To all of my gun owning friends:
I respect your choice to own a weapon and I understand your desire to be able to defend yourself. Those of you who hunt, although I do not condone it as a sport, I understand those of you who live from what you kill.
However, I am asking you all from the bottom of my heart and because I love you all, to please consider giving up your weapons for defense. If someone attacks you with a firearm and you are unarmed, there is a 50% chance that neither of you will be harmed. Your “stuff” might be taken, but the odds say that no life will be lost. When you defend yourself with a firearm from someone else with a firearm, odds are someone will die or at least be seriously hurt. This isn’t science and its not always true, but I don’t want to see you die, and I don’t want to visit you in court or in jail or see you have to live with having taken another life.
Crazy evil people will hurt others regardless of whether or not they have a gun. Laws will not fix our problems; people fix problems. This is why I am asking you personally.
Again, I respect and understand your choice no matter what it may be, this is not a simple issue; but please consider getting rid of your gun and giving yourself a better chance…for me.