No Matter Who You Are, You Need A Gun For Protection

By Desiderius Erasmus, a Guns Save Life member

The “typical” gun owner is often characterized by many bigoted non-gun-owners as a right wing, redneck, beer-guzzling, low IQ Neanderthal who is just itchin’ to pull the trigger. But times have changed, and now a whole lot of those non-gun-owners – who used to be dismissive of guns and gun owners — truly need a firearm, whether you’re a Pabst or an Armand de Brignac Blanc de Blanc kind of person.

That’s because now, it might be a matter of life or death. Recently in Decatur, Illinois a teen was arrested for allegedly breaking into his 60-year-old neighbor’s home and trying to kill him because that neighbor is gay.

If you identify as LGBTQ, you need a gun for protection. LGBTQ people are nearly four times more likely than non-LGBTQ people to be victims of violent crime. You may never actually have to shoot in self-defense, but then again, why take a chance?

If you’re a woman, you need a gun for protection. 19.3 million women in the U.S. have been stalked in their lifetime. 1 in 4 have been victims of severe physical violence (e.g. beating, burning, strangling) by an intimate partner. 1 in 7 have been stalked by an intimate partner during their lifetime to the point in which they felt fearful or believed that they or someone close to them would be harmed or killed. 1 in 5 have been raped in their lifetime. You may never actually have to shoot in self-defense, but then again, why take a chance?

If you live in a rough neighborhood…you need a gun for protection.  In 2021, 744 men and 101 women were murdered in the Windy City.  684 were black, 28 were white, 122 were Hispanic, and 10 Asians, and the major determinant was where they lived. The City of Chicago is installing 426 “Bleeding Control Kits” in 269 buildings across the city. Officials say the kits could help save lives in an emergency such as falls and penetrating injuries.

Let’s get real, though…the kits are there to treat gunshot wounds, a tacit admission that the powers that be in the city can’t prevent you from being shot. They have retreated to a position where they “hope” that you will not die from a gunshot wound.

If you live in a rich, safe neighborhood…you need a gun for protection. 875 South Bundy Drive, Brentwood, Los Angeles; case closed. [Hint: That’s the one-time residence of O.J. Simpson.]

If you know one or more males in your neighborhood who have violent tempers…you need a gun for protection. Almost half of all male killers are younger than 25. Less than one-third of male killers rely on firearms as their weapon of choice. That means that two-thirds of male murderers use some other means of killing – not firearms. Why take a chance?

If you’re a man…you need a gun for protection. Almost 80% of all murder victims in the U.S. are male. You may never actually have to shoot in self-defense, but then again, why take a chance?

If you are an Asian-American…you need a gun for protection. Hate crimes targeting people of Asian descent in the U.S. have skyrocketed, especially in large urban areas, where the legal gun ownership process can be especially onerous. Determining the motivation of a criminal – who is never apprehended – is almost impossible. Did the perpetrator rob and kill a Chinese-American store owner because of race or because of the store’s cash register? You may never actually have to shoot in self-defense, but then again, why take a chance?

If the proponents of gun control ever get their way, it won’t be the rich political elites who are murdered. They talk a good game, but live in gated communities, in exclusive neighborhoods, and either have personal security details, or flout the law and own firearms on the sly.

By denying the means to defend everyone else, the anti-2nd Amendment mob expose themselves as homophobes, anti-woman, racists of all stripes. As well as whatever fancy identitarian term applies to setting up elderly people who live alone to be victimized.

A society, country and culture can be measured, in part, by how well it protects the most vulnerable among them, whether they are unborn babies, children, or people who look differently, think differently, believe differently or come from different backgrounds. The right to life and the right to self-defense are rights inherent to every human being. No government can legitimately deny you those.

And yet they try to do just that. So if you own a firearm, great. Make sure you keep it secured and help everyone you know learn how to shoot and how to legally obtain a firearm of their own. Because…man, woman, gay, straight, black, white, Hispanic, Asian-American, atheist, religious, young adult or senior citizen…you need a gun for protection.