In Buzzy’s Country Store I often hear something said along the lines “Well, if some m’fer tries to break into my house, I got something to blow his ass away.” It’s good for a laugh as several others will nod in agreement and confirm that they also are more than ready for any intruder that ever dares to venture into their humble abode.
Like a lot of issues discussed in Buzzy’s, I stay out of these gun conversations. However, what I really want to interject is “You dumbass, the odds of you winning the lottery are only a little greater than you ever having someone try and break into your house.”
A second statement I consider making, but am afraid to do so because I don’t want to plant any seeds for consideration, is “The odds of you using that gun to commit suicide are far greater than you ever having to use it to confront an intruder.”
Facts are that approximately 62% of all US gun deaths are suicides (click here.) At roughly 47,000 deaths a year, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US and is on the rise each year (click here.) A number of studies show that those US States where folks have more guns, also have more suicides (click here.)
However, it is tough to draw definitive conclusions because suicide is driven by so many factors. Granted the guns don’t cause suicide, but they sure do make it a lot easier to do so. Check out this chart showing suicide lethality rates:
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| Lethality of Suicide Methods | Means Matter | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health |
Speaking of gun-related things having to do with Buzzy’s, I have had a couple incidents recently involving gun packing dudes in the Store. After I made it clear to them that I don’t want guns in Buzzy’s, one of the individuals was quick to say “No problem I just won’t bring it in.”
The other fella pushed back a bit by saying he wouldn’t come in anymore if he couldn’t carry his weapon. I diplomatically responded with a half hearted apology that I was sorry he felt that way, and noted “It’s not you, it’s the gun.”
However, what I really wanted to say to him was “If you feel like you need to have a gun for protection to come into Buzzy’s, maybe you shouldn’t be in here in the first place.”
When it comes to the whole owning a gun thing though, I’m good with guns for hunting, target shooting, collecting as a hobby or for whatever other reason people may have for wanting a gun. (Note here that I am not even going to discuss that theory about gun owners having smaller penises (click here.)) However, the whole gun-for-protection argument leaves me a little cold. And just why is that all the 2A bubbas always boast about prying it from their COLD dead hands? Don’t they own a pair of gloves?
Although Ronnie and Gary wrote this tune about having a hit record on the Billboard charts with a bullet, they nevertheless had to stop playing it live because their fans would throw bullets up on the stage and they worried that someone was going to get hurt. Talk about a “hit.” Be careful what you wish for and/or sing about right?
