Jimmy Carter on assault weapons

[Moccasin]

Something to think about concerning winning others over- In the past few months I've witnessed a couple of things that would have turned me off of guns, one in fact caused me to leave another forum. We need to consider how we treat people. THIS member hasn't been back since his first post, read his intro,,,,then read the responses to his post HERE- I can't blame him for not coming back to VGOF after seeing the responses. He was the first to respond, he was supporting American gun owners but had some incorrect facts. Instead of correcting him nicely we respond with posts like this "What bothers me the most is misinformed people like Hawkins. Hawkins should read the Heller decision and get informed on our rights."
The man is from another country and wanting to help us, damn!

Making statements like this got me run off another forum, if it happens again oh well.

[zephyp]

Good post Gary. All of us here need to be careful of this. We need to win the public support one by one if necessary (especially the folks that don't exercise their 2nd Amendment right) and that won't happen unless we figure out a way to "woo" them in. I hate to use that word in this context, but I can't think of a better one.

[allingeneral]

I had followed the comments for the first couple of days on the poll that Gary linked to above and I was rather disgusted with the comments that people directed at Mr. Hawkins. It's one thing to discuss things rationally and make your point of view known. It's another thing entirely to attack someone directly and degrade them for their point of view - ESPECIALLY when they're trying to agree with you (for the most part).

Now, on the flip-side there are people who will post inflammatory things just to get those types of responses. Thankfully, we haven't had to deal with any "Trolls" so far here at VGOF. Spam has even been fairly few and far between.

[zephyp]

...It's one thing to discuss things rationally and make your point of view known. It's another thing entirely to attack someone directly and degrade them for their point of view...

Excellent point. If we attack others for their point of view we can only expect reciprocity. We'll also likely get labeled something we would rather avoid if we expect to further our cause and win the fight. Personally, I am very picky about the battles I engage. You might start with what appears to be a winning situation only to find yourself retreating or getting spanked. Besides, IMHO, nothing mixes worse than guns and a quick temper.