Does racism fuel the political left & hatred of gun culture?
blitzkrieg
Veteran

Joined: 8 Jun 2011
Gender: Non-binary
Posts: 6,537
Location: In a square sphere of abstract, nuanced thought.
I have always felt that white lefties in the U.S, especially woke lefties - seem to be terrified of guns. Perhaps they are terrified of black people, feel superior to them & also republicans because republicans are more like black people with their gun-toting culture?
_________________
Cultural Conservative, Economic Socialist.
Christian (LGBTQ+ affirming).
Abstract & critical thinker. 2nd wave feminist.
All humans are equal before God.
Freedom, is the sovereign right, of America.
On vacation
I think you are really reaching. I have a far more simple explanation for what drives the political differences.
The political left tends to cluster more in cities and metropolitan areas. In cities and metropolitan areas, guns tend to cause more issues and harm innocent bystanders, serving less of a practical purpose than they might in a more rural area. City dwellers know that you can't just brandish and shoot off a gun without risking harm to a lot of people you don't intend to harm, and city dwellers are less likely to have grown up with a gun in the home. Similarly, the concentration of people means that city dwellers are also more likely to have been physically close to a mass shooting incident. I remember one happening in a building I used to sit outside for lunch; incidences like that can really hit home.
The political right tends to cluster more in rural areas, where guns are often used for hunting, needed as a defense against wild animals, and less likely to hit a random passerby. In rural areas, people often grow up around and get comfortable with guns at an early age. There simply is a lot more "air" and distance in which to safely learn how to properly handle the weapon, and to practice with it purely for sport.
_________________
Mom to an amazing young adult AS son, plus an also amazing non-AS daughter. Most likely part of the "Broader Autism Phenotype" (some traits).
Guns manage to cause harm all by themselves? Given that the much more heavily armed countryside almost invariably has a lower crime rate than the cities, perhaps the issue is the people who live in the cities, not the guns themselves as they don't exactly have wills of their own.
City dwellers are also likely to believe a lot of things about guns that aren't exactly true as a result of not growing up around them, which is one of the reasons I don't put much stock in their opinions on the subject. Bystanders being hit by stray bullets, for example, largely seems to be a problem of gangs and the police, as it's exceedingly rare with legal self defense, probably because unlike police and gangsters, we actually face consequences for bad marksmanship that leads to injury.
_________________
“The totally convinced and the totally stupid have too much in common for the resemblance to be accidental.”
-- Robert Anton Wilson
blitzkrieg
Veteran

Joined: 8 Jun 2011
Gender: Non-binary
Posts: 6,537
Location: In a square sphere of abstract, nuanced thought.
The political left tends to cluster more in cities and metropolitan areas. In cities and metropolitan areas, guns tend to cause more issues and harm innocent bystanders, serving less of a practical purpose than they might in a more rural area. City dwellers know that you can't just brandish and shoot off a gun without risking harm to a lot of people you don't intend to harm, and city dwellers are less likely to have grown up with a gun in the home. Similarly, the concentration of people means that city dwellers are also more likely to have been physically close to a mass shooting incident. I remember one happening in a building I used to sit outside for lunch; incidences like that can really hit home.
The political right tends to cluster more in rural areas, where guns are often used for hunting, needed as a defense against wild animals, and less likely to hit a random passerby. In rural areas, people often grow up around and get comfortable with guns at an early age. There simply is a lot more "air" and distance in which to safely learn how to properly handle the weapon, and to practice with it purely for sport.
I think there are probably at least a dozen reasons why lefties dislike gun culture. But the thread title is one of them, in my opinion.
You make several good points.
_________________
Cultural Conservative, Economic Socialist.
Christian (LGBTQ+ affirming).
Abstract & critical thinker. 2nd wave feminist.
All humans are equal before God.
Freedom, is the sovereign right, of America.
On vacation


Lefties being terrified of black people is an assertion. Republicans being "like black people", due to gun-toting culture, and therefore terrifying Lefties is another.
Lefties being terrified of guns - well, yeah. I mean, anyone should be terrified by lethal weapons which are easy to operate and can kill at a large-ish distance.
And any person carrying a gun is immediately communicating: I can decide at any moment to end someone's life.
_________________
I can read facial expressions. I did the test.
Sweetleaf
Veteran

Joined: 6 Jan 2011
Age: 32
Gender: Female
Posts: 33,298
Location: Somewhere in Colorado


I have PTSD from a class-mate getting shot when I was in HS, that is probably the main reason I might be a bit afraid of guns or at least people armed with one(I realize the gun isn't going to shoot itself).
I don't see the connection you're trying to make and it seems like nonsense.
Also the 'gun culture' people like to put menacing bumper stickers on their vehicles implying they would like nothing more than to shoot liberals and lefties so that doesn't help.
_________________
We won't go back.


I'm more terrified of fascism. Actual lefties should be armed in case a fascist comes to power and the Proud Boys start breaking down doors.
auntblabby
Veteran

Joined: 12 Feb 2010
Gender: Male
Posts: 109,385
Location: the island of defective toy santas
my time in the military taught me to hate guns. i don't really understand the charm they have for some people here and elsewhere. i would be overjoyed if somehow, all the weapons on earth were turned into something non-harmful, and that the mindset of the gun-lovers transformed into one of peaceful non-violence.
blitzkrieg
Veteran

Joined: 8 Jun 2011
Gender: Non-binary
Posts: 6,537
Location: In a square sphere of abstract, nuanced thought.
Guns manage to cause harm all by themselves? Given that the much more heavily armed countryside almost invariably has a lower crime rate than the cities, perhaps the issue is the people who live in the cities, not the guns themselves as they don't exactly have wills of their own.
City dwellers are also likely to believe a lot of things about guns that aren't exactly true as a result of not growing up around them, which is one of the reasons I don't put much stock in their opinions on the subject. Bystanders being hit by stray bullets, for example, largely seems to be a problem of gangs and the police, as it's exceedingly rare with legal self defense, probably because unlike police and gangsters, we actually face consequences for bad marksmanship that leads to injury.
Yep.
Police-people can behave badly at times, they can even be deadly, at times - but gangs have zero rules and cause way more chaos, far more often than the police do.
_________________
Cultural Conservative, Economic Socialist.
Christian (LGBTQ+ affirming).
Abstract & critical thinker. 2nd wave feminist.
All humans are equal before God.
Freedom, is the sovereign right, of America.
On vacation
Mona Pereth
Veteran
Joined: 11 Sep 2018
Age: 63
Gender: Female
Posts: 5,267
Location: New York City (Queens)
Rural areas have a "lower crime rate" only in terms of crimes per unit area, not crimes per capita.
Here in the U.S.A. at least, violent crimes per capita are actually higher in the "red" states than in the "blue" states. See this map, based on the FBI's uniform crime statistics.
_________________
- Autistic in NYC - Resources and new ideas for the autistic adult community in the New York City metro area.
- Autistic peer-led groups (via text-based chat, currently) led or facilitated by members of the Autistic Peer Leadership Group.
- My Twitter (new as of 2021)
Similar Topics | |
---|---|
Palm oil - food versus fuel, +civil unrest |
25 Apr 2022, 12:23 pm |
Autism diagnosis and racism |
18 Feb 2022, 5:28 pm |
Why this « never give up » culture? |
01 Apr 2022, 2:53 am |
This Is How America’s Culture War Death Spirals |
12 May 2022, 3:16 am |