Why do I need an assault rifle?

[The Annoyed Man]

I remember back all these years ago in the late 60's, when my then wife's twin sister's boyfriend, later my bro-in-law, a SEAL officer who had led patrols in VN, was heaping praise on a weapon he referred to as a "Stoner." I kinda wish they had stuck with that and let it go from there.

Quiz #2 (Not fair if JALLEN answers) Why was it call a "Stoner"

Because whomever designed the rifle must of been smoking Pot ...

Unlike Kalashnikov, who was drinking the pure vodka of mother Russia!

[The Annoyed Man]

It seems that many folks in our society have forgotten that "need" is a relative term. If you are given 5 minutes to pack a small bag and leave everything else behind, what would you put in that bag? I am not diabetic, so I don't need insulin, but there are some folks on this board who do need that. I don't have asthma but my wife does, so we NEED her inhaler, so that goes in our bag. I don't like the idea of the government and Washington do-gooders deciding what I "need".
The second point is that "need" changes. Today is a warm sunny day, so I don't "Need" a coat. Within a day or two that could change, and it could change dramatically enough so that having a warm coat could possibly be life saving.
When politicians and anti-gunners say "you don't need an AR", they are arguing that we don't need a coat because it is warm outside. What if the political climate drastically changes? I am a big fan of the 12 gauge for most of my defensive purposes, and as I sit here today I don't "Need" an AR. If the political climate changes enough where I could be killed or imprisoned for my faith, race, political views, or some other unconstitutional reason, having an AR could be just as life saving as having a warm coat in a blizzard. Personally, I believe that anyone who does not prepare for bad weather is foolish.

Karder, I had missed your post before. THIS is exactly the answer to people who question your "need" for ANYTHING. I don't need a down-filled parka today, but I might need one next week. Therefore, I will buy one today if I don't already have one. And this is exactly why I sometimes refer to modern sporting rifles as "militia rifles." TODAY it is a modern sporting rifle. FIVE YEARS FROM NOW it might be a militia rifle. If that is how things were to play out, then today it is a "want," and five years from now it is a "need." Back when I bought my vehicle—a 2002 Nissan Pathfinder SE—I "wanted" a 4x4. I "wanted" a 4x4 because I thought that I might someday "need" 4-wheel drive. It turned out to be prophetic. While I was still living in California, I did some mild, recreational off-roading in my 4x4, but it wasn't a need. However, after I moved to Texas, I actually needed 4-wheel drive several times when I found myself having to drive through heavy snowfall on my way home from work, or on heavily iced roads.

We cannot predict "need," and the difference between one who is thrives during cataclysm and one who barely survives is often the extent to which the person went in order to be prepared for the day of need. The folk tale of the industrious ant and the indolent grasshopper is one of timeless wisdom. People who question your "need" for anything whatsoever are indolent grasshoppers. In that tale, the winter comes, and the grasshopper begs the ant to take him in and save him.

What is sad about that is the grasshoppers who tell me stuff like "Man, if the world collapses, I'm coming over to your house!" These grasshoppers are friends of mine....people with whom I share a spiritual connection and similar political opinions. And my answer to them is "No, you're not. If you think that there is a possibility that you may some day need to come over to my house for protection, then shame on you today for not caring enough about your family to fulfill that need today, while you have the luxury of acting wisely."

I don't tell them that because I wouldn't help them if I could do so without threatening my family's survival. I tell them that because I want to shock them into realizing that they need (there's that word again) to prepare themselves today so that they can thrive tomorrow. That is wisdom.

So when people question your needs, you are free to question their wisdom......to their faces.

[SQLGeek]

It seems that many folks in our society have forgotten that "need" is a relative term.

As you probably know all too well, it's also relative to the person and place. At this point in time, I don't really need an AR here in Suburban Houston. You on your land in El Paso is quite a different situation.

I've made that point to many anti-gun friends who will start stammering, try to change the subject and then throw out statements such as "Well if you need an assault rifle to defend your home, you're probably going to be dead anyways."

Many who question the "need", don't even see a "need" for themselves to own a gun in the first place and can't see beyond their own myopia on the subject.

[VMI77]

"Well if you need an assault rifle to defend your home, you're probably going to be dead anyways."

I don't have any anti-gun "friends" --not interested in having "friends" that don't want me to be able to defend myself-- but if I did, I can't even imagine voluntarily associating with someone so morally depraved that they would simply refuse to defend themselves and their loved ones against predators. While these kinds of people undoubtedly consider themselves morally superior to us gun nuts, the fact is that an unwillingness to confront evil isn't moral enlightenment, it's a disgusting abdication of moral and personal responsibility, and makes them willing a tool of evil.

[Baytown_Cajun]

Because it s a right, and people I hate dont want you to have one, now or ever !