In my opinion we will always lose the argument with the antis until we realize one thing. Their opinions are NOT based on statistics or facts but rather a childish and ignorant fear or weapons or fear of people with weapons.
Some are OK with hunting or target shooting because they don't go out into the woods or to the range so they don't care. They just don't want you around them with guns because they fear you and the weapon. Until we can address their fears the numbers mean nothing. Its like trying to calm someone who is afraid to fly by quoting safety statistics to them. It may make sense but they will still be scared.
Excellent insight, and this is something I've been aware of for some time, just in different aspects of life. Many people do not even realize that social engineering is going on in their daily lives through a variety of ways. I will use several examples in this post to address it, but let me take a quick step back.
It was not all that long ago I was not a big fan of Open Carry though I was not opposed to it. Where I live OC is not an option, but Concealed Carry is. So while I still personally prefer CC to OC, I am thinking we should fight for more OC options for the following reason.
The word is
desensitizing.
I will give two examples of how American culture has been changed
(for better or worse is not to be debated here) through desensitization.
Not all that long ago inter-racial dating and marriage was frowned upon be everyone except extreme liberals. However Hollywood started in with depictions of it in movies[Guess Who's Coming to Dinner], and the Star Trek episode with Kirk & Uhura kissing. People were outraged and sickened by it, and protested/boycotted TV stations if they dared to air it. Yet over time Hollywood has gone out of their way to promote it in movies, TV series, advertising, etc. That combined with inter-racial couples now commonly walking around in public has caused a shift in public perception. The current social issue promoted by liberals is homosexuality. For at least the last 10 years or so Hollywood has gone out of their way to promote as normal homosexuals and their lifestyle. When it first started people were outraged and did the same thing and protested/boycotted.
However now days there are several mainsteam shows that not only imply homosexual behavior, but promote it as the norm, including adoption and marriage.
My point is that intentional desensitization does work to change peoples minds whether they like it or not. Even if they still hold true to their core beliefs such as opposition to inter-racial or homosexual couples, they are much less likely to be an activist against it. Whether it is apathy/ambivalence or something else, most people do not protest/boycott like they use to on those two social issues.
Ergo, if more law abiding citizens were to OC in everyday life and routine activities, the anti's would become desensitized, and less vocal in their opposition.
I might start a thread on this subject, but thought it might be of benefit to those reading this thread as well.
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