Dark Skies wrote:No, I get where you're coming from.
I just believe that no matter how nice we play, no matter how many arses on the Clapham Omnibus we kiss, no matter how respectable we are, no matter how much holding a FAC represents the cream of honest citizens, no matter how much we bend over to come across as harmless old duffers quietly minding our own business, the result will always be the same. The police and the government will always use us as a distraction from tackling real firearm crime and violent crime in general. Have you not noticed the pattern over the last forty years plus?
So where I'm coming from is f*** them. f*** them and the eggshells they scatter.
So you're giving up, that's up to you. I agree that it's inevitable, they're going to want to take complete disarmament from the population, but do we really need to provide them with the ammunition to help them do it? If "walking on eggshells" and enjoying our sport for a little longer whilst they get their ducks in a row gives us an extra few years, months or weeks, surely it's got to be worth it to continue to enjoy the things that are legal rather than to risk speeding up the process by posting what might be considered controversial videos on social media?
Sim G wrote:Dark Skies has it right. (God forgive me for agreeing with him!!) whatever you do, however you project, you will always be playing catch up. The Commonwealth Games in Birmingham is the a case in point. What more a benign shooting sport is there than 10m air pistol? Women’s cricket out ranks it and more people have been killed with cricket bats than air pistols!
And never, ever, ever decry anything because it has no “competitive value”! If the antis are encouraged that only competitive or sporting shooting has value, you can kiss goodbye to gun ownership straight away!
As I said, I agree to an extent that we are playing catch-up, and whilst I support everythign that goes bang, the point I was trying to make that our certificate system is down to "good reason", I'm trying to be more open minded following the replies my post has garnered, but I still believe that being involved in competitions to any standard gives one a better reason to suggest they "need" a firearm for a particular discipline over someone who just wants one with no other justification. That's not to say I don't believe that gives someone "good reason", because obviously it does. But I feel like it's something that can be defended more strongly as there's something of substance to quantify the claims.
Please don't misunderstand me and make out that I believe if you don't shoot competitions you don't have good reason - I am not saying that, in the slightest.
I'm just saying that in my mind, it's something that can be defended more vigorously with links to Local, National and International Sporting Associations.
I MAY BE WRONG. Obviously, it had little to no effect on the choices of games to be held in Birmingham, and the Olympic showing was somewhat farcical, but these are my views.
Blackstuff wrote:TattooedGun wrote:
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If your gun doesn't function in a competition then thats going to be a problem no??
Absolutely, but is it necessary to film and show function tests on the internet? Maybe it's valuable to film them so if there's a problem your gunsmith can help try and diagnose it, but realistically, is there anything to be gained from showing yourself blatting off rounds as fast as you can into a backstop?
dromia wrote:Sim G wrote:
And never, ever, ever decry anything because it has no “competitive value”! If the antis are encouraged that only competitive or sporting shooting has value, you can kiss goodbye to gun ownership straight away!
Absolutely, the competitive route is a doomed one for shooters, I have my firearms for shooting at live quarry and shooting at targets. I have never used competitive shooting as a good reason for my guns for to do so would put me on the treadmill of competitions which I have no interest in.
The antis will do everything they can to limit and divide us and when we start breaking gun ownership into divisive pieces then we will only speed on the inevitable.
We should be proud and loud of all shooting of guns in this country that is both legal and safe, being apologetic and criticising legal gun owners undertaking legal and safe shooting whatever that may be is pure Yardley.
Plinking is as valid as any other "discipline".
All legal and safe shooting and gun ownership is good and should be supported, there is enough negative views of what we do without gun owners joining their ranks.
Again, I feel like my intention or point has been taken out of context. I am an advocate of any safe and legal gun ownership. I don't feel I need to repeat myself from replying to Sim.