cjh@csin.UUCP (Chip Hitchcock) (08/30/83)
In response to your message of Mon Aug 29 07:57:35 1983:
Only one problem with your thesis: there is no "responsible" reason for
private ownership of a handgun. Municipal ownership for "peace" officers,
yes. Club ownership for target practice, all right. But self-defense? Even
Heinlein, the ultra-libertarian, doesn't fall for that one. (Note that
leaving handguns around for 2-year-olds to mess with is less of a problem
than having them around during periods of deliberate irresponsibility
(e.g. drunkenness).)
<remove [socialist]>
<assume [anarchist]>
Teaching responsibility is a great idea; the problem is that it is virtually
impossible to do unless you get at people when they're under 10 (and preferably
sooner). You don't have to follow the Jesuits ("Give us a child until he is
5 (7???) and he is ours forever"), but teaching "responsibility" would require
truly massive interference in the child-raising process, probably even
removing children from parents deemed irresponsible on a much wider scale
than is now practiced. And of course, the definition of "responsibility"
gives room for all sorts of tyranny (on both sides---consider Nicaragua and
the Philippines, for instance).parnass@ihuxf.UUCP (09/01/83)
A previous submission asserts that there is no "responsible" reason for private ownership of handguns. In a free society, we shouldn't have to justify private ownership of items to you or anyone else. ============================================================================ Robert S. Parnass, Bell Laboratories ihnp4!ihuxf!parnass (312)979-5760 -- ============================================================================ Robert S. Parnass, Bell Laboratories ihnp4!ihuxf!parnass (312)979-5760
mmt@dciem.UUCP (Martin Taylor) (09/02/83)
=================== In a free society, we shouldn't have to justify private ownership of items to you or anyone else. =================== One could argue the opposite: in a REALLY free society, we should have to justify ANY private ownership of ANYTHING to our confreres. In such a free society, anything should be anybody's when they think they want it. I'm not sure that's what *you* mean by "free". In a society made of ideal people, almost any political system will work fine. This discussion should move to net.politics. Martin Taylor
kdp@hplabs.UUCP (Ken Poulton) (09/02/83)
Robert Parnass claims: A previous submission asserts that there is no "responsible" reason for private ownership of handguns. In a free society, we shouldn't have to justify private ownership of items to you or anyone else. I disagree most vehemently. Society *always* has the right, even responsibility, to pass laws protecting the general welfare. Private ownership of a sofa: well, who cares? Of a car: this is a potentially dangerous item, so we license drivers. Of handguns: this is a weapon whose main use is to kill people. Certainly we *must* regulate these. Ken Poulton HP Labs ...hplabs!kdp