Posted 29 May 2012 - 07:53 AM
Dymitry, it's kind of a complicated issue. For one thing, there's the Second Amendment you've probably heard about, the right to bear arms and all that. Also, there's a strong dash of male pride -- a lot of guys don't want to have to give up their toys because they self-identify with them and envision themselves using them to protect their families. And also, America is recently having issues with a general distrust of not only government (see earlier comments in this thread) but all government-related services, including police. A lot of people are under the impression that the government is "the enemy" and therefore the police must be either too incompetent to protect one's family, person, or possessions or is outright corrupt and would likely be the ones who need to be fought with those weapons.
Like most things, I'm a moderate in terms of weapon control... I don't agree that some people need to own automatic assault weaponry, but I strongly believe that each and every person should be familiar with and own a weapon. If we lived in a perfect world, we could get rid of all guns everywhere. But we don't live in a perfect world and people do need to be protected, from criminals, terrorists, or even wild animals. However, I have trouble agreeing with the statement that you need much more than a handgun to do that. (Personally, I carry knives and know how to use them.)