Is the art of weaponry really something we cast off with childhood, together with our sense of adventure and self preservation? Do we do this safe in the knowledge that someone else will do our “dirty work” for us? Can we acknowledge that we are all different, and that no two beings on the planet think exactly the same? That being the case can there not be a case for some people continuing to perceive threat, whether tangible or fictional? Regardless of whether the fear is of intruders or starvation, the will to survive is built in to all beings. Some of us insist that the pen is mightier than the sword whilst others continue to see the opposite. If it were indeed true that the pen is mightier than the sword why do we favour an M16 over a BIC as our chosen weapon for those we pay to defend our countries?
There is also the case for those who enjoy the sportsmanship of weapons, such as archery and shooting. It is unfortunate that our country has hounded all rights to gun ownership underground, no fear there, then, that the UK might win gold in that Olympic sport. How long before someone is killed or maimed with an arrow and that sport too is taken from our shores? Why do the few who go off the rails consistently become the advertisements for these sports? One man loses his mind and all are judged the same.
I was once a member of Hunt Saboteurs, we fought against fox hunting, not because the pretty fox was being killed, but because of the way it was being killed. In the hands of a skilled marksman the gun offers a far more humane death than the hounds. In the name of humanity, I would say that the gun has its uses. There is no need to wear one on our streets, but in the country side it is a necessity.