Originally Posted By: ireckon
OK, I understand that mindset has a lot to do with your situation. However, that doesn't negate the following principle: guns for self-defense are intended to protect the physically weak or outmatched during an "unlikely" scenario. I have personally experience situations where I am physically weak and my luck is not right. There have been a few times in my life I have known, because of injury, I would have been screwed if almost anybody tried to attack me. Along the same lines, think about the guy traveling around town in a wheelchair, or the old lady, or the injured woman who's recovering from a broken ankle. What are they suppose to do? Should they also take self-defense classes? Or are they supposed to accept the fact they are 100% screwed if somebody decides to attack during the "unlikely" scenario?

In principal, I agree with pretty much everything you are saying. However it doesn't really help with the thought process I'm trying to work through here.

I'm trying to be purely practical. At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter how I think a firearm could help or harm me in an ideal world; I want to know how it would help me in the world I have to operate in.

Also, I'm trying to keep this thread on track regarding the rules of the forum; not debating the laws around firearm ownership but rather discussing how being prepared looks within the laws we have. I've noticed that other threads discussing firearms (like the one Nato7 alluded to) have run into problems discussing what the laws should allow and am trying to avoid driving into that particular ditch in this thread too.
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Victory awaits him who has everything in order — luck, people call it. Defeat is certain for him who has neglected to take the necessary precautions in time; this is called bad luck. Roald Amundsen