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Gun Charity
by Paul Bonneau
z<dot>z<dot>paulbx1<at>dfgh<dot>net

Attribute to L. Neil Smith's The Libertarian Enterprise

Gun charity is when crime and violence gets so bad that a neighbor, who previously had no use for guns and who probably gave you grief because you did, shows up at your door to ask you if you have any spares he can use—and you give him one.

It's interesting to think of all the different kinds of people in the world. There are the people who get scared of things like terror attacks and U.N. invasions—that is of course all pretty silly, but their response is good: get lots of guns and ammo. Then there are others who might be called the Alfred E Newmans ("What, Me Worry?") of security, who go around without a care in the world. They are astounded when they fall victim to crime. Still, I am glad they are out there. It can get too oppressive worrying about SHTF all the time, and having only those around you who worry about it. I like variety in people; all kinds are needed. I like that Portland stays weird too.

Remember that old chestnut, "Conservatives are liberals who've been robbed"? What then are libertarians? Maybe conservatives who have been raped by the cops you called to report a robbery?

Anyway I am not going to use collective-speak, as is so common, to whack this or that group of people. Not in this article anyway. What we are talking about is just what goes on between you and your neighbor.

First thing, when somebody shows up with a shit-eating grin asking for a spare gun, do restrain yourself and don't say "I told you so." He aready knows it, trust me. This is a person who almost certainly will never end up on the gun-grabbing side of the ledger again. Be magnanimous—up to a point.

However you might extract some concessions before handing something over. It's up to you what they are, but training his kids and wife on gun-handling might be one of them. After all you don't want to be shot by some ignoramus fooling with a gun. And guess what, after they are trained they probably will never end up on the wrong side of the gun control leger either.

Don't try to convert them into conservatives. Modern-day conservatism is just as screwed up as modern-day liberalism is. Don't try to convert them to anything. Events will educate them much better than you ever could.

How do you know when to hand a gun over? How about if you generally like the guy? Almost everyone has defective worldviews, you included. That's no reason to tell him to take a hike. If he was basically decent to you, help him out. If you hate him because he treated you like shit, "Just say no." Or give him a rusty single-shot 22 and a 50-round box of ammo, saying "Make every shot count!"

Assuming you want to help, what to help him with?

Unless you have ten AR-15's sitting in your safe, you probably shouldn't bother handing such a gun over unless you think he can seriously augment your own defensive situation. On the other hand, when the gang comes to rob and rape, an AR-15 sitting in a safe does not help.

I think the ideal gun to hand over is something along the lines of a Ruger 10/22. They are cheap and you probably have one or two lying around. A long gun means he can hit the target a lot easier. Semi-auto is more defense-oriented. He quickly learns that a 10-round limit on magazines is not "reasonable gun control" after all. Yeah, the caliber is not so hot but no one is going to shrug off .22LR shots to the face, either.

It may be that America is now so heavily armed that we don't have to worry too much about this, because we quickly run out of robbers and rapists to kill. Still, gun charity is worth a thought or two.

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