LMAO, I swear, this is like playing chess with a pigeon. you have no idea what the pices are, how they are supposed to be moved, but you think you are clever. lets review 1 you cant answer simple questions. 2 you pretend rape and other violent crimes don't occur in "middle earth". 3 you assume I haven't travelled extensively (more than 50 countries on 6 continents,boy did you blow that one!) 4 you're still a hoplophobe, that doesn't understand guns well enough to discuss them at any level. now, your original post was in response to the Vegas shooting,which was certainly a tragedy. however, I'm quite frankly glad of a few key facts, that you never considered,because you never realized.
1 the guys tactics sucked. in discussions with other veterans, the consensus was, with what was available to the shooter, anyone that actually knew what he was doing could have doubled the casualties.
2 dude owned a plane, and that concert was right next to an airport. if you think 58 dead was bad,Google "Oklahoma Federal building bombing" and try to wrap your head around a Cesna loaded up with fuel oil and fertilizer plowing into 20,000 people.
now, onto your latest post. having a large military isnt what makrs us a great country, but, again, it insures that the rest of the world does watch us, amazingly closely. because face it, if we get annoyed with your little country,we can demolish it. and theres not a damn thing you can do to stop us. now, you (unwittingly to be sure) made the point for gun ownership, and contradicted yourself in 2 sentences. "all your guns aren't going to save you from implosion"
gasp oh my Gods, you mean you think we might suffer a societal collapse?? well, who would keep my wife and kids safe from the mindless zombies and liberals whos welfare checks didnt arrive?? damn, guess I would have to.
here in the states, we have a saying. "when seconds count, police are only minutes away". the average violent encounter is over in less than 30 seconds. average police response time varies wildly, but the BEST Ive found is in the 4.5 minute range. the response time in my home is 1200 feet per second,the velocity of 9mm +P hollowpoints
hopefully you can get a glass navel, and see the real world around you
Keep living in your fantasy world. There is 0% chance that you have been to 50 countries across the world. With an attitude like yours its more like 50 meters from your parents house.
How do I know this? Because I myself am a traveler, having been to numerous countries in Europe and Asia, and I have had thousands of conversations with people across the world.
One thing I've learned about people (especially Americans) who travel, is they realize that the world is a big beautiful place and the gun touting fanatics usually haven't ventured beyond their town border. While you keep living in fear of your neighbors and whether your weapon cabinet will keep you safe, I am going to go on and keep living and enjoying my life. You can keep your gun paranoia to yourself.
lets see, my first cruise was in 1988, a world cruise. 13 months, visiting ports, showing the flag. fun fact, we were the 1st U.S. warships to hit port in the soviet union since WWII. and yes, the world IS a big beautiful place. some shitholes mixed in, but there are some amazing places. and as usual, you have not addressed anything regarding guns. is there a reason you run away from the discussion you claim to want to have?