Where Ya Goin’ With
That Gun In Your Hand?
Is Gun Ownership Deviant?  One Pale, Skinny Guy’s Opinion
     I do not believe that the ownership or desire to own a handgun (or any weapon, for that matter), is in and of itself deviant.  The only time deviance comes into play is when one takes into account what the intended use of the handgun is.

     For instance, if I said I wished to own a handgun to keep in my home as a measure of protection from crimes committed against myself and my family, nobody would think this is at all reprehensible.  Protection of one’s family is a normal desire for anyone.

     However, if Joe Citizen came up to me and said, “Paul, why do you wish to own a handgun?”  and I said, “I want to go kill Japs with it,” or “I can only maintain an erection if I’m firing a gun,” then people would quite understandably label me as deviant.

     A gun is nothing more than a tool, just like a screwdriver or a crescent wrench (only somewhat louder).  Nobody views screwdrivers or crescent wrenches as deviant, unless they are misused.  Screwdrivers are meant to be used for inserting and removing screws from building materials.  If I insert a screw into a wall, thus fulfilling the normal purpose of the screwdriver’s existence, people will say “This is normal,” or if the person in question is one of my friends, “It’s crooked, you pathetic boob.  You are a horrible human being.”  If I use the screwdriver to insert a screw into, say, my neighbor’s annoying dog, people will say, “You sick maniac!  Get thee from my presence, you horrid psycho!”  and report my behavior to militant animal rights groups.

     Similarly, it is not deviant (by today’s standards) to plug some hombre who’s broken into your house, raped your wife, stolen your stuff, and inserted screws into your dog.  It is, to a degree, lauded as heroic (especially if you get him before he screws your dog and your wife, granted not in the same context…)  People will say, “It is good that Paul had that gun, lest his family be destroyed by this lowlife scum!”

     However, if I took that very same gun to the supermarket the next day, and began putting holes in little old ladies and miscellaneous produce…well, let’s just say I would have to become comfortable with large, tattooed men who become really friendly in the shower room.(“Y’ shur got a purty mouth…”)

     So, in conclusion, I don’t believe that the somple ownership of a gun is deviant, but it’s whether you intend to use it to protect Sparky from being attacked by Vinny “Screws” Corleone, or if you intend to use it to ventilate Gramma.

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