Anti Gunner Arguments

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How to Win The Top 17 Anti-Gun Arguments... April 2010 All rights reserved. Copyright 2003-2010 by US Concealed Carry Association
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1 : When it Rains, it Pours Chapter 2 : The Bond of Trust Chapter 3 : The Art of Calibration Chapter 4 : The Moral and The Social Chapter 5 : Top 13 Biggest Debate Mistakes Chapter 6 : Top 17 Anti-Gunner Arguments
How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments
Chapter 1
When it rains...It Pours...

Anger and intolerance are the enemies of correct understanding. Mohandas Gandhi
t began as wonderful spur of the moment date. Nothing big happened, you just thought that it would be a nice little surprise.
The music floats softly through the restaurant and you reach over to get the salt. Just the same as you have countless times before. Only this time as you reach across the table, your jacket lifts slightly and your gun shows from beneath it. Now normally this wouldnt even be an issue. But in this particular instance, no such luck!
Excuse me. You hear coming from the table next to you, But are you a police officer? Startled you reply, No, Im not a police officer. Why do you ask? Why are you carrying a gun then? He presses on. Well... You begin.
At this point you have to stop yourself. Is this guy really going to be a problem? Are you looking at someone who is angry? Is he an anti-gun individual who is likely to ask you one of the top 17 most common anti-gun arguments? Or is he merely curious because he too is carrying a concealed firearm? You soon learn much to your dismay that it is not the latter....Two years ago my son was shot and killed by a robber who broke into my house. My son was killed by a gun... Whoa! Time to slow down. By now you are thinking that while this story is obviously tragic, it isnt the result of any of your actions. Just as you are about to politely tell him that, you see that he is becoming more agitated and angry. You look over at your date. Not good. Your date is visibly shaken by the confrontation and uncomfortable. Your date wants to deal with this even less than you do. What had started out as such a promising evening, is quickly spiraling out of control! Your evening is swiftly being ruined and your emotions are beginning to run high, but what do you do? Two very possible and highly likely scenarios would ensue. The first is to keep your cool. No big deal right? People are naturally going to talk about this sort of thing when they see your gun. However, now he is beginning to raise his voice and you see your date seems to be trying to make themselves as inconspicuous as possible! So you do the sensible thing and say something like, Im very sorry to hear about your tragedy, but guns arent bad. It is the people who are bad. Not to be deterred he replies, A bad person with a gun killed my son. If there werent a gun, my son would still be alive. Its people like you... And on..and on..The long tirade begins.
Now he has become even more emotionally unstable, your date is likely ready to leave the restaurant, and you would just like a moment to think. To make matters worse, the waiter has now walked over and has become embroiled in all the madness! Check please! Head held low as he heckles you all the way out the door, you glance back to see him almost standing up out of his seat to yell at you. The entire restaurant watches as you leave and of course, he gets the last word. Or, Then there is always scenario two. Youre just not in the mood to put up with this guy. Hes ruining your evening and pride is beginning to get the better of you. All of a sudden you find yourself getting aggravated. You say something like, Why dont you get a clue buddy? Dont you realize that you are alive because of the safety my gun provides? You say it because you truly believe it, and this guy should too! Then things really begin to get out of hand as he says, Bleep you! Expletive expletive!People like you disgust me. He then turns to your date and says, How can you be with an ignorant killer? Time for the pot to boil over. Your pride is wounded, the perfect evening is ruined, and even worse now your date feels as if they need to defend you! Time to manup and teach this guy a lesson! No longer in the mood to play games you say, You know what? Lets take this outside and handle this! Oh so you can shoot me? Huh? Are you threatening to shoot me? He says, trying to goad you even further.
To which you reply, I dont need to go outside to shoot you. I can shoot you right here! Now would be a good time to hit the pause button... Of course youre angry, but lets step back from the situation for a moment. This would never happen to you right? You would never allow yourself to get angry enough to do something foolish would you? You would never get that mad! The annoying truth of the matter, is that every single day there are conversations that end up exactly like this. The worst thing about these conversations, is that they end up doing nothing but reinforcing the negative prejudice that carrying concealed weapons is bad. In fact, the anti-gunners have actually left the conversation feeling even more anti-gun than before. Obviously this was not the end goal that you set out to accomplish. They merely need to be educated. But how do you educate someone when you are angry?
Education is Key
Lets picture this for a moment. Lets imagine that instead of experiencing this yourself, you are actually watching this take place at an adjoining table. You look over and immediately can tell that the guy sitting near is carrying concealed because you automatically pay attention to that sort of thing. As soon as you see him reach for the salt, he begins getting verbally accosted by the same guy. You feel bad for him, but theres no way that you are ruining your date for this nonsense! Besides, this is just going to end up in a shouting match anyway. Both will probably be asked to leave and then all will be well. Or maybe after this jerk leaves youll offer the sap a word of encouragement to help pick his ego back up a little. Youll tell him just how much that guy doesnt understand, and then all will be well with the universe once more.
After about two minutes of talking, the man carrying concealed remains cool, even to the point of smiling as he talks. Now you are more than a little confused. There was a shift in attitude here that you somehow missed, while you were planning your consolation speech for the poor guy. Out of nowhere, the once angry anti-gunner does a complete 180 and begins to laugh. What just happened here? You think to yourself, Man I have no idea whats going on! One minute the guy is at his throat and the next theyre best friends! Now you are even more curious and staring blatantly at the two people. You distinctly hear the words come out of the anti-gunners mouth, Yeah, I guess you are right. I apologize if I came across as a little angry. Please, let me buy you and your date a bottle of wine. Its the least I can do after upsetting your evening. Whoa! How in the world did he do that? The answer though is really quite simple. He knew the four power points of changing minds through debate. Trust, Calibrating, Moral Vs. Logical Arguments, and Rehearsal. All of the worlds most powerful leaders know these secrets of influence. The goal is to change the way a person thinks. To re-pattern the thought process of antigunners, not to win the argument.
The Passion in People

Most people have a hard time arguing issues that they are passionate about. It becomes a matter of who is right or who will win. We do this without understanding that the other person is just as passionate about what they believe.. If winning the argument isnt the objective, then what exactly is your intention? Your goal, is to open their minds a little more to accepting the fact that carrying concealed isnt a bad thing. Some people you find just will not sway, at least not consciously. But everyone in the situation will be influenced. And in the end, either you will change your opinion or they will.
Will you be influenced into second guessing your decision to carry concealed even if its just for a moment? Or if someone hits you really hard (emotionally), will you consider not carrying concealed altogether- even for an instant? In the end, you will have invested a massive amount of time and energy into the conversation. That is why it is your duty to understand these four power points of changing minds, for the sake of all the people carrying concealed around you. Will you be the one influenced, or will you be doing the influencing? If you dont take responsibility to learn how to effectively debate and change the minds of the anti-gunners who approach you, then the next time someone else runs across the same person, they will receive the same, if not worse treatment than you did. It ends up reinforcing the false belief that everyone who carries a concealed weapon is an angry person bent on world destruction. Of course, we know that this is simply not true. That is why it is your duty to do your part in allowing them to understand, that their seemingly automatic prejudice towards the concealed carry community is unfounded. Not only is it incorrect and inaccurate, but is a completely ignorant way of thinking. Our goal is to change the way that they think. Being right is simply not enough. You want to leave that encounter feeling good that you did what you could to open that persons mind towards the idea of carrying a concealed firearm and those who do. As we journey through this book, and you begin to feel more comfortable with the concepts, it is very important that you begin to put into practice everything that you learn. This will help you be more prepared for the next time you happen to reach for the salt!
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Chapter 2
The Bond of Trust

Trust men and they will be true to you; treat them greatly and they will show themselves great. Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Building Trust
he bottom line is, that we do not sway from our belief systems for people who we do not trust. That means in order to effectively sway and win a debate against an anti-gunner, you must first build trust. This is one of the most fundamental truths that you will find out.
Arguing for the sake of arguing... that is exactly what you will be doing if you dont know why you are arguing in the first place. At the same time if they do not trust you, you will be unable to convince them, your face will wind up blue, and you will be no better off than when you started. The reason for this, is because as children, we grow up learning that if we can trust someone to have our best interests in mind then we can feel comfortable taking their advice and listening to them. Your parents are the first people that you will ever experience this with. If you are able to trust your parents, then they are able to raise you effectively. However if you lose that trust you have for your parents, it becomes very
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difficult for them to maintain that bond and be a good parent. Once that bond is broken, if left unchecked, trust becomes an issue and problems multiply. So there are two things that you will want to do in order to build trust quickly and effectively. Youll want to show signs of being a leader, and being open yourself. We will look at both concepts individually.
Being 2 for 2
Lets begin by taking the aspects of being a leader. What are some of the ways that you can show that you are a leader? One of the first and most palpable ways, is to understand that the person who is asking the questions, is the person who is in control. Think along the lines of an interviewer. If you go to an interview and you show up answering the questions, then it is the interviewer who is in complete control of that situation. The way to flip around an interview so that you seem like you have more control, authority, or expertise in an area, is to start asking clarifying questions of the interviewer. The same holds true for debate. If you want to show signs of being a leader, you must ask them questions as well, and not just wait for your turn to talk or say something or respond. Another important element of a leader, and a very good indicator technique, is something called compliance. Compliance is whenever you can get someone to do something for you on your terms. Using compliance presented in a less obvious fashion is often the best method for accomplishing this. For example, lets go back to the illustration that we used earlier and put yourself back in the restaurant. Someone has just turned to you and asked, Are you a police officer? To which youve responded, No Im not, why do you ask? Well then, why are you carrying a gun?
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It is at this moment that you want to hold up your finger and say, Oh, just one second. Sorry. Then take out your phone, look at it for a few seconds, push a couple random buttons, put it back in your pocket and say, Im sorry, one more time...What were you asking me? What youve done is say to them, Alright, I will answer your question, but just give me a quick second to look at my phone. The difference between that and just being eager to answer is this, if you are eager and dont add your own terms to the conversation then you are giving them an automatic subconscious advantage even before youve said anything. What you want to do is take ownership of your space and project that you are a leader. Why? People tend to argue less with leaders. Thats just the natural way of things. What makes a leader though? Why are they how they are? To find what really makes a leader you must first look at the way being a leader actually works.
Follow the Leader

In the beginning a leader is not a leader. At first, they are just a person who makes other people feel good when they are around them. Because of this, the people that they make feel good in turn want to be around them. Understandably so! People naturally want to be around others more often who make them feel good. If you really think about it, most people have no idea how to make themselves happy! So if you can make them feel happy and important, youll be doing something that they cant even do for themselves! When a person feels more valuable, they will begin to gravitate towards what makes them feel that way. So they begin to follow, and they begin to go where that person goes, and do what they do, thereby in effect creating a leader. Now the biggest misconception about a leader, is that you are a leader first and it is because of that fact, that others follow and want to be around you. This is a complete
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and very backwards generalization of being a leader. Being a leader starts with you making those near you feel good. That is exactly what you will want to do to the person who wants to argue with you. Especially when it is concerning something that you (and they as well) are very passionate about. Now this concept can be very difficult at times and we will get into the ways of making sure that you are doing this properly and effectively a bit later on. Even the most hated leaders in the world are people who made those nearest to them feel good, and that is why they have such a strong following. Power equates to feeling good. So if you want power, control, and leadership, you have to make people feel ultimately that they are valuable when they are around you, talking to you, or otherwise associating with you. Remember: Making Other People Feel Valuable = POWER!
Being Open
Secondly, lets go into being Open. Being open will allow you to connect with someone and begin building trust. However the first step in building this confident, powerful trust is going to open up yourself first. It shows the confidence on your end to open up and share something about yourself. When they see you do that, then they will be much more likely to do the same. In order to change their mind on something that they feel really strongly about, you are first going to have to gain their trust. Once that happens, you will have them in a much more open state of mind to receive the things that you tell them. Otherwise, there will be no way for you to get through to them. It may be hard and even impossible at times to be open with someone who is an anti-gunner, but its necessary if you want to truly have a lasting positive effect on them.
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There are a couple things that I feel should be pointed out at this juncture. One is that , even though its hard, you are going to have to deal with it. I know its difficult, but if you want to get through to them then you are going to have to be willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. If the person is really being mean and out of line, you must assume that they are really great people who just happen to have a bad day. It is very important not to color your vision of them. Judgment creates judgement. If you are judging them because they have taken the stance of being an anti-gunner then they will automatically become defensive and judge you for carrying a concealed firearm. They may already be judging you, but dont allow that to become a justification for you doing the same thing in the reverse.
Break the Cycle

So you have to break the cycle because if you dont, it becomes a downward spiral that will forever get worse until eventually it is out of control. At worst, they still end up thinking that you are a mindless thug. But honestly, they were thinking that already, so in essence the worst thing that can happen is neither side has swayed. They still think that carrying a concealed firearm is wrong... but they did already! This means that you have nothing to lose by dropping your pre-judgements and being open with them. As long as you follow the rules in this book it cannot possibly impact you negatively. At the very least, you will have an opportunity to delve into their mind and see what goes on in an anti-gunners head, which will help you better understand where they are coming from in the future. The more time you spend around anti-gun advocates, the easier it will become for you to be unaffected by their arguments. However, instead of spending all of that time around them (which can be painful I know), remember and rehearse all of the steps in this book. By the end, you should be able to know how an anti-gunner thinks better than they do, because you will have the insight necessary to overcome their arguments.
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Trust Issues
Again, we only trust people who have our best interest in mind. When we know that a person is selfish or deceiving, then our natural inclination is to not trust them at all. On the other hand, when we know that a person is selfless and understanding, we trust them because they add to us instead of subtracting from us. This is a very important point because most people enter verbal confrontations thinking, How do I get this person to lose the argument? Maybe I can get them to slip up like they do on Court TV. Then they will say something wrong and everyone around them will think that they lost the argument. Then they go home and think about all of the things they should have said. While this may be satisfying on some level, that is not the end goal that we want to accomplish. Why? Because the only change will be that they now associate people who carry concealed to death AND public humiliation... Not good. So what we want to do, is match other peoples receptiveness. For example, if I feel that you are being receptive to me, then I will feel more inclined to be receptive to you. However if they feel that you are just waiting for your turn to talk, then they will not trust you. If you honestly dont care what they think, then at least pretend to in order to get through to them. This is very, very important! How exactly do you go about building this trust though? How do you become more open and show signs of a leader? And how do you use this to help build a strong trust? Well... Theres a 4 Step System for that, of course!
The Four Step Process

There is a four step process or four different stages that you will go through, and if you do these four things, you will effectively build trust. Once you have built the trust needed, which can happen in an instant, you can then move on to sway their decisions, morals, and belief system to influence them in a positive way. Lets take a look at these four steps now....
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Step 1 Step one is you mind-reading. Yes, you read that right! As crazy as it sounds, allow me to explain. Say something that most anti-gun advocates think, and that you sort of agree with. It doesnt have to be something deep. In fact you can twist something that they say, into something that you do believe in.
STEP 1 - MIND READING For example, I could say, I personally think that there isnt enough gun control. Now of course I do not believe this on the same level that most minds do, however I do think that more focus should be put on making sure that those who do have a license to carry a concealed weapon do so in an educated manner. Such as offering free membership into the USCCA with each proper handgun sale. So I would say, I believe there should be more gun control. And of course they will say something to the affect of, Is that right?.. Really? or
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Huh??? The very moment that they say, Really? or you see their eyebrows raise in slight disbelief, you are handling and overcoming one of the biggest stereotypes about people who carry concealed. That stereotype is that everyone who carries a concealed firearm, thinks that there should be no gun control or regulations period. Thats probably not how you really feel. If youre like me, you think that guns should be in the hands of people who are going to protect with them. It is important to remember that reality is based upon peoples perceptions. In order to change someones reality, you must first alter their perception of things. So you say, I personally think that we dont have enough gun control. If you were to end your sentence right there, then you might be lying, I know I would be! More than likely you think that we typically have too much gun control. That is why you must redefine the phrase. You are not saying Lets crack down more on people who own and buy guns legally. Instead, you are saying that there should be more of an effort made to harvest all of the illegal guns and arms dealing. Now this will handle those objections very early on. If you break their assumptions about you, they will be forced to realize that they may not be right in their prejudice of you. Then if they feel that they may not be right, you now have your foot in the door. Time to build that trust! Step 2 Step two is to be the first to open up. This sounds almost as strange as mindreading, but let me explain why this is so important. When you are the first to do this, it makes you appear vulnerable for a moment. That is key because you want to express a hint of emotion. For example, a man in the middle of a conversation might say, I dont know about you, but I love my wife more than anything. I never thought that I could love
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anyone so much. She means the world to me and I would happily die for her without thinking twice.
STEP 2 - OPEN UP Lets review that for a moment. You didnt say anything about the person who is attacking you at all. You merely told them that, I want to tell you how I feel about something I really care about. You are using I and me instead of you in the statement. This is called using the I Perspective. Most people, subconsciously use the You Perspective when they are opening up about how they feel on a subject. Using the I Perspective, you opened yourself up first. You allowed yourself to become vulnerable (at least in their mind). Now if they were to respond with something like, I think thats the stupidest thing I ever heard! then you may actually become fairly aggravated at that point!
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The ironic part of all of this is, that they are much more likely to accept you and open themselves up if they see you doing it first. Opening up will show them that you trust and accept them. This way when they decide to open up and trust you, the emotional risk will be smaller for them. So in order for you to overcome their objections it is important that you do these steps in order. If you were to skip this second step, then you certainly will not be as effective, if you are effective at all. Step 3 This third step will probably be the most difficult. You must RESPECT them.
STEP 3 - RESPECT THEM Now, how do you respect someone that may not have any respect for? You have to find something about them that you do respect, and then let them know that you respect it. This may be something seemingly minute. Usually, I like to go to concepts that I know work. Let me give you an example. You may say something like, You know, most people dont have the courage to say something when they think it. Its hard to find that honest and outspoken quality in
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people, and I respect you for that. What youve just done is appeal to any sense of insecurity that they might have. By making them feel accepted for a quality that they pride themselves in, they will drop 90% of their barriers. Even if they dont necessarily want to feel comfortable around you, they will. That is a very real power. It is very important that you allow them to think that you respect them in some way. And even better if you do or can respect them for that quality! If someone is bold enough to express how they feel about carrying a concealed weapon, then you automatically know that they want to be respected for being brave and outspoken. This way you can always appeal to that type of insecurity and thereby usually get them on your side. That is the important part. Step 4 Step 4 should be relatively simple. Just keep it lighthearted. Make a joke if you need to. You see, after you have handled their objections in step one, showed them that you trust them in step two, then built them up and made them feel better in step three, now comes the time to take the conversation to a lighter place before you can truly change how they feel.
STEP 4 - BE LIGHTHEARTED
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For example you could say something like, You know thats not actually a real gun? Its actually a grill lighter my niece got me for my birthday... I just carry it to look cool! Haha. Simply go into something a little more lighthearted. When you start to bring things back into the realm of lighthearted conversation, then people will feel that this is what you truly believe. They feel that arguing with you isnt actually going to get you emotional. If they feel like you arent going to get emotional, then they are much more likely to accept your beliefs and move on. Remember, it is much easier for people to move on and listen than it will be to keep trying to evoke an emotional reaction. You cannot lose an argument if you dont allow yourself to be emotional. Also by implementing the following simple, yet powerful techniques, you are showing leadership and control.
Total Tonality
Try to end all of your statements on a down tonal note. For example, when you ask a question, your voice will naturally end on an up-note. So when you do that during conversation, youll be subconsciously telling someone that you are unsure of yourself... that you dont really know what youre talking about. So even if you say something entirely made up thats completely off the top of your head and end it with a downward tonal note, then people will subconsciously start to accept you and believe you, regardless of whats coming out of your mouth. Whats more, you stand a much greater chance that they will begin trusting you more as an authority on the given topic when you end on a downward note. You do not want people to subconsciously start to believe that you are unsure of yourself by ending on an upward tonal note... Not to mention, itll get pretty annoying!
Look At Me Too!
Next comes eye contact. A very important element to remember is that if you are talking to more than one person you must distribute your eye contact between the
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aggressive person and the other person or people nearby. The ultimate goal for doing this is to make it easier for you to be able to draw the spectators into the conversation. Now, instead of it being a one-on-one argument, there will be multiple people who are involved in the conversation. This is very important. It doesnt matter who they agree with as long as they are involved because it begins to give the conversation the feel of being a discussion instead of a confrontation.
Rarely do we ever have arguments with more than one person at a time. So by drawing someone else into the conversation, you automatically and subconsciously alleviate the tension of felling like, Oh, well this must be an argument. and turn it into, Were chatting about something here.
Positive and Negative Charge

Finally, use positive and negative body language to reward or punish them. We have subconscious triggers that tell us that we are being rewarded when people face us
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with their body. Vice versa, when someone turns away, especially during a conversation, we consider this a punishment. Your subconscious human nature tells you, that when someone begins to get emotional with you and you turn your back slightly, they will feel that theyre not being accepted anymore for doing what they just did. When they start to open up again and you face them as a reward, they will subconsciously begin to feel as if you are accepting them again. Everyone wants to be accepted! (regardless of what they tell you) Now, they are more likely to want to continue arguing if you are still there and talking in the first place. So by using the three tips of ending on a downward tonal note, evenly distributing eye contact between the aggressor and the spectators, using positive body language as a reward and negative body language as a punishment system, you will be able to take control of the situation. If someone says something that is really unfounded or not based in reality at all, you can always give them a little more negative body language. Simply open the distance by facing them indirectly, which is in essence turning your back to them a little more, all the while continuing to talk with them.
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Then if they begin to accept and understand your perspective a little more, especially since you are going through the four steps of trust building (reading their mind, opening up first, respecting them, and being lighthearted) then reward them with more positive body language.
Once you have gone through the four steps, you should be able at this point to convince them to trust you. By now they should be actively seeking what you think and how you feel, so that they might become better educated. This allows you to have the perfect window of opportunity to make a difference, to actually convince them, and thereby walk out accomplishing the goal for getting into the debate in the first place!
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Chapter 3
The Art of Calibration

Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change - this is the rhythm of living. Out of our over-confidence, fear; out of our fear, clearer vision, fresh hope. And out of hope, progress. Bruce Barton
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Calibrating and Readjusting the Mind
Have you ever watched an especially good boxing match? *On a side note: If you want to know what a good boxing match looks like, try watching a video of the 3rd Muhammad Ali/Joe Frazier fight: The Thrilla in Manila. Well, having a debate is much like one of those matches. If you go into a boxing match thinking that you already have it all planned out, you are trying to require the person you are boxing with to go ahead and react to you in the manner you expect them to. If at any moment though that person reacts in a way that you dont expect, your entire plan falls through, goes down the drain, and suddenly you are fighting for your life! Just as a real boxer, you have to be prepared to roll with the punches and be prepared for anything. When you are not prepared, things will catch you off guard. If that happens, you will begin to find yourself getting emotional. Remember, emotion will cost you the debate! That is why it is important that you know how to exactly get through to the other person, so that you dont have to be unprepared anymore. You just show up and it works. First, we need to figure out how to calibrate our thinking to change in the moment. There are going to be a few different times in which you are really going to need to do that. You will be doing this in the very beginning to determine whether or not it is actually going to be worth your while. Secondly, somewhere in the middle you will realize what type of insecurities they have. Once this happens and you understand what the insecurities are, you will need to align yourself with those insecurities. But first lets start with determining whether or not its even worth all the hassle!
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Is it really worth all the fuss?

There will be some arguments that are just not going to be worth it for you. You need to be able to tell the difference between something that is worth pursuing, and something that is most definitely not going to be, so that you know when to act and when to steer clear. Although, finding out whether it is not worth the trouble can be at times more difficult. If its worth it, you will know because you will find that one, if not two, of the next things we go over will be true. The first is simply that they have some kind of social awareness. If they do, then it is worth it to talk to them. This could be something like them wearing a jacket because it is wintertime, or that they are acting appropriately inside a restaurant. Aside from the fact that they are taking an anti-gun stance, are they exhibiting signs of normal behavior? If they are and they seem to fit into society, then it is probably worth it to maintain your cool and actually engage this person. Another reason why you may want to consider it worth debating with them, is if you have to see that person on a regular basis. Are they a co-worker or a family member that you will see often? If so, then it will be worth it for you to slow down, take a moment or two to take care of it the first time, instead of being able to brush them off as you would normally do otherwise. So if you know that one of those two things are true, either they have some kind of social awareness, or they are someone you see regularly even if they have no social awareness, then it is actually going to be worth it to engage the individual. Now finding out whether its not going to be worth the effort can be a bit more complex, so lets look at a couple examples. Crazy people : If the person is crazy, or extremely emotional, then it will not be worth it for you to engage them. Psychologically they are not in a mental place to receive what you have to tell them, so dont bother wasting your time.
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Random people: Another way that you can tell if it is not going to be worth it, is if they are just some random passerby and you are in a big hurry. So as an illustration, lets say a homeless person that you dont know from Adams house cat approaches you about it and you are in a hurry. Just skip over the discussion or ignore it. So, there are three real ways of diverting people past this so that you dont have to enter into a massive conversation about it. Lets take a look at those now. 1. The first is called bantering the conversation away. For example if someone were to say, Are you a cop? And you replied, As far as you know I am. This is a way of jokingly pushing the conversation away, by telling them that you are refusing to be serious about it. As long as you refuse to be serious about their questions or the situation, then they cannot continue to argue with you.
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Value Dynamics
The next thing to calibrate is going to be right after you recognize what is called their value or their insecurity level. There are four basic value types. They are dynamics, Six, Seven, Eight, and Nine/Ten. If you know what Dynamic Value type they are, youll know exactly what their insecurities are. If you know what their insecurities are, youll be able to get them to trust you very easily and, of course, roll with the punches. Your Value is your own perceived self-worth. If you have a high value (Nine or Ten) then you have high perceived self-worth. And a low value (Six, Seven, and Eight) means you perceive yourself as being worth very little.
The Sixth Dynamic

The sixth dynamic is called the Supplicate value. To supplicate basically means to beg. In this instance the supplicate value means that they are begging for acceptance. You will probably not run into this type very often. If they are an anti-gun advocate they will more than likely not express it because they just want to fit in. For to express their feelings in front of you would be to show that they are not into whatever it is youre doing. They may be afraid that youre not going to like them, so they dont say anything.
The Seventh Dynamic

The seventh dynamic is called the Combative Dynamic. A person with the combative dynamic is probably the one that you will most likely not want to deal with. These are the people who only feel by better if they can make you feel less valuable. Though their main goal seems only to be to demean or hurt your feelings, their main objective is to help themselves feel better through that process.
The Eighth Dynamic

Eight is the Competitive Dynamic. This is the kind of value that becomes apparent whenever someone only feels more valuable if they are the center of attention
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at that moment or in their general vicinity. These are the people who will constantly compare their set of morals and values to yours. They will try to make their way right and your way wrong. These type of people, are some of the hardest to deal with because their main focus is on trying to be better than you and everyone else in the room. Now there is a difference between the combative and competitive dynamics. The combative isnt trying to be better than you, instead they are trying to make you worse. That is very different from Eight who is constantly trying to challenge and be better than you . They will actually think about how they can be better than you and, instead of attacking you, they will just One-Up you all day.
The Nine/Ten Dynamic

Finally we come to the Nine/Ten dynamic which we call the Cooperative Dynamic. Cooperative Dynamics is whenever you only find value or feel valuable whenever you make someone else feel more valuable too. This means that they get their value off of other peoples value and that is very important.
Four Value Scale

Obviously on this sort of four value scale, the most valuable to you is the Nine/ Ten Dynamic. If you have a cooperative dynamic or value, then you can control the insecurities of everyone who is below that value. Lets say you are a Nine/Ten and you happen to run into a Six (Supplicative Value), and you know that they are seeking acceptance, then all you have to do is simply accept them. When you find yourself around someone weak or scared, while you are neither of those things, by giving them acceptance you, in essence, make them feel more powerful. That is all you need to do.
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They are very simple to deal with. Saying something as short as, You know, I think youre pretty cool, man. is often enough for Sixes to accept it. Sevens (Combative Value) wont accept a compliment like that however. You have to compliment someone with a combative value in a way that they think theyve earned it, instead of just something that they would normally be complimented for because unlike a Six, they are people with combative pride. So simply put, you cant just accept them because they wont agree to that. You have to find something to accept them for that they want to be accepted for. One of the major insecurities of a combative Seven type is respect. They want to feel respected and acknowledged. This means that when you do acknowledge them, you are putting yourself in a position of power because a person can only be acknowledged by someone more powerful than themselves.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Someone who is less powerful than you doesnt acknowledge people. They cant do that. When you automatically start to acknowledge people, everyone will assume that you are very confident and valuable. They will assume that you have the cooperative dynamic or value (subconsciously, of course). So what you want to do when you come across a Seven/combative dynamic, someone who is likely trying to be a real jerk, is to compliment them. Thats right. Show them that you respect them. Tell them how much you respect them for a quality that most people dont appreciate. Again we can go back to the example that we used earlier, of being outspoken or brave and saying what is on their mind. These are the qualities that a Seven will have, and in many instances these are qualities that are respectable. That is why it is so important for you to bring that to light and say, I respect this and this about you.
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What this does is allow you to recognize what kind of value or insecurities they may have and how you should treat them afterwards. This is the second major calibration stage, where you begin to change the way that you think and talk. The cooperative will deal with a competitive (Eight) by not playing their games. Its interesting to note here, that those with the competitive dynamic will constantly try to trick you into playing or competing with them. Its the way that they have been conditioned to think. If they can trick you into playing their game, then they can also trick you into losing, because you will have no idea that you are even playing until youve lost. You have to keep an eye out because the Eight can be very smart about it sometimes. So the best thing to do whenever you hear any kind verbiage that implies that their way of thinking is somehow superior to yours, is to respect their competitiveness, all the while not being goaded into their game. Even if were you to say something like, I love fishing. And they interrupt you by saying, Yeah, I love fishing too. No one loves fishing more than me. I have my fishing license in 15 states and I fish 16 weeks a year. And I never come back without a fish thats over 40 lbs! You know that this is a competitive response on their part. Youll know this because theyre challenging what you are saying whenever you speak.....Over and over and over.... Whenever this happens, instead of going along with it and having a competitive counterpoint back, what you want to do is accept them for whatever it is they are trying to win. You allow them to win the argument by saying, You know, thats really cool that you do. I dont meet very many people who so serious about fishing. Its refreshing! Again, what youve done is given them respect. However what youve in essence told them is, You know what? You win. Its good that youve won and I respect you for that.
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The important thing to understand here is, that although youve allowed them to win, its not a major argument that you are having. By letting them win the battle you win the war. As soon as you feel like you have a better understanding of them, and have validated and accepted them, they will be very open to receiving whatever thought processes you have about their anti-gun comments. That is why the main goal should always be to strive to have the cooperative value, so that you can always control the other three value types.
Drive Carefully
Finally, it is important that you know how to steer the car. A fairly simple concept that simply means that as long as you are arguing with someone, then you cant change their mind. Think of it as figuring out the best way to steer your car from point A to point B. If there is a car that is moving down the highway, what is the best position that you can put your car in to turn left? A lot of people would consider it fairly easy for a tractor trailer to knock a car off of its course. WHAM! When a tractor trailer T-Bones a car, then the car has no choice but to temporarily move in the opposite direction. As long as you are driving our metaphorical truck, theyll have no choice but to move because youve just knocked them off the road!
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However, knocking them off the road isnt the best way to go about changing someones mind. Especially if someones in the car that you want to turn left, and you are heading in an opposite direction or angle, youll end up hitting them really hard and try to force them to. Still applying the rules of the road, often times people will slow down so that you go across in front of them, or they will speed up and put you in the rear view. They will do whatever they can to avoid your tractor trailer from making contact with them. In the same way they will also do this in order to keep you from influencing or changing their minds. They will take an extremely passive or aggressive role to keep you out of their head. But, if you are in the same car as them, youll be able to steer the car from the inside with ease. So that means, the best place to be is in the same vehicle they are. As long as you are inside the same car, it makes it much easier to reach over and help them steer to the left than it is for you to be in another vehicle and slamming into them. Ok, enough with the car metaphors... What does this mean for your argument? It means that you have to be a part of their side in order to change their mind. This is going to be very difficult to do sometimes. Especially considering that you are very passionate about owning a gun. In the beginning it may be easier for you to figure out what they are trying to say and what their point is. Find some way to agree with part of what theyre saying, then move on from there to make your point. Once they feel as if you are agreeing with them, they may stop arguing with you all together. More often than not, whenever you get into a conversation like that and begin to agree with them, their guard begins to drop. When their guard drops, youll be able to make a counterpoint that goes much more smoothly. Put simply, by doing this youll be able to bypass their barriers and reach them much more easily.
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Chapter 4
The Moral and The Logical
Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it. Mark Twain
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Two Sides of a Coin

Its important to understand the two different types of arguments that you could possibly have. However if you dont understand the difference between the two, you may end up having an argument with someone in which it seems that you are speaking a completely different language than they are. Recognizing and changing the way that you are approaching a situation, argument, or debate, will allow you to also recognize early on whether or not you should make certain kinds of points. The two different types of arguments are considered to be moral arguments and logical arguments, and there is a massive difference between the two. First though, we must understand why difference is important in the first place. Its important because the people who take an anti-gun stance already have in their minds a very strong prejudice against people who carry concealed firearms. When it comes to feeding that prejudice, you have to become the exact opposite of all the things that they believe you are. The top four most ridiculous anti-gunner stereotypes are that all people who carry concealed are;
A. Insecure B. Uneducated C. Angry D. Closed-Minded
Now there is a reason why they think like they do. Maybe the reason that antigun advocates take such an annoying and aggressive stance, is because when they
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approach and try to speak with someone who is carrying concealed, the gun carrier has an emotional conversation and loses confidence, closes off the mind, and winds up angry during the debate. This means that the gun owner comes across as insecure, uneducated, angry, and closed-minded. Of course, all this does is reinforce the stereotype and ruin the interactions that you would normally be afforded, thereby making it harder to connect and get your point across. What you want to do, what youre going to have to do, is come across as the exact opposite of each of those four ridiculous anti-gunner stereotypes.
First things first

The first thing you want to do is come across as confident. Of course you do, everyone does. Confident means that you are not affected or invested emotionally in the conversation. You act based off of your own concepts and beliefs. You are also not surprised by anything. Youve seen it all before and so its no big deal to you. This will effectively be handled if you act with a Cooperative Value, like stated before. Secondly, you need to seem educated and informed. This way, you beat the unfounded notion that they have when thinking that most pro-gun advocates and concealed carriers are uneducated. Along those lines, that is why you have to understand and memorize a few things that will help you present yourself in a very educated manner. One way that you can do that is to quote a third party source that isnt aligned politically with any sort of idea. Lets say for example that you quoted Rush Limbaugh. Now there is nothing wrong with quoting Rush Limbaugh, the problem lies when you run into a person who finds him non-credible. They are now going to feel like you may not be educated or informed. There is a feeling now that you are getting your sources from places that hold a certain bias. That is why it is important to be ready to quote a neutral source and study those. The third thing that youll want to do is come across as calm and unaffected.
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Getting angry means that you have an emotional investment in whatever you are talking about. Showing that you are passionate about something is fine. However, you have to show them that you are passionate about it by expressing you care for it and not showing them that their not caring for your firearm makes you angry. Not only that, but if an anti-gunner can make you angry to the point of fury, youll only prove their point and demonstrate that you shouldnt own a gun because you might lose your temper and fire it... At least in their minds you will. That is why you need to be calm and unaffected at all times. Finally, you want to stay open and understanding instead of the classic stereotype that pro-gunners are closed-minded. You want to hear what they have to say. If they make a good point, you listen to it. It may not change your mind, but it allows them to validate their point. You will more than likely hear the same things over and over again. The Top 17 anti-gunner arguments are the top 17 for a reason. Most anti-gunners just keep rehashing one or more of those different arguments. That is why if you familiarize yourself with them, you can feel confident in the face of a conversation or confrontation. Youll be confident that you can defeat any argument because you are already prepared on what youre going to say. Not only that, but you will feel educated and informed because you have studied and know the counterpoints that are undeniably valuable and valid. You will stay calm and unaffected because you will not be emotionally invested in, or feeling nervous about, what you are going to say next. You will stay open and understanding because you know that no matter what happens, you are prepared for anything that they have to say. You already have the response firmly in mind for whatever it is. The way to do this, to come across as educated, calm, confident, and open, is to recognize which kind of argument you are actually having. Lets delve into the two different types of arguments that you will be facing now...
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The Moralist
Moral Arguments: Moral arguments are the arguments in which the person is, or has become, emotionally invested. Typically, these can be very insulting arguments. You may even hear them start out with an insult directly aimed at you. Recognizing these kinds of arguments is very important because it allows you to calibrate how you are going to answer. If someone is an emotional state of mind, they are certainly not in a logical state of mind. It is because they are not in a logical state of mind, that you cant argue logically with an emotional person. So.... Dont do it! What you will want to do instead, is you want to have an emotional or moral conversation. They will be more receptive, and may respond more readily to a moral argument because they arent using the logical portion of their brain. The way that the human brain works causes this to be so. Whenever you are accessing the emotional portion of your brain you are not using the logical portion. The same holds true for the opposite. You have to look no further than someone who commits a crime of passion for an example. Ideally, you personally will always want to remain logical in these situations, especially if you are arguing a point as important as carrying a concealed firearm, or the acceptance that should come along with it. When someone is clearly trying to have an emotional argument, you need to be able to discern that and use it to your advantage. One of the surest ways to tell that you are getting into an emotional argument, is if they have an extremely illogical or emotion-driven conversation. Theyll use keywords like wrong, bad person, not right, etc. These are the types of moral words, that allow you to recognize that this person is indeed trying to have a moral debate with you. You will never be able to win a moral debate and that is very important to understand. So instead of trying to win, what you want to do is focus on not being wrong-and thats it.
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The Juice
Think about the first O. J Simpson trial. That is a classic example of a moral debate. When it came down to acquitting Simpson, Cochran knew that there would be no way to prove that O. J was innocent. That would have been very difficult indeed. Instead, what he decided to do was focus all of his attention and efforts on trying to make it impossible to prove Simpson guilty. This was the only way that he could go about things so that the trial was a success. It worked.
He understood that if he could make this a moral argument instead of a logical one, that they stood a chance of coming out on top. Now, he was obviously a seasoned veteran of the legal system and had been debating for a very long time, so was quite good at what he did. Whether or not the outcome was correct, is a whole different issue.
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Whenever you are in an emotional or moral conversation, there are a few guidelines that youll want to think about. The way to not be wrong in these types of arguments is to; A) Make sure you steer away from trying to make logical points. Its not a logical argument! B) When engaging in a moral debate, you cannot try arguing which set of ideals are superior to the other. That will never work. C) Your aim is to prove that your morals are not necessarily wrong. As I said before, you will want to argue the emotional points, all the while never becoming emotional. Dont argue whose points are better, rather try to defend why yours arent wrong. There is a very specific way for doing this and you will see many examples for every single one of these arguments moving forward, as well as a lot of different sources.
The Logician
The next thing to cover on our search for anti-gunner counter-intelligence, is the logical argument. In a logical argument, the person is going to typically begin by stating facts, or they will seem to have very little emotion involved when they are talking to you. Logical arguments will more than likely begin rather difficult for you. This is because the person has already judged and decided who the gun advocate is, to the point that they are unaffected by responses and counter-points. If you cant affect them, it makes it that much more difficult to get your point across. That is why you are going to need cold, hard facts and evidence to the contrary. There are two things you are going to end up being very good at. The first, is to be very serious and particular about what sources you use. Third party sources
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are acceptable, however skewed party sources are not. This refers to anyone that has another objective or alignment, be it politically or otherwise. Those are definitely not good sources to quote, especially, in this case, if they are pro-gun sources.
Incredibly Credible
For example if you quoted The Center for Gun Rights, or the Second Amendment Rights in an argument where the anti-gunner has done any homework, none of that research would have any positive effect. Why? The reason is because when they ask you where your source came from, and then you tell them, they may believe that source to be non-credible. Whether or not that source is actually credible doesnt really matter to them. The point to be made here is that you need a source from a third party that is in no way connected with you. In fact, it would be even better if that third party wasnt aligned with you at all, and is typically used to argue the opposing side. The other thing that you need to be able to do in a logical debate is to keep your emotional distance. You have to keep your cool. There is a real technique for helping you do this. It is a very powerful emotional disassociation technique that allows you to stay cool and keep your head on straight, all the while having what has to be a very logical argument. This is referred to as the Glass Wall technique.
Life Behind the Glass Wall

What you want to do when using the Glass Wall technique is to imagine that there is a sort of bullet-proof glass wall between the two of you. Whatever they say hits the glass wall and falls harmlessly down into an imaginary bucket. Next, you want to look inside the bucket and take out only the things that you think are worth taking. Just leave all the rest inside the bucket. This way, if there is any kind of insult, verbal attack, or emotional response back to you, instead of letting it affect you emotionally, simply watch it hit the glass wall and
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drop right down into the bucket! Then you can decide what to take out and what to leave, without becoming emotionally involved.
Our natural response, and our go-to play for most of these kinds of situations, is to allow ourselves to be affected by everything that someone says to us. However when you are in a situation like this, where you have to keep your cool, use the Glass Wall technique to be able to let only the things that you want to affect you, affect you. This will put you in a very powerful position of control. Another technique that you can use, is to simply look up. By looking up, you are accessing the visual portion of your brain instead of the emotional portion. Look them directly in the eye if you can. If you feel yourself starting to get the least bit emotional, and dont want to display that emotion, try looking just over their head when theyre speaking. Keep yourself from looking down altogether! Do not look down.
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As long as you continue looking up you will have a very, very limited emotional response and will therefore be able to keep your emotional distance from the argument. Youll be able to think and act more clearly during a logical argument. Latch onto these techniques and keep them close because they are very powerful tools in combating the anti-gun advocate.
The Difference is in the Details

Lets take a moment to look at an example of the difference between a moral and a logical argument. Well go into one of the more common, but not Top 17, antigunner arguments out there. You are at the restaurant perhaps, or maybe even just strolling down the street, and you hear someone say, Carrying a gun is wrong and shooting people is evil! Okay, fair enough. Now, you are going to have to argue this point. So lets pretend that this conversation, as youve probably already recognized by watching their body language and listening to their word phrasing, is going to be a moral argument. This is
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not a logical argument so you are not going to try and make any logical points right now. You can tell by their trigger words, wrong, and evil. Anti-gunner: Carrying a gun is wrong and shooting people is evil! Concealed Carrier: Well, you might be right. However let me ask you a question if you dont mind. I just want to see what you think about this situation because it is the kind of question that I used to ask myself before I started carrying a firearm. Would that be alright? Anti-gunner: Sure, whatever. Concealed Carrier: Are you married? At this point you may receive a wide variety of answers. They could say yes, no, none of your business, or any number of things, however the answer is irrelevant. Concealed Carrier: Okay, well lets imagine for a moment that you are walking with your loved one. You love this person with all your heart, yet suddenly before you can react, someone grabs them and puts a gun to their head. Very calmly they look at you and say, Im going to shoot your loved one in the head but my gun isnt cocked yet. If you can shoot me before I kill them, they will live. But if I can still move after you shoot me, Ill be sure to kill them anyway. Now if you had a gun and knew how to use it, would you shoot that person? Would you kill that gunman, or would you watch the person you love die? This will lead to one of two responses from the moral anti-gun advocate. One is almost unimaginable, while the other is a calm and thought out response. If they do happen to go with the ridiculous and nonsensical response by saying no they wouldnt shoot, or that they would try to punch them and then wrest the gun away your response would be:
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Concealed Carrier: Well, I would shoot them. I wouldnt risk my (wife, husband, mother, father, or child)s life for a second! I would hold my loved one in my arms afterward, and we would go to the police to get help. Thats the difference between us I suppose. No worries though, I know its not for everyone. At this moment in time, you still have not effectively gotten your point across. You still have not won the debate. The point for a moral argument is not to prove that yours are right. You simply want to prove that your morals arent wrong. By taking the opposing point of view, their morals are by default set on wrong. Here they have just agreed that they would let the person they love die in front of them, yet you will not. Your morals arent the ones that are wrong. No one in their right mind would tell you that it is wrong to protect the people you love. Therefore it is impossible for you to lose this argument. Again however, you cannot win it either. Moral arguments tend not to have no clear cut winner or loser. If they say yes, they would shoot the gunman, the conversation will likely end like this... Anti-gunner: Yeah, I see your point. I would probably shoot them, but how many times are you realistically going to be put in that situation? Concealed Carrier: I couldnt tell you. I can tell you that is the only time I will ever pull my firearm. I respect the people who carry responsibly and maturely. As for everyone else, they give people like myself, the real concealed carry community, a bad name and I would prefer not to be associated with them at all. What youve just done is to further clarify how different you are from what their stereotype of a typical CCW permit holder is. As long as you can clarify that while you are in the situation, youve come out on top and their mind has effectively been changed. Since weve just taken a look at the moralist, lets move on and glance at an example of a logical argument.
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Logical arguments are a little more complex. For this particular logical argument the statistics I quote will not actually be true. However for the examples used in later chapters, all of the statistics are precise and more specifically, triple-checked to be true. Those sources are also cited, so you can feel free to quote them. Remember this one is just for an example... Anti-Gunner: Carrying a gun is wrong and shooting people is evil. Concealed carrier: Well, that may be true. Are you saying that because of the death count associated with handguns every year? Well, that may be true... Stop here for a moment. The reason that the concealed carrier, namely you, would say something like, Well, that may be true, when its quite obvious that it isnt, is because you are trying to steer the conversation into a logical frame. You want it to be a logical conversation. So what you are in essence saying to them is, While what you are saying might be true to you, lets figure out why are you saying what you are saying, so that we can figure out whether or not its actually a fact. Instead of taking a completely opposing position, you are taking a slightly aligned position in the beginning, and then moving on from there to sway them from their already prejudiced belief system. Remember that car metaphor used earlier in the book? Youre doing this now. Anti-gunner: Yes, guns are atrocious. They kill more people than cancer, car wrecks and aids combined each year. People like you are just waiting to kill someone. It must be pointed out again that these statistics are made up. You should just be prepared for someone who tries taking things to the extreme!
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Concealed carrier: You may be right. But did you know that 93% of handgun related deaths in the U.S. last year were committed by people who did not have a license to carry a concealed firearm? I agree with you though. I think that the police should definitely crack down on people illegally owning handguns. Its terrible that people who are unqualified, or immature and uneducated, are running around the streets with handcannons and chips on their shoulders. The statistic may not be real and completely made up, but its probably not that far off! At this point, youve done two things. The first is to tell them that they may be right again, and then instead of saying, Youre not right. Thats not true.... And here are the facts contrary to that. Youve actually said, You may be right. However, did you know this? Its pretty interesting! Then youve also made the counterpoint of, I agree though. Although you do not agree with their viewpoint precisely, you are changing what they believe. You are telling them that, Im going to assume that you understand that this is a very logical thought process that we are going through. I also agree that police should crack down on people who illegally own handguns. This is very interesting because they probably did not originally think that the police should crack down on illegal firearms... Youve just helped them clarify that point in their mind. How nice of you! :) You simply clarified for them what they already believe, because you are assuming that they are a logical person. You are assuming that they are going to accept this well and move on. And when you make it easier for them to be a logical and open person than to be closed off and emotional, and theyll do it. Anti-gunner: Thats not true. Where did you read that? Rushlimbaugh.com or something?
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Concealed Carrier: Haha. Actually, the census releases the results to their studies to the general public every year. If you go to census.gov and click on deaths, youll see it there. There are lots of really eye-opening facts in there as well. Really cool stuff. Anti-gunner: Ill check it out later. Im not sure if thats right or not. Concealed carrier Okay. Send me an email and let me know if you find anything else interesting in there. Its a pretty cool web site. If youre into that sort of thing. End of conversation. At this point in time, they are going to fact check behind you. Youll probably never see them again, but youve just come across as an authority on the topic of handguns. However not just on handguns, youll also come across as being an authority on the anti-gunner!
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Chapter 5
Top 13 Biggest Debate Mistakes
It is better to debate a question without settling it than to settle a question without debating it... Joseph Joubert
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Now we will go over the top 13 Biggest Debate and Argument Mistakes that people will typically make when they get into an argument with someone. So lets go straight into it: 1. An Ad Hominem Attack: This first thing to put it simply, is attacking the arguer and not the argument. Its very easy to fall into this sort of trap when you become emotionally invested in whatever it is youre talking about. If you are speaking about carrying concealed, I can almost guarantee that at some point, you are going to become emotionally invested. Its hard not to be sometimes, which is why you need to be prepared beforehand. Its a very strong and powerful decision that you made when you first decided to carry concealed. Ad Hominem Attacks are one of the biggest debate mistakes that you can make. You will want to make sure that you steer clear of emotional association and judging during the argument. 2. Arguing from Authority without Trust: Although you may find a few with backgrounds in law or something similarly associated, you will automatically know more about the rules and regulations than the average anti-gun advocate. That is why speaking from a position of authority will not make any sense to them, unless you first build their trust. This is the second most common debate mistake. You cannot argue from authority, unless you first build trust. 3. Appeal to Ignorance: Absence of evidence, is not evidence of absence. What do I mean by that? Instead of thinking the person you are dealing with is ignorant, and that you can simply make stuff up and theyll believe it, make sure that you have evidence to back up your claim. Dont make up statistics. In the long run, if they look up the information that you have given them and it is inaccurate, or worse completely untrue, then you will find that youve only pushed them even further away from accepting CCW. Our goal is to
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make them understand, respect, and accept the rights of a concealed carrier. 4. Adding Religion into the Argument: Sadly, not everyone is going to accept our right to protect the people that we love. There are some who will believe that, no matter the circumstance, the debate must be had about how right or wrong it is to kill someone. Instead, its important to leave out what is termed special pleading. Try to keep religion outside of a pro-gun argument. If you can, always steer clear of this massive mistake that people make, when trying to debate from a pro-gun perspective. If youre sure that you both have the same moral views, feel free to attempt to bring religion into the argument, but do it at your own risk, as doing so is the 4th most common mistake in debate. 5. Begging the Question: This term means assuming that you already know the answer to a question that you ask by the way that you phrase it. For instance you would say something like, The last time your wife was attacked, did you stand there and watch it happen- or run away? When you make the mistake of asking questions like these, you must understand that they are not very fair and people will automatically get defensive, so avoid them at all costs. 6. Ignoring the Contrary Evidence: This pitfall is encountered whenever you take only the good things about a statistic, and do not account for or relay any of the negative. You do not take into account anything that doesnt help or further your argument. The reason that it is important not to do this is because the person you are arguing with, will be coming up with their own points to combat yours. When arguing or debating about firearms, you must have your bases covered!
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7. Using Statistics of Small Size: Something like drawing conclusions from inadequate sample sizes would be an example of this. If you were to quote a study that took 50 Americans that were asked a series of questions, then this would be an inadequate cross-section, therefore you would not want to quote that study. 8. Using Non-sequiturs: If what you are going to say doesnt follow your point, then dont say it! 9. Misunderstanding Cause & Effect: The technical term for this is, Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc. In Latin this means, It happened after, so it was caused by... An illustration of this would be something like every time that your car stalls, you get out and kick the left rear tire, get back into your car, and it starts up again. It doesnt mean that just because you are kicking the back tire, that youre fixing the car. It may just mean that your car needs a chance to settle. You couldve just as easily flipped your visor up and down 3 times and the same thing wouldve happened. So it is drawing conclusions based on one piece of evidence or one cause and then automatically assuming that the cause made the effect happen because it occurred immediately after the cause did. This is a huge mistake especially in a debate. 10. Asking Meaningless or Unanswerable Questions: An example of this would be the age old question of What happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object? These kinds of questions only delay the point of the argument. 11. Excluding the Middle: All this means is that you take one side of an argument, namely your own, to the exclusion of everything between yourself and your opponent, whom you have placed at the far opposite extreme. Another very common debate mistake. For example, you know that there are a lot of gray areas as to when or if you would draw your gun. However, if you do not make a conscious moral decision ahead of time, about when you will and will not pull your firearm, then you will always question
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whether or not you need to do it. Along the lines of debate, if you havent come to terms with what your stance is ahead of time, what you will end up doing during the debate is taking two extremes and trying to compare them together. This opens the door for them to arrive at a third option that you havent thought of yet. You may say something like, Well if I own a gun, then I can protect myself. If you dont own a gun, then you have no way to protect yourself. Well, this isnt necessarily true. Youve just given them the option of listing anything from owning a knife, to relocating to a safer neighborhood, and each these would all be very reasonable responses to what youve just said. You have effectively just lost control of the entire conversation! Protecting yourself does not necessarily mean that you need a gun. However simply taking those two extremes, puts you in a position of vulnerability and weakness. That is not a position that you want to find yourself in. You are the one that wants to be able to come up with the third, fourth, and fifth options. 12. A Slippery Slope: Youve heard the story about people who tread on slippery slopes? Dont be that person! Whenever you take multiple points and you create a chain of events that have not happened yet and try leading them to an end result, then you are treading that slope. If I were to tell you, If you go outside when its raining, youll catch a cold. If you catch a cold then you will get pneumonia. When that happens, you will be in the hospital and then youll miss my birthday party. Could this happen? Sure, but its not necessarily true and probably wont happen. This is why we call it a slippery slope. Its not backed by any sort of evidence whatsoever and is typically thrown out as invalid.
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13. Argument Stereotyping: This next debating land-mine, is stereotyping someone so as to make the argument smoother on your end. You intentionally force this person into a stereotype to make them easier to attack. This however, doesnt really work. If you dont speak to people as individuals, then you will end up assuming a lot of things that they can then argue against and youll end up looking like a fool for assuming you understand your opponent. Those are the top 13 biggest mistakes that a person can make during a debate. When you go through these debates and you then see the Top17 anti-gunner arguments in the next chapter, you will be looking and watching out for the mistakes that the antigunners will be making. By noticing the person breaking these cardinal debating rules, you will be able to point out where they are no longer making a whole lot of sense with their arguments. That being the case, you can more effectively recognize that they are losing control over their argument. You will then be able to calmly understand, and respond very easily and smoothly each time. The generated responses that you are going to read in the next chapter have been well thought out and have solid backing. The sources are all soundly produced, thirdparty, or unbiased. Whats more, all of the arguments are ones that you could make for yourself as a pro-gun advocate and concealed carry member. Feel free to memorize and say word for word everything that you read if youd like. Or simply read them and take in exactly what an argument for each one of the AntiGunner points should look like. Gain the concepts of the arguments and reproduce them on your own. Whichever way you choose, these are going to be infinitely valuable for you. Read and understand all of the proper responses that follow these rules. By doing this you will not only be able to build trust, but calibrate and offer moral and logical responses for each version of the argument. Without further ado, lets get into the top 17 Anti-Gunner Arguments.
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Chapter 6
The Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments
Its better to close your mouth and appear a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. Abraham Lincoln
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The Arguments
At last, weve come to the chapter that will equip you to deal with the Top 17 most commonly used arguments against carrying a concealed firearm. Not only do you need to read these several times to get a firm grasp of the concepts, but you will want to rehearse them so that the next time you find yourself in these arguments youll be ready for anything that the anti-gun advocate can throw at you! Argument 1 : The Take-away. This is the belief that, if the Government would take away everyones firearms, then crime would drop. There is substantial proof that guns do not cause crime and in more cases than not, prevent it from ever happening. Taking away guns when crime is so prevalent would be sheer lunacy. Heres the argument.
Moral
Anti-gunner : You know, my son had his house broken into by a gunmen six months ago. He broke in while they were home sleeping and let me tell you, if the government would just take away guns that wouldnt happen. Gun users are just awful. You : Hmmm... You may be right about that. Thats a scary situation to be in! I wish there was a way to say that we could take the guns away from the bad guys and give them to the good guys. Like, if your son had a gun and the burglar didnt, thered probably be a different situation all together! I dont know about how it is for you, but for me, Id do anything to protect my family. I love my family more than anything in the world. If I thought, for even a second, that some cracked out lunatic was going to hurt anyone in my family and they werent responding to warnings, Id put a bullet in him or a knife through him or SOMETHING to make him stop. IF DISAGREED (A ludicrous admission) Anti-gunner : I would call the police first, or hide my family first. And then I would figure out what to do with the gunman.
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You : Each of us has a choice. I suppose that we just have differing viewpoints. If I am in that position and my family is in danger, I wont hesitate or take the chance that they could get to my family before I could stop him. IF AGREED (much more likely) Anti-gunner : My familys safety is priority one too. You : Yeah. I know. I never felt this way until I had someone to die for, you know? I believe that they should crack down on people who use firearms irresponsibly and harsher penalties for people who commit crimes. It is irresponsible people like that who give the real concealed carry community a bad name. What can they say? You just effectively overcome any possible stereotype that they might have put you in, all the while never saying anything that might make you wrong. Not only have you accomplished that, but youve positioned yourself to be more on their side. For each moral argument moving forward through this list you will see this same thing happening. Now lets look at the same argument only from a logical standpoint, if that is what you are having.
Logical
Anti gunner: You know, my son had his house broken into by a gunmen six months ago. He broke in while they were home sleeping and let me tell you, If the government would just take away guns, then the crime rate would drop 80% and maybe something like that wouldnt happen to someone else. You : You think so? Why do you say that? Anti-gunner : Of course I do, by taking away guns they will take away crime. You : Well you know, I agree with you. I think there should be a definite crackdown on people who carry guns illegally. Proper gun carrying citizens stop crime
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from happening every day though. I didnt know this until recently but 1,100 murders, 550 rapes and 5,200 other violent crimes that are prevented each year because someone pulls a firearm on their attacker. Crazy, huh? 1 Anti-gunner : Im not sure I believe that. Ill have to look it up and see it for myself. You : I know what you mean. Northwestern University released that info a while ago, actually. Just go to www.Northwestern.edu. Youll see it on the site. I was looking at a National Crime Victimization survey just the other day as well, its conducted by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, and their studies said that 60% of the time firearms are used to protect, rather than take lives, which I thought was pretty surprising too. I expected, with all the gang related violence, that it would be much lower than that. 2 Anti-gunner : Well I will be sure to take a look at those sources. You may just be feeding me a line. You : Sure, could you do me a favor when you do? Let me know if you run across anything else on there that you find interesting? There are so many great sites out there, I never seem to find the time to look at them all. The conversation will end on an upbeat and positive note. Youve just provided him with two strong, third-party sources and youve once again placed yourself more on their side by respecting them and transferred the thought process from attack mode to something much more helpful!
Argument 2 : The Take-a-way Part II. The reason that we call this the takeaway part two is because it is along the same lines as the first argument, but somewhat different. This is the belief that At least the violent crimes would be taken away if guns were taken away.
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Evidence shows that the vast majority of violent crimes are committed by criminals against other criminals, more specifically gangs against gangs. That being the case, if firearms were taken away from society at large, criminals would still have guns and violent crimes would escalate, leaving innocent people with no way to defend themselves.
Moral
Anti-gunner : You know, violent crimes would just go away and people wouldnt get hurt anymore if they did away with guns for good. People who carry guns are just despicable! You : Now thats an interesting idea actually. I mean, I know that I want to do everything possible to protect my family of course. I rest easier at night knowing, that if the worst possible situation imaginable happened, my loved ones were protected, you know? Not sure if you feel the same way about that though. Thats why I carry a gun. For that reason and that reason only. IF NO (Again, unthinkable and un-sound reasoning) Anti-gunner : Well not me. I would wait for the police or pick up a nightstand or something. You : I know where youre coming from but I wouldnt take that chance because my family is just too important. I couldnt rest at night for thinking that I may not be able to protect them. I would be putting my family in harms way. But I respect that carrying concealed isnt for everyone. IF YES (Now were talking sense!) Anti-gunner : Yeah, protecting your family is the most important thing there is. I guess you are probably right, but that will never happen in my neighborhood.
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You : I hope not for your sake and the sake of your family. As for me, I have to make sure that my family is protected at all times. I respect those who carry a firearm responsibly, and for no other reason than to make sure that their family gets seen safely through to tomorrow.
Logical
Anti-gunner : Its a fact that less guns on the street means less crime..You take away the guns- you take away the violent crime. You : Its funny that you should mention that. Its actually factually true. Did you know that two-thirds of all people who die from gunfire are criminals shooting other criminals?3 Anti-gunner : No. Where did you hear that nonsense, a conservative web site? You : Heh. Well Im a sucker for trying to find out interesting facts, and I saw that the Bureau of Justice statistics released a study on their web site about homicide trends. Another study done by the National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center, shows that 94.4 percent of all reported gun murders are gang related. Pretty serious stuff. I think there should be a government crackdown on those responsible for such atrocities. Id be more than furious if someone in my family was caught in the crossfire of some thugs or Mafiosos with big egos to protect. 4 Anti-gunner : Thats interesting. Ill have to check those out. Will you write down the web sites so that I can look at them later? You : Sure thing. Argument 3 : The Nobody needs a gun in their home argument. Pretty self explanatory if you read it slowly! There is enough documented crime in America, and enough lack of support by law enforcement agents, that warrant responsible and law-abiding citizens having guns in their homes and businesses.
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Moral
Anti-gunner : I dont know why people have guns in their homes. They are nothing but instruments of violence! You : You may be right. But every time I see my family smile, I know that I would do anything to keep them safe, even if that means that I have to learn the responsible way to use a firearm. That way, if someone ever were to break into my home, I know that I am equipped to deal with things. I never want to have to worry about being able to forgive myself. IF DISAGREED Anti-gunner : No. Listen youve got some options around the house...You can use something other than a gun and call the police! (Seriously? Nothing like taking a knife to a gunfight...But you never know a persons reasoning sometimes!) You : Having to forgive myself for allowing a tragedy to befall my family is something that I just wont do. When I am at home with them, I feel better knowing that theyre protected. And feeling better makes me happy. But if I have a gun on the intruder and I see a baseball bat and I KNOW he doesnt have a gun, Ill pick the bat up. Haha. Why the hell not? I could shoot him in the legs but it might be just as good to break his legs with a bat! I think that actually hurts more though... Whatever though! Of course youll never know that the intruder doesnt have a gun. But it serves you well in this argument for sure when they realize that your alternative is still to immobilize the intruder and protect your family. IF YES Anti-gunner : I can see your point. I love my family too and safety is important. I just dont know if having a gun is the answer, but I never really thought of it that way before.
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You : I think I understand your hesitation. Everyone is different and it isnt for some. As a matter of fact, it was because of the very thing that I got a licensed to carry a firearm. (Sometimes, even when they somewhat agree with you they may remain hesitant. Its okay! Remember, you arent here to win the argument, youre here not to lose it or make yourself appear wrong!)
Logical
Anti-gunner : You know its because of people like you having all these guns in your homes that people are killed all the time! You should be ashamed! You : What makes you say that? (Politely ask) Anti-gunner : Well, all you have to do is turn on the news and you see it everyday! You : Well, you might be right about that. However, I was just reading a survey that showed 74% of convicted felons said, One reason that burglars avoid houses when people are at home, is because they fear getting shot. 5 Anti-gunner : Where was that survey done? On that survey Game Show? You : No, although I think I saw that episode! Actually I was surprised to find that it was a survey called The Armed Criminal in America, and I found out it was done by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics on a National Institute of Justice Report. Pretty incredible stuff. Another interesting note was that 60% of felons admitted avoiding committing crimes in which they knew the victim was armed. I found that statistic on A Survey of Incarcerated Felons . That too was done by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. 6 Anti-gunner : Hmm. Well I dont know but Ill be sure to look into it. It does
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sound pretty interesting. You : Its definitely worth checking out. I read some really eye-opening things in those reports. You have my email address right? Send me an email if you find out anything else worth knowing. Im always interested in that sort of thing.
Argument 4 : Who needs a gun! Isnt that what police are for? This argument is based on the false assumption that the police will be around to protect you when you need it. Law enforcement is not large enough to cover all of the crimes that occur each day, much less prevent many that happen. They need all the help they can get from lawabiding citizens to keep communities safe.
Moral
Anti-gunner : Why are you carrying that gun? Thats what our police officers get paid to do. You must be trying to do their job for them! Dont you get it? Its their job! You : You may be right about that. Our police put their lives out there every day just to protect people. They should be commended for the effort that they put in. But Ive got an interesting question that I used to ask myself. Do you mind if I see what you think of it? Anti-gunner : Sure I guess so. You : Just imagine for a moment that youve stopped at a convenient store for gas. Your loved one walks inside ahead of you to get a candy bar. After you walk in to pay, a man in front of the counter pulls a gun. If you saw this happen and knew that your loved one was in harms way, if you had a gun, would you draw it on him?
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IF NO Anti-gunner : No I would try to wrest the gun away from them. or jump them from behind. (Ridiculous notion because they would be endangering the lives of everyone by doing so.) Or, Id lay on the ground and wait for the Police. (fair enough... As long as your loved one is safe, theres no harm in this.) You : I know. Its hard to say though, isnt it? It would be a horrible experience to have to go through, but I would be able to get through it much easier knowing that I was able to protect a person that I hold dear. If I had to shoot because my loved one was in danger, I wouldnt hesitate to do it. So many things can go wrong in a situation like this and Id never dream of using my gun even in this type of situation but I carry it just in case someone I love is in danger. I never want to have to choose between having regret for pulling the trigger versus having regret for never pulling the trigger. I just want to be prepared either way. IF YES Anti-gunner : Well, I can certainly understand why you would say that. Since you put it that way I guess its better to be safe than sorry. You: Absolutely. There is certainly nothing wrong with wanting to protect someone you care about. I know that their protection is all that really matters to me. I would be able to get through it much easier knowing that I was able to protect a person that I hold dear. Logical Anti-gunner : You know, I think its ridiculous that you think you need to carry a gun. Dont you know thats what we have the police and law enforcement for? You : That may be true, and I gave that a lot of thought before I first began carrying concealed.
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Anti-gunner : Is that right? You Oh yeah. I did a ton of homework. I knew if I decided to carry concealed it had better be for the right reasons. In fact, I read a statistic released by the U.S. Justice department in 1998 that showed there is one police officer for every 1,813 people. That was in 1998 too. The population has exploded since then. That means for every 1,813 people I see, Ill see one cop. I wondered how many of those 1,813 people were criminals? It just wasnt very good odds to me. 7 Anti-gunner : Well, I dont know if I believe that. It still seems to me like you wouldnt need a gun. There are always plenty of police around! You : Yeah I could see why you say that. It does seem that way perhaps. So I kept on searching. And in 1997 there werent enough police officers to deal with the 497,950 robberies, 96,122 rapes, and 18,209 murder victims that occurred that year. Those were all successful crimes. That made the decision to carry concealed easy for me. 8 Anti-gunner : You must have gotten that from a right-wing pamphlet or something! You might be making that up. You : Right-Wing? Haha. Far from it. I found it while I was doing some browsing on the FBI web site. A lot of eye-opening things on there. That particular research was done by FBI Uniform Crime Statistics. Just go to FBI.gov and you will see it in there. Anti-gunner : I dunno about all that, but Ill be sure to check it out. You : Do that. Really awesome information on that site. Argument 5 : We have to save the children from guns! This argument is based on the inaccurate picture that guns kill more children than other types of accidents. However more children are killed in automobile accidents each day, and twenty-nine times as many due to drowning, than can be attributed to firearms.
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Moral
Anti-gunner : Youre the whole reason for the trouble we have with children and guns today! I knew this one person whos child was killed because of an illegal gun lying around. You : Thats absolutely terrible... Anti-gunner : I know it. And its people like you that caused it! You : You know, When I first began carrying a concealed, I had given a lot of thought to that very thing. And I got to thinking what if I were ever in a situation where my child was endangered because of something else happening? I dont think I could ever live with myself knowing that someone I care about, died because I failed to protect them. But thats me, of course. And I know that children are curious so I keep my gun in several pieces locked in different parts of my room, of course. IF STILL RESISTANT Anti-gunner : Well, I just dont think its worth the risk. You : Fair enough. People have different ways of protecting and I think its not for everyone. For example I wouldnt want someone who is unfamiliar with a gun to recklessly lay their gun around the house. So Im glad there is so much education available out there for people who carry concealed or have guns in their homes. IF NOT RESISTANT Anti-gunner : Hmm, well you may have a point there I dont know if I could live with myself either. I still dont know if its worth the risk, though I can see why you carry a firearm. You : My family is why I decided to take the necessary steps to ensure that I
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knew how to responsibly and effectively use a firearm. Its not for everyone, but for me, my familys safety is the most important thing in the world to me. I never want to be put in a position in which there were something more that I could have done, and didnt do.
Logical
Anti-gunner : People like you make me sick! Its because of you that 13 children a day are killed from gun accidents! You : 13 children a day? Hmm... I think I read this statistic. Whered you hear it? Anti-gunner : They tell things like that on the news all the time. Maybe you should watch it every now and then! You : Actually thats a bit of an Urban Legend statistic. Someone recently reviewed that study because they thought the numbers were a little high, considering the number of actual death certificates for children from handguns. They ended up finding out that the statistic was a little askew. Anti-gunner : Well you cant really skew 13 children dying! You : No. You are right. But that statistic was found in this report done by the Centers for Disease Control called, The National Vital Statistics Report. In there was the breakdown of all of the numbers. Thats where it gets interesting. Those numbers included juvenile and adult deaths ranging from 17-20 years old of which 70% were killed in gang related activity. Very eye-opening. 10 Anti-gunner : Ill have to look it up because I dont know if you are right or not. You : Sure thing. I also read that the amount of accidental child drownings was 29 times the inflated number of childrens deaths by handguns in 2001 alone. But, of course, Im not going to keep my kids from swimming. Thatd be silly. 9
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Anti-gunner : Pshh! You gotta be kidding me? Where did you get that information? You: It was a study released by the Centers for Disease Control called, 20 Leading Causes of Unintentional Deaths. Pretty interesting report. I never knew that until I read it. Argument 6 : Anyone can get a gun. Its way too easy! The argument is based on the false assumption the people who carry a concealed firearm are thugs and criminals, when in actuality it is the law-abiding citizen who follow the laws and not the criminals. They also have to be responsible with them, whereas a criminal does not. Most crimes in America are committed by criminals who obtain their firearms illegally. Responsibility with a gun is one of the many things that separate the lawabiding citizen and the criminal who both own a firearm.
Moral
Anti-gunner : You see! Just goes to show that guns are too easy to get. No wonder this world is in such bad shape. Nothing but people trying to be scary and intimidating. You : You may be right about that. Thats exactly the same sentiment that I wrestled with for a long time, before I started carrying a concealed firearm. But the people that would attack and hurt me and my family are carrying firearms. And Id never be the one to bring a knife to a gun fight! Id obviously avoid the gun fight all together if I can. Im sure you feel the same way. IF NO Anti-gunner : Well, there is always something you can do. There is always a choice to be made. You: Yeah... There is always a choice. I agree there should be a definite crackdown
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on illegal guns. There are far too many irresponsible people in the world. For me, I choose my familys safety. I love them more than anything else in the whole world and I dont want to see their lives shortened because I failed to protect them. I just couldnt live with myself. But keeping them out of harms way is just as important as protecting them. Which is why I hide my gun. I dont want thugs seeing me as a challenge and coming after me! Thatd just defeat the purpose all together! IF YES Anti-gunner : No, I probably wouldnt risk my familys safety either. I just cant help thinking that there must be an alternative. You : I agree there should be a definite crackdown on illegal guns. There are far too many irresponsible people in the world. For me I decided to choose my familys safety. I love them more than anything else in the whole world, and I dont want to see their lives shortened because I failed to protect them. I just couldnt live with myself.
Logical
Anti-gunner : Just goes to show that guns are too easy to get. You : You think so? Thats interesting because I hear a lot of people complaining about the exact opposite. What makes you say that? Anti-gunner : Well you got one so it couldnt have been too hard. Thats why theres so much crime. You : Haha. Well I thought itd be easy to get too, considering all of the thugs that have them. Even after going through the hassle of legally getting one I was still curious to see how easy they were to get. And I read something the other day that you might find this interesting. It was a an Analysis of the Arrest Rate of Texas Concealed Carry Handgun License Holders as Compared to the Arrest Rate of the Entire Texas Population. It showed that people who carry a concealed firearms are 13.5 times less
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likely than the general public to ever be arrested for a violent natured offense.11 Which I thought was pretty interesting. I think it speaks to how hard it actually is to get a firearm. The people who go through the hoops to obtain one are very likely to go through the trouble of learning about them and educating themselves on the laws. I think a lot of Concealed Carriers feel a weight on their shoulders for carrying and they hold themselves responsible for that reason. Anti-gunner : Is that stat real? Im not so sure. You : Its true, Ill write the name down for you so that you can look it up. The Handgun Law Informational site had another interesting tid-bit I found. They show that among the 15 states that have the highest homicide rates, 10 of them have the most restrictive gun laws. 12 Anti-gunner : Yeah, well Ill have to look that up too. Just be sure you write it all down because Im going to check it. You : No doubt! Do that, and let me know if you run across anything else that you find interesting. Argument 7 : Your right to carry shouldnt infringe on my right not to! This is the age old argument that states, by your decision to carry a concealed firearm you are infringing on anothers right not to. The truth of the matter is, that a person who legally carries a gun has the right to and documented reasons for doing so. We do so because of the enormous amount of crime in public places.
Moral
Anti-gunner : There is absolutely no reason for you to be carrying that gun in public. You should have just left it at home where it belongs! Your right to bear arms shouldnt infringe on my right not to have to put up with it! You : That may be true, but can I ask you a question?
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Anti-gunner : Yeah I guess. You : If the most horrible situation happened, and a gunmen walked in here, not looking for money, but looking for blood, could you prevent a tragedy? Could you stop that gunmen from hurting an innocent bystander... Or worse someone you love? IF YES Anti-gunner : I would just reach for something close or jump them as they walk by. or Thats not my responsibility. People can take care of themselves. etc. You : Then I suppose that we are just different sorts of people. There is no way that I could ever risk the safety of my loved ones. Not even for a single instant, and most certainly not on the off chance that I can disarm an angry gunman. I want to be safe and calm. If I know I can handle the situation if it gets worse then Im calm and collected. IF NO Anti-gunner : Yeah, you are probably right. If that did happen I would hate it. I love my family and would never want them to come to harm. Im not sure that carrying a gun is going to solve the problem though. You : I understand. Its not for everyone. For me though, my loved ones safety is my only concern. I cant take the risk that the one time that I fail them their lives end because of it.
Logical
Anti-gunner : Sheesh! Its because of people like you carrying guns in public, that the crime rate is so high! Truth be known, you are infringing on my right to enjoy a pleasant afternoon because of that thing! You : Well, you may be right about that. Ive given other peoples thoughts a lot
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of consideration over the years. Actually, the other day I read a report that was done by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics that said, 77% of crimes occurred in public places. When I walk out the door Im over twice as likely to need my handgun. I thought that was interesting, considering most people keep guns in their houses but not on them. 13 Anti-gunner : Yeah, they happen because people like you carry guns!
You: Haha. Actually, another study done at the University of Chicago called, Multiple Victim Shootings, Bombings, and the Right to Carry Concealed, they found that multiple shootings in public places drop in all states that have Shall Issue laws; meaning Concealed Carry Rights. 14 Anti-gunner : I dont know about that. Ill check it out. You : Sure thing. Pretty amazing stuff. Argument 8 : 1,000 Americans die every day because of guns. This argument is based solely on skewed numbers that include everything from Direct War Death cases, and an additional 14% of the figure includes suicides. That is important to note because a person who is intent on taking their life, will do so regardless of the availability of a gun. Of the 30,000 people who die annually from guns 54% are suicides, and 80% of those occur in Canada not the United States.
Moral
Anti-gunner : Have you seen the news lately? People like you make it unsafe to go anywhere anymore. I dont know what I would do if I saw you shoot someone. So sad, hundreds dying every day. You : Whoa now. I think the people who kill each other for ego are despicable, soulless thugs! If there were ever a tragic situation to happen, I wouldnt risk someone I love coming to harm at the hands of someone like them. Especially if I knew that I could
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prevent it. Im sure that you would do everything in your power to protect your loved ones too. IF NO Anti-gunner : Id never shoot a gun! There are other things you can do! You : If I was looking at the person I cared most for in the world being attacked by a cracked out idiot with a chip on his shoulder, you better believe Id immobilize him without a second of hesitation. I wont take a gamble that someone I love would come to harm because of my inability to react quickly. Thats just me though. I know not everyone is like me. IF YES Anti-gunner : Im not sure about all that, but I can see why you say that. I suppose it is a big risk to take. You : Yeah. I may only have one chance to protect them, and I wont be unprepared. I cannot take a gamble that someone I love comes to harm because of my irresponsibility.
I must reiterate here that the objective of a moral argument is NOT to win. Your goal is to make it impossible for them to find your morals wrong. Thats all. Logical
Anti-gunner : You people make me sick! Hundreds people die every day because of you! You : Thats an interesting statistic. Would you mind me asking where you heard it?
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Anti-gunner : The newspaper, man! Maybe you should try reading it instead of looking around for someone to shoot! You : Oh ok. The reason I say interesting, is because Im kind of a sucker for statistics. I guess in a weird way its sort of a hobby actually. And according to the IANSAs Small Arms Survey called, Bringing the Local Gun Crisis Under Control that of the 1,000 people killed daily by guns, that number also includes direct war deaths. That means that everyone who is killed in any war or military operations is included in that statistic! 15 Anti-gunner : Ill have to check about that. Regardless, the number is still too large! You : Well yeah! Any death that is caused by the irresponsible use of a hand gun is one too many. Did you know that the National Youth Prevention Resource Center released a study that showed that, of the 30,000 people killed annually by guns 54% of them are suicides? Still bad though. Illegal guns are too easy to get. 16 Anti-gunner : I suppose. Can you send me where you got your information? Argument 9 : The Majority Rules! This argument isnt even close to being factual. It is the assumption that the comparatively speaking few people in the United States want guns and so they should be outlawed... Which is ridiculous.
Moral
Anti-gunner : You know, they should just do away with guns altogether. People dont want those instruments of destruction around anyway! You : Actually, this might sound weird but I agree with that. I am glad that they are still available for the responsible gun owner, though.
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Anti-gunner : Why is that? You : I wish that we could melt them all down and go back to the stone ages sometimes. But society moves on. We cant un-know what we know. And the bad guys will always have the latest instruments of death around so they can kill each other and innocent people who happen to get caught up in the crossfire. There are a lot of irresponsible people in the world, and I cant take the risk that my day ends tragically. Knowing that my family is safer because I know how to responsibly carry a firearm makes me happy. IF DISAGREED Anti-gunner : Well there is always an alternative. You : There is. I know. And I will always use that alternative first, of course, if its safe to do so. I know things arent black and white like I wish they were. And I know that every sensible person feels the same way. There are a lot of grey areas. And I know that its just a pie-in-the-sky dream to hope all the guns in the world would disappear. But for now, in reality, Ill do my part to protect who I love until the world is a safe place. IF AGREED Anti-gunner : Yes, my family means the world to me, so I guess I can kinda see your point. I dont think it would ever happen though. You : Its not for everyone, but for me it is much better than the alternative. I cant take the risk that I may not see my loved ones tomorrow because I failed in my duty to protect them. (Congratulations! You just led that entire conversation exactly where you wanted it to go, and never let them gain the upper-hand during the confrontation. Remember, the ultimate goal is to maintain an even keel during a moral argument and in the end, cast those who carry concealed firearms legally in a much better light.)
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Logical
Anti-gunner : You know, not many people even carry guns anymore. They just need to go ahead and outlaw them. You : Is that so? Why do you say that? Anti-gunner : Take a look around. Youre the only one I see with one! You : Haha. Someone who is carrying concealed is hard to spot sometimes. I was reading the other day where a conservative estimate of gun owners in the Untied States is more than 65 million. Thats a ton of people, actually! I was pretty surprised. 17 Anti-gunner : I didnt know that where did you see that? The back of a cereal box? You : Haha. Yeah on Honey-Nut Bullet-Ohs. Actually, I saw it on the web site for the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, and Firearms. You should check it out. There is a wealth of information there. Anti-gunner : Hmmm... You : Yeah, and only 43% of people who own a gun actually admit to owning a gun. That number doesnt include any who may be fearful of government intrusion if they did admit it, according to a May 27, 2008 Gallup Poll. 18 Anti-gunner : Ill have to take a look at it, just to be sure that you are right. You : Sure, let me know if you see anything else worth noting.
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Argument 10 : The Second Amendment only pertains to the militia, not for the individual is another falsity that anti-gun advocates preach. The United States Supreme Court is the authority that ultimately interprets our laws for the general populace. They have ruled (not just once), that the Second Amendment allows lawabiding citizens the sacred right to own a firearm, so whether or not someone agrees with it is irrelevant. Another reason that this argument is incorrect, is because any law-abiding citizen may be considered as part of the local militia in times of crisis.
Moral
Anti-gunner : People like you never cease to amaze me, extremists through and through! You know, just because the Second Amendment says there is a right to bear arms, you know that doesnt apply to you individually right? You : Thats interesting. Id say that Im definitely extreme about the safety of my family and myself. I love my family with all of my heart and I would never want to see them come to any harm. Im sure you feel the same way, though. IF NO Anti-gunner : Well, I love my family too! You dont see me carrying a gun though do you? You : Its not for everyone, thats for sure. I get a lot of criticism from people for carrying a concealed firearm and itd be much easier if I just didnt carry one all together. Criticism pales next to the safety of my family, though. I know Im responsible and my family is safe, thats all that matters to me. IF YES Anti-gunner : Maybe you have a point. I guess protecting my family is of the highest priority too. I dont know that Ill ever carry a gun though.
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You : Its not for everyone, thats for sure. I get a lot of criticism from people for carrying a concealed firearm and itd be much easier if I just didnt carry one all together. Criticism pales next to the safety of my family, though. I know Im responsible and my family is safe, thats all that matters to me. People like you and me are hard to come by.
Logical
Anti-gunner : You probably dont know that the second amendment was supposed to be only for militia and not for us individually, right? You : Funny that you mention that. Its almost like fate that I was just reading the other day that in 2008 the United States Supreme Court established in a case called D.C. Vs Heller, just as they did in another case called Crukshank and Dred Scott that, the Second Amendment is an individual right. 19 Anti-gunner : I dont believe that! You : You dont have to, but its true. Furthermore, a Zogby Poll reported that, 75% of Americans believe that it is an individual right to keep and bear arms. The poll doesnt mean as much as the Supreme Courts decision, though, of course. You should check them out, there is some really interesting things in there. 20 Argument 11 : Youre only increasing peoples chances of hurting someone innocent, rather than a criminal if you carry a concealed weapon. Another false stereotype held by the anti-gun community. This one leads people to believe that innocent people are harmed more than attackers. This is a ridiculous argument because firearms are used 60 times more to protect a life in America, than they are used to take one.
Moral
Anti-gunner : People like you only end up hurting yourselves or some poor sap who happens to be near you more than a criminal would. My cousin Eddie shot his foot with a gun once!
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You : You may be right about that. I agree that there are people who carry a firearm irresponsibly and without the proper training. That was one of the things I thought about before I decided to carry concealed. I cant control anyone elses decision to carry irresponsibly but I can control my own. So I took the time out of my schedule to take safety classes, to help ensure that nothing like that ever happened. I love my family more than anything and I want them to be protected as much as humanly possible. IF DISAGREED Anti-gunner : Where there is a will there is a way! And Ill find a way to disarm an attacker without a gun. You : Thats just a difference between us I guess. I will protect my family no matter what, even if it means being looked on as a bad person. No matter the circumstance, I want to know that my family is as safe as humanly possible. But everyone is different. Youre a better man that I am if you can feel that safe without carrying a concealed firearm as a backup. IF AGREED Anti-gunner : Ok, so maybe you are right about protecting them, I would protect mine too. There are other ways though. You : Yeah I know. Ill be exploring the other ways as well. Ill do whatever I can.
Logical
Anti-gunner : I see stories in the paper and on the news every day, where some dummy with a gun hurts themselves or someone else. The guns dont even get used on the criminals! You : Geez I know, its embarrassing! I think its a crime to have people wandering
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the streets carrying something that could take a life without having the proper knowledge and respect for it! Just the other day Dr. John Lott reported on Fox News that, A person is more likely to survive a violent attack if they use a gun to defend themselves. I dont think thats surprising though. 21 Anti-gunner : I dont know, but you see where people get into situations where they do more harm than good every day. You : I know, exactly. I was also reading a report from the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration that showed, when a woman has a knife or gun, only 3% of rapes were completed against them. On the other hand, that is opposed to the 32% that were victimized who did not. 22 Anti-gunner : Ill have to see about that. You : Certainly, let me write down the information for you.
Argument 12 : Even police want gun control! This stereotype is based on the false assumption that even law-enforcement at large wants more gun control. Of course, most tend to be staunch supporters of the Right to keep and bear arms.
Moral
Anti-gunner : Its ridiculous how they let you criminals just go and buy any gun you want. Even the police want more gun control. You would think they would herd you all into a cell! You : You may be right about that. I agree that there should be a definite crackdown on illegal guns in the U.S. Id like to get your opinion on something... Anti-gunner : Ok
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You : I used to think a lot about the worst case scenario. I was younger then, but I think it helped shape me into who I am now. I used to think about what Id do, for example, if someone came in here and started shooting random people. IF NEGATIVE RESPONSE Anti-gunner : That really wont happen here! You : Maybe and hopefully not! But for me, my familys safety isnt worth taking the risk and hoping that it doesnt happen. I want to know that Ive done everything I could to protect them. But Id never judge you for not wanting to carry concealed. Its a pain to carry sometimes, for sure. IF POSITIVE RESPONSE Anti-gunner : Yeah, that makes sense. I would want to protect my family too. But if they took away guns then there wouldnt be that problem. You : Again, youre probably right. However, I cant take the chance that a criminal finds a way to illegally buy a gun, which is obviously happening right now. My familys safety comes first. Its not for everyone, but it is for me.
Logical
Anti-gunner : You know they should take that gun from you. I have a police friend who thinks the same thing and Im sure there are plenty more who do too. You : You may be right, our officers do a great job every day. They put themselves in harms way to protect us. But did you know 94% of policemen believe that citizens should be allowed to purchase guns for self defense? 23 Anti-gunner : Where did you hear that nonsense?
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You : Incredibly, it was the 17th Annual National Survey of Police & Sheriffs and the National association of Police Chiefs. Anti-gunner : I dunno about all that. Ill have to check it out though. You : I know, I was surprised too! There is some really interesting things in there. For instance I read where 65.8% of police officers believe that there should be no rationing of guns at all. Pretty large number if you think about it. 24 Anti-gunner : What?! Now I think that youre just making things up. Ill be sure to fact check you. Argument 13 : School shootings are increasing at an astronomical rate. Children are not legally supposed to have guns at all. Therefore, they are carrying on an illegal activity just by having one. By and large, school shootings are carried out by children who have deep seated emotional issues who would commit the same violent offense regardless of location. School just happens to be the catalyst for emotional scarring. It can be brutal if you dont fit in though.
Moral
Anti-gunner : Its incredible to me that they let you walk around with that thing! You are the whole reason that kids take guns to school. Your kid could find your gun and take it to school and shoot someone on accident! You should be ashamed of yourself for carrying that! You : You may be right, maybe I should be ashamed. But whenever I am able to look at my family and know that they are safe because I took every safety measure possible, I know that what I did by learning how to responsibly and effectively use (and safely keep) a firearm was worth it. I dont know why you think most people who legally carry concealed firearms do so but if you were to read a survey you might be surprised at the results! Im sure you care about your familys safety just as much.
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IF NO Anti-gunner : No, I care about mine more. Ill keep them safe by not having a gun around. You : It is not for everyone. There is nothing more important to me than knowing that I can protect my family regardless of the situation. I know how to store and keep my weapons away from my children but I dont think anyone who doesnt have that knowledge should keep a handgun in their home. IF YES Anti-gunner : Maybe youre right, but Im not sure that a gun is the answer. You : I can understand your position. I had to give it a lot of thought myself. There is nothing more important to me than knowing that I can protect my family regardless of the situation. Think about it and make the decision for yourself. Thats what I did.
Logical
Anti-gunner : You should get rid of that thing. Did you know that shootings at school are on the rise? You : Thats interesting... May I ask where you got that information? Anti-gunner : The news. Tune in sometime! You : Yeah Im asking because I just read this study showing that from 92-93 there were 55 shooting deaths however, from 97-98 there were only 40. 25 Anti-gunner : Where in the world did you hear that rubbish?
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You : The U.S. Secret Service and Department of Education released a study called Threat Assessments in Schools. It was a big deal when they released it and there is a lot of good info in there. Anti-gunner : I dont know, Ill have to see about that. You : I hear ya. Another interesting thing I was reading the other day said that, even with the number of school shootings, students are extremely safe while at school. The study said that School-based attacks are rare considering that there are 60 million plus students attending approximately 119,00 schools in America. I guess thats a very low shooting rate per student. I wish it was zero though, of course. 26 Anti-gunner : Youre just making this stuff up. You : Nope. It was in a study done by the National center for Education Statistics called Violence and discipline problems in U.S. Public Schools. Check it out sometime, very eye-opening things in there. Argument 14 : People with guns in their homes arent as safe as people without guns in their homes. This is based on the belief that those without guns in their home are safer than those with guns, however this is simply not true. People with guns in their homes are much more likely to be able to deter criminals. Criminals readily admit in interviews, that they will not attempt to rob a home in which they think that the owner may have a gun.
Moral
Anti-gunner : You know, you would be a lot safer if you didnt have that gun at your house. Just think of all the tragedy that could happen! You : You may be right about that. However, I think that the biggest tragedy would be failing to protect my family. When I think about what would happen if someone were to break into my house, I know that I am making the right decision. I couldnt live
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with myself if something were ever to happen to my family and I could have prevented it, could you? IF YES Anti-gunner : Well theres plenty of other things that you can use to protect them with! You : Yeah, I agree. If lamps scared the crap out of criminals then Id have more in my bedroom! I cant take the chance that the worst happens and my family is put into harms way. Its not for everyone, but for me my family comes first. Taking into consideration all the crazy people in the world, I know that Im doing the right thing. But youre right, hopefully, Ill never have to use it. IF NO Anti-gunner : No, you are probably right. If something happened to my family it would destroy me. I dont know if having a gun solves everything though. You : You may be right, but I wont take the chance of the worst not happening. As long as I am prepared, I can rest easier at night knowing that Ive done everything that I can as a responsible person to protect myself and my family.
Logical
Anti-gunner : You know every time I read an article on someone getting hurt in their home by a gun, and then see someone like you, I feel sorry for you. Its statistically proven that people would be safer without a gun in their home. You : You may have a point there, but at the same time I was reading a poll the other day called, Gun Safety at Home Debate, and it shows that 80.5% of the people surveyed believe that guns make homes safer. Now they might be wrong of course... Most people dont know their ass from their elbow. If you dont mind me saying. 27
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Anti-gunner : Is that a fact? Hmm... You : Yeah, it was pretty eye-opening. Even more surprising, was a study released by the University of Chicago School of Laws Dr, John Lott, of all the documented cases of people who have scared burglars away, by announcing that they have a gun or shooting it. You should look into it sometime. 28 Anti-gunner : I might just do that. Ill let you know when I can prove that wrong. Argument 15 : President Obama and other Washington leadership are helping gun owners. Another blatant stereotype that assumes that Washington is helping out American gun owners, where in their minds harsher restrictions should be in place. This is simply not true. Laws are being passed on a regular basis that are slowly eroding our Second Amendment rights.
Moral
Anti-gunner : I cant believe that Washington keeps just allowing you people to walk around with those things! This country sure cant get much lower. You would think they would do something about it! You : You might be surprised to find that I agree with you on this. There are just too many irresponsible people out there, and I think that government should make a concerted effort to get rid of the illegal guns. When irresponsible people have access to illegal guns its not a good scenario for anyone. My familys safety is put in jeopardy because of it. And that safety is the most important thing to me. IF DISAGREED Anti-gunner : Well, I think that they are dangerous and there are other alternatives.
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You : Yeah, the danger as I see it, is if my family had to face a situation in which I was unprepared. I do not ever want to be put in that position, and so I decided to put my mind at ease. Its not for some people, but for my family its worth it. IF AGREED Anti-gunner : Sure, my familys safety is important. I suppose you have a valid point, but I just dont think that the odds of something like that happening are very good. I mean, how realistic is it? You : It doesnt make me feel any better to think its .001% or 10%. I wont take that chance regardless of how small. My family is too important for me not to do something that is in their best interest. I want to go to sleep at night knowing that Ive done everything in my power to prevent a tragedy.
Logical
Anti-gunner : You know, if the government would stop feeding you beasts, I wouldnt have to point out how asinine you carrying that thing is. Too bad they all support you though! You : Its funny that you should mention that. Theres an article in the Washington Post on April 16th of 09 that talked about how President Obama supports CIFTA. That stands for the Convention Against Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking Firearms. Really interesting article. CIFTA is like the FDA on steroids but for handguns. Theyre all about restrictions. Theyre supposed to be focusing on illegal firearms trafficking but... You know how any govt organization has a hard time staying within any jurisdiction. Most people who legally carry firearms cant stand them. 29 Anti-gunner : I need to look that up to see if its right. You : No doubt! Another interesting article that I happened to run across, I found on about.com called the Clinton-Era Anti-gun Treaty Sees New Life talks
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about how Sen. John Kerry, the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, was quoted as saying, I support the convention (CIFTA) and plan to work for its approval. It was some really interesting stuff. 30 Argument 16 : Stopping the right to reload ammunition will not affect gun control. When the government begins to infringe on your Second Amendment rights, it begins as something minor. Where does it end though? By taking away a persons right to reload ammunition, they are attempting to slowly do away with your rights, along with over-price ammunition to keep you from purchasing it. Not an ideal scenario for any gun advocate.
Moral
Anti-gunner : So what if they take away your right to reload? Besides, youll still be able to buy ammunition to make sure you can still kill someone. You are nothing but a bunch of gun-toting monsters who make me feel queasy to be around anyway! You : Hmmm... I agree that the government should step-up their crackdown on the irresponsible people who use guns for illegally. If a person is found using a firearm in an illegal manner I believe that they should be severely punished. For me though, I believe that every person should have the right to protect their family the best way that they can. Thats just me though... IF DISAGREED Anti-gunner : No, I think that a person can do all right protecting their family without a gun, much less without all that other stuff! Besides, reload equipment isnt necessary for that. You : That too may be true. However, if one day we find that ammunition has been over-priced, and reload equipment is no longer legal, I may also find that my family has now been endangered. There will always be a way for criminals to buy cheaper ammo on the black market. If that were to happen I wouldnt be able to protect my
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family. And I dont think that I could ever live with myself if I couldnt protect them. IF AGREED Anti-gunner : Yeah, okay. I do think a person should have the right to protect their family how they see fit, but reload equipment is unnecessary because there will always be ammunition available in stores. You : There may, but if my familys safety were ever endangered because ammunition had become over-priced and reloading illegal, I dont think I could ever be as effective in their protection. To be perfectly honest, my family is the most important thing to me. I want them always to be safe no matter what. And protecting myself from a group of thugs is just as important as protecting myself from one or two thugs. If I need to reload, Im going to do it if my loved ones need me to for their safety.
Logical
Anti-gunner : You know, I think its hilarious that you people get so upset about this whole reload issue! Getting so worked up over nothing! You : That may be right,we might get worked up because were passionate about it, for sure. The price of ammunition has now more than doubled and more of an effort has been made to out-price our ability to save on ammunition. Thats a pretty interesting statistic to me. 31 Anti-gunner : Hmm. Well I think its a good thing. You : I could see why youd say that. I stumbled across it reading up on the InterAmerican Convention Against Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and Other Related Materials. (No need to memorize that one!) Amazing facts in their, you should really look into it! Anti-gunner : I may do that just to see if you are right.
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You : Well while your browsing around also check out City-data.com. They show that, there are laws being proposed, that will require new licenses to reload or modify your weapons. There is some really eye-opening things on there. The right to reload is definitely effecting gun control. For better or for worse, its happening. I just want to do my part to help protect the people I care about and the people who cant protect themselves. Let me know if you find out anything else when you read up on those stats.. 32 Argument 17 : Longer waiting periods for guns would prevent crimes from occurring. There is no proven fact or substantial information that shows a waiting period for purchasing a firearm has prevented crimes from happening. Actually the contrary is true. The evidence shows that it has little bearing, if any, on lessening crime.
Moral
Anti-gunner : I cant believe that they dont have longer waiting periods for guns! If they did, there wouldnt be near as much crime and I might be able to sleep a little easier! You : You may be right about that. Think about this though, when a responsible person whose only interest is protecting the people that they care about applies, and then encounters a home intruder that has a gun, that person can no longer effectively protect their family. I believe that every responsible person should be able to protect their family... How do you know who is responsible though? Thats the question. Waiting periods prevent crimes of passion. So you cant get mad, buy a gun, then walk out and shoot someone. I think its smart to have those waiting periods. Unfortunately the criminals are exempt from that one because they can just buy them illegally. IF DISAGREED Anti-gunner : There are ways to protect your loved ones other than just guns! You : Perhaps. But the thought of something happening to my family is
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unbearable. For me, making sure that my family is safe is my top priority. Its not for everyone and I respect your choice to restrain from carrying. IF AGREED Anti-gunner : Maybe I can see a glimmer of a point. No doubt protecting your family is important. I just think that people should still have to wait longer. You : There is one thing that I care about more than anything, and that is the safety of my loved ones. My family deserves my utmost attention and protection. Yeah. I think the law has its heart in the right place so to speak, but if I had to move my family into a rough neighborhood I wouldnt be comfortable leaving my family alone and unprotected while the government decides Im not going to go looking for trouble.
Logical
Anti-gunner : You know, if they had longer waiting periods for guns I think people would be a whole lot safer and the crime-rate would drop. You : Its so interesting that you say that because I was just reading about this. Did you know that, the 18 states that have waiting periods and background checks prior to the Brady Bill have a higher homicide rate than the other 32 states? 33 Anti-gunner : No I didnt. Where did you see that at? You : Interestingly enough, I saw it in the Journal of the American Medical Association, of all places. I was also reading a report put out by the University of Chicago School of Law that stated, the five-day waiting period had no impact on robbery and murder when implemented. But there was actually an increase in the number of aggravated assaults and rapes. Amazing things to consider, though. 34 Anti-gunner : I may do that just to see if you are right!
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The Point
Each one of these different types of arguments, you may encounter the next time that you are out. That is why it is imperative that you go through them several times. The anti-gun advocate will come at you fully loaded, so you need to be prepared. You will notice, that there are several similar themes throughout the different arguments. That is because in the end, the objective remains the same. Our goal is to leave the person who confronts us feeling better not only about themselves, but about the concealed carry community as well. There will be times when people may try several different argument strategies. It is important that you not fall into any of their traps, so you have to be ready for anything that they throw at you! After all, CCW is about being Aware, Alert, and Prepared! Knowing the Top 17 Anti-Gunner Arguments will equip you to deal with each of these things in an effective manner. That way the next time you have an untimely reach for the salt there wont be any surprises!
Stay Safe!
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Sources:
1) Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, fall, 1995 2) Crime in United States, 2001, FBI Report 3) Homicide Trends in the United States, Bureau of Justice Statistics, January 17, 2007 4) National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center 5) The Armed Criminal in America: A Survey of Incarcerated Felons, U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics Firearms Study, 1997: National Institute of Justice, Research Report, July, 1985, Department of Justice 6) Armed and Considered Dangerous: A Survey of Felons and their Firearms, James Wright and Peter Rossi, Aldine, 1986 & New Violent Crime Report 7) U.S. Justice Department, 1998 8) 1997 F.B.I. Uniform Crime Statistics & Transcending Violence, Schneider, 9) National Vital Statistics Report Deaths: Final Data for 1998, Center for Disease Control, July 24, 2000 10) U.S. Department of Transportations Fatality Analysis Reporting System, 2001 and 20 Leading Causes of Unintentional Injury Deaths, Centers for Disease Control, United States, 2001& Child Help 11) An Analysis of the Arrest Rate of Texas Concealed Carry handgun License Holders as Compared to the Arrest Rate of the Entire Texas Population, William E. Sturdevant, PE, September 11, 1999 12) Handgun Law Informational Site 13) Criminal Victimization in the Unites States, U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1993 14) Multiple Victim Shootings, Bombings, and Right-to-Carry Concealed Handgun Laws: Contrasting Private and Public Law Enforcement, Lott John R., Landes, William M.; University of Chicago covers years 1977-1995 15) Bringing the Local Gun Crisis Under Control, IANSA, 2006 citing Small Arms Survey 16) National Center for Health Statistics, average rates for years 1981-2003 and Death Involving Firearms, Kathryn Wilkins, health Report Volume 16, no. 4, Statistics, Canada 17) Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, 1997
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18) Americans by Slight Margin Say Gun in the Home Makes it Safer, Gallup Poll, May 27, 2008 19) For Defense of Themselves and the State: The Original Intent and Judicial Interpretation of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, Clayton Cramer, Praegar Press, 1994. 20) ABC News, May 14, 2002 21) Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, Rape Victimization in 26 American Cities, U.S. Department of Justice, 1979 22) Dr. John Lott, Fox News 23) 17th Annual National Survey of Police Chiefs & Sheriffs, National Association of Chiefs of Police, 2005 24) National Violent Death System (NVDRS) & Same as above 25) Threat Assessments in Schools, U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Department of Education, May 2002 26) National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center 27) Gun Safety at Home Debate and Poll 28) Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, Rape Victimization in 26 American Cities, U.S. Department of Justice, 1979 & Dr, John Lott, Jr., University of Chicago School of Law, 1997 29) Washington Post, April 16, 2009 30) Clinton-era Anti-Gun Treaty Sees New Life, about.com 31) Inter-American Convention Against Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and Other Related Materials 32) City-data.com & Same as above 33) Dr. Jens Ludwig, Dr. Phillip Cook, Journal of the American Medical Association, August 2009 34) More Guns, Less Crime, Lott, John, University of Chicago Press, 2000
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How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

When it rains...It Pours...

How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

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How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

The Passion in People

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The Bond of Trust

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Follow the Leader

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Break the Cycle

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The Four Step Process

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How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

Positive and Negative Charge

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How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

The Art of Calibration

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Calibrating and Readjusting the Mind

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Is it really worth all the fuss?

How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

The Sixth Dynamic

The Seventh Dynamic

The Eighth Dynamic

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The Nine/Ten Dynamic

Four Value Scale

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Two Sides of a Coin

A. Insecure B. Uneducated C. Angry D. Closed-Minded

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First things first

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How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments

Life Behind the Glass Wall

How to Win the Top 17 Anti-gunner Arguments