Layout of Rooms - Back To The Walls, Doors In View

[mac]

Anthony, in my area you can keep a gun in your automobile, but only use it when you feel that your life is in grave danger by someone threatening you with a gun themselves. In most theoretical situations, my weapon covers most threats I may experience. Just a little paranoia that came back with me from Iraq.

 

[anthony]

Wow... that I can understand mac, if someone pulls a gun on you, then you could retaliate with the same force. Pretty fair to me, and I will be honest, I would never go into a gun fight without one. How much does this happen though across the US? I ask this, as all I see on CNN is deaths from shooting across the US. Guns, guns, guns... yuk.

 

[Deleted member 93]

You see news stories of idiots who either do not lock their guns up, or have them illegally. Law abiding citizens want to remain as such, law abiding and appreciate their rights and respect them. By the way if some man is going to come after me with a base ball bat... I would shoot. I am not going to be beaten to death. Plenty of people die from blunt force. If there is a means of escape common sense says take it. No one in their right mind is going to use deadly force without an option out.

Road rage and the like with gunfire and nonsense... I have not heard of one who legally had a gun. There are reasons you are screened first. The news skews things to peoples likings. What will make them watch this channel?

 

[anthony]

Yer, news does that, and I think people must take that into account. I guess my point on that issue though was more that incidents are making the news that frequently, hence why it actually scares me to visit the US in the first place. I know every country has lovely people, just a handful of bad one's also, as all have, but the gun thing for civilians to carry weapons on their person, that is just unheard off for my bringing up. If your used to that, as you are if you grewup in the US, then it would be normal, but to look in from a country where guns are not acceptable, I see it as far from normal. Best way I could explain it I guess...

 

[No-Twitch-Tabitha]

I prefer all furniture against the wall. I can't stand anything in the middle of the floor because I am accident-prone.

I prefer to sit with my back to the wall with all doors and windows in view. I don't like to sit with my back to windows, though, unless I can't help it (someone else's home or office).

 

[Terry]

Anthony, what you don't see on the news are the people murdered by things other than with a gun which happens more than you would think. I have seen many incidents where if the victim had not been armed they would have been dead. Just about all these people we elderly or mother's with children. The thugs almost always have a long criminal history and the politico's let them out B/C of crowded jails or some other BS. True, some of the people who legally carry guns are idiots who just want to carry a gun but I've never had a problem with them. DON'T be fooled by our news media and hooolywood. After all you guys gave us Mad Max. :p

 

[anthony]

LOL mate... yer, mad max is a classic. I will admit America scares the shit out of me with exactly what you said, being the crime rate in general. You can walk through what Australia classifies as the worst neighbourhoods at night time without an issue, without conflict, because the crime is not so much murder and attacks, but more break and enter type theft, drugs, etc, but not where people kill one another. That is what scares me about America, in that by walking through what you call bad neighbourhoods, you might not come out the other end. That is the difference I personally see between America and Australia. That thought scares the shit out of me. The people that go missing per capita within the States vs. other countries, Australia being my concern, things like that. It's a scary thought when you live in a country that is so safe, and people respect life to such a higher degree.

To go out for dinner in the US, I would be sitting there wondering who is armed. Things like that. Where here, I could 99.99% say, nobody in that restaraunt is armed.

 

[cookie]

there are some places in the us that are still very peaceful, anthony, that's why i love the countryside. the closer you get to the big cities, the worse all human behavior is, something about packing people in like sardines and not giving them any hope of another way of life, i think. places where moral laws are still in place and in hearts fare much better.
cathy

 

[No-Twitch-Tabitha]

Florida is a very transient kind of place. New people in, new people out all the time.

Where I live is what you'd call a rural city. It's growing, but there is still a "small town" feel. Not much in the way of news or gory crime happens here. We still lock our doors, though, because you never know who or what is coming through the neighborhood. And sex offenders especially seem to love Florida because it's not like the FDLE actually does anything about them. :wall:

 

[batgirl]

Wow there's been a lot of political discussion in this thread since I was gone. I'm not super comfortable with that, because I don't I know enough about politics to say much, without sounding stupid. I did want to explain though, the statements I made earlier about why I am afraid of the Republicans. I should have made it clear why. Again, I'm no expert so if I'm saying the wrong thing or I'm misinformed or whatever, please feel free to correct me.

The reason I'm leery of the Republicans is because I see them as being connected to or associated with the religious right. And I see some of the political decisions, policies, etc that Bush has decided upon have been influenced by the religious right and by the fact that Bush himself is a Christian. I find this really scary as I believe very strongly in the separation of church and state. I wouldn't want the religious beliefs of someone else to influence the laws of the country I live in.

To use an example here in Canada, our former prime minister Paul Martin was Roman Catholic. He was also the prime minister who declared that not allowing gays to marry was against the Canadian constitution and a violation of human rights. He made a statement to the press that while he personally does not endorse gay marriage because he's Catholic, he can't let his personal religious views interfere with the way he runs the country, or the rights of all Canadians.

I don't think that's something that Bush would ever say or do. Again, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think some of the decisions he's made are based on him being a Christian. I don't see the US as having a total separation of church and state. And maybe they never have... there's that whole "In God We Trust" thing... but I guess I'm saying it makes me really uncomfortable, thinking of the US as a "Christian" country (even though I was raised Christian myself). Like really, how is that different from a Muslim-run country, whose laws are based on Muslim beliefs? Different religion maybe, but still, religion is involved in the running of the country, and I see that as dangerous. I would much rather live in a secular society where I get to make my own choices about what I believe, who I can marry, whether I have children or not, etc.

 

[Claire]

Yes, I agree but most of our basic laws in the UK come from the 10 commandments. I think thats the same with most 'Christian' countries isn't it? You got to start somewhere and this is the basis for what we have at the moment. IMO the danger is when any religion is intolerant of another and when the person in power uses his postion to exercise his personal views.

 

[anthony]

Maybe why Australia is so relaxed... we don't have high religion pressures here. Actually, not a great deal of the population go to church. The most attendances would only be Easter and Christmas... the rest, pretty low. Yes, many are baptised one way or another, but not exactly active religions here... nothing much to argue about that way. Now, if you ask me (my opinion), religion is the exact reason Australia stopped migration to this country in its tracks... no more, very strict to get in here to live, because since migration got opened up a decade or two ago, other countries poored in with their religious beliefs, pushing them on Australia, where Australia didn't want to hear it. If they are religous, good for them, just don't come over here pushing it, because it is one of the main reasons such immense violence occurs in populations, religious beliefs.

We had a bad few years with lots of riots and nonsense in Sydney, and guess what, religious communities on both sides, fore and against one another, then turning on anyone and everything in their path. Well, stopped the immigration, and what do you know, Australian cities have calmed down again, no real major issues pushed by religious communities. Amazing how good some think it is, yet just how powerfully bad it makes people when its rubbed the wrong way.