we are labeled as potential _____ -(insert evil here). We are made equal to those who commit crimes of violence with firearms. Everfy time some nutjob does something with a gun, WE get blamed! Unless the nutjob kills himself, then the guns get blamed, and WE get blamed because we have guns.

This kind of logic says that all men are rapists, because some men are rapists. All women are prostitutes, because some are. That in fact, All people are criminals (who just haven't been caught yet) because some people are criminals. Anyone out there see a flaw in this besides me?

How is it that people in older times, with less of what we call education, could see things so much more clearly than so many people today?

Perhaps the question you should be asking is not "Am I paranoid?", but Am I paranoid enough?"
 
I am a lot like you. I used to (20-30 years ago) read about those paramilitary anti-government nuts out in Idaho or where ever and shake my head. Now today, I understand what they were talking about (not the Nazi racist nutcases, just the extreme Constitutionalists as I have come to realize). If it wasn't for my wife and her parents, I would likely looking to buy some land in Wyoming someplace.
It is not just the antiguns, it is the overwhelming number of sheeple that WANT more goverment in their lives, more government laws telling you what you can and can't do, more government intrusion into every thing you do.
If the school system actually taught the kids the principles on which this country was founded, and how there is a serious group of folks who are commited to the exact opposite of those principles (I am sorry, but the Left are not patriotic Americans. They are dedicated to the elimination of the very core of the founding principles of this country. They can tap dance around and rationalize it all they want, but they are not patriotic Americans, they are traditors), there would be another revolution.
I too am questioning my sanity, because the world has gone insane--and undstanding that insanity is not healthy. It is not us, it is them. I have not turned against my governement, my government is turning against me.
But history is ripe with changes that happen for the darnedest reason, so hope is there.
So, hang in there and just keep alive the spirit that made this country great--freedom from goverment, not by government.
 
Same boat

My wife even has a "routine" for when some anti-gun-owner nonsense comes on the radio during our commute: space out for five minutes and stare out the window, thinking of our next vacation or something. Later, she ribs me about it and thinks the whole thing is funny.

I second what Dr. Dickie just said (except the part about "the Left"). Before 9/11, I was a strong "licensing and registration" person. Once I got an inkling of what pogroms felt like, being a "middle eastern looking" person, I got "religion" right quick. Not to mention the lessons learned from studying what happened in Bosnia, Rwanda, etc., during my International Studies courses in college.

Going to law school from 98-01 also helped. Until then, I thought that "democracy" meant that the government could basically do whatever it wanted as long as the voters put the legislators in power. Once I learned about what a republic was, and why societies have laws, and what those laws are supposed to do, and where the authority for those laws comes from, that changed my views forever of governmental power and the role of the citizen.

Time in the USMC as an enlisted guy also gave me a distaste for caste systems, unwarranted paternalism "for my own good," and suffering the exercise of arbitrary authority. But that time also led me to be a strong gun control supporter ("I'm terrified of untrained, undisciplined civilians running around wielding the potentially destructive power of firearms").

I now look at every law, regulation, or "public policy" comment through the lense of "it's a matter of principle." Few people I know seem to do that these days.
 
"Paranoid Style". I see it affecting me sometimes. It does help to take a step back every now and then and look at a bigger picture. If you get too caught up in buying guns and being ready for gun-grabbers, blue helmets, or zombies, then you miss out on living life.

I'd suggest reading "The Paranoid Style in American Politics" by Richard Hofstadter. If you can handle being introspective and philosophical to that degree, it will give you a different view of paranoia, "them", and politics in general.
 
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