AggieMM wrote:. Basically, what it boils down to is that I can't seem to counter her "best" argument in these debates, that "a gun's ONLY purpose is to kill". She always falls back on this to prove why handguns should be removed.
Guns were first invented with the idea that they would be a more efficient "tool" for the purposes of defense and for harvesting (killing) game. This is a point too plain to require any argument.
I suggest you move right past that and ask her "Do you think it is wrong to kill in ALL circumstances"?
If she says yes, then you are dealing with a pacifist, and any further discussion is unlikely to prove beneficial.
If she says no, then ask her under what circumstance is protecting yourself, her, your children/other loved ones...acceptable.
Then.....if it acceptable to defend ones self against a deadly threat (being killed yourself), does it not make sense to use a suitably efficient tool?
Never allow her to "personify" a gun. There is nothing inherently evil about them. If I put my pistol on my bedside table and: No one touches it, I can come back 20 years later...and it will still be there! It won't get up, go out and start killing people.
The real issue is almost always about "killing". It is the last thing in this world that I wish to do. We are reminded daily of the many unnecessary deaths that occur in our cities. These tragedies are brought before us everyday in the media. It is understandable that an "association" begins to form (with a gun and evil doing)...when that is all you hear.
Advice? You know her better than anyone here, so choose your words wisely. Listen to her side earnestly, and never allow a discussion/debate to turn into an argument. Of course, you already know: "You never really WIN an argument with a female anyway"!
