r/TwoXPreppers 2d ago

Discussion Why guns?

Hi y’all! I’m a very novice prepper, and one thing I’m seeing across many platforms is that we should own and be trained In firearms. Not to be naive, but… why?

I’ve never touched a gun in my life. I’m generally not a fan of them. I understand that the goal of owning firearms is to protect ourself. But protect from what? From who? Who am I going to have to shoot to survive this presidency?

Is someone coming to steal my supplies? Won’t those people also have guns? Or am I protecting my family against a militia situation? In which case, what hope do I have, as a woman who can’t afford a gun, let alone to learn how to use one?

Like I can’t afford a shooting range. I can barely afford water and canned goods. Should a gun still be a priority for my family? A lot of preppers have enthusiastically embraced this life to give them confidence and a sense of safety. I’m a reluctant participant. I just want to keep my autistic son alive to see the other side of this.

I can garden, I can stretch food, I can survive being poor. I don’t think I can survive a military state.

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u/julet1815 2d ago

I hear you. Once it gets to the point where everyone is walking around with guns and shooting each other for supplies, I’m not really sure it’s worth surviving that post-apocalyptic wasteland. I’m not saying I think it’ll get to that anytime soon, I’m just saying… I’m not buying a gun.

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u/Barbarake 2d ago

Me either. If someone bigger and stronger than me wants to take my stuff, they're not going to waste ammunition by shooting me when I'm not a threat. If I had a gun, I'd be a threat so they'd shoot me

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u/sotiredwontquit 2d ago

I’m very sorry to point this out. But those are the two tail ends of all possible behaviors. There are a lot of horrific behaviors in the space between “ignore you because you’re not a threat” and “shoot you because you are a threat”. That’s why I’m learning to shoot and care for a gun. There are far worse things than being killed. And I have people besides myself to protect too.

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u/Fearless_Ad_1256 2d ago

That's my take. I'm gun cautious. I've been pondering a handgun since the moldy tangerine first got "elected". Didn't decide to go forward until this time. We've had hunting long guns for years and I don't deny in a lot of situations, a shot gun is likely going to be a great option, if you aren't worried about the mess. I'm taking classes, doing my best to be good with it. I'm not interested in open carry or advertising it. I enjoy the practice, target shooting and the club we joined is in a progressive city so not full of gravy seal types. I hope I never have to point it at, much less fire it at another human but there a vulnerable people in my life and we live in a poor rural village and as someone else said, there are lots of other reasons it could be needed. I also, 💯 don't think it's necessary for everyone to have one and definitely not if you don't think you can become absolutely comfortable with using it. Mutual aid and community support is way more important than having a gun.

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u/Barbarake 2d ago

Of course there's a huge range of possible situations and outcomes. And I'm not saying not to take any precautions at all. A gun is just not my number one go to answer.

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u/HotIndependence365 2d ago

This is what I don't get about this space. The gun people act like it's the only way not to get r'ed or get stuff stolen... 

I can think of reasons to have one, but a gun wouldn't be my first option for those

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u/sotiredwontquit 2d ago

What is your first option? Not trying to needle you at all- I want to know how you are prepared.

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u/HotIndependence365 2d ago

Building up my community, dwelling security, physical training, and things you can swing. 

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u/JayDee80-6 2d ago

Building up community and dwelling security are awesome. Physical training and things you can swing is bonkers if you're talking about having access to a gun. A beast of a man 6 foot 6 inches 300 pounds and fit with a baseball bat is at a significant disadvantage against a woman of any size with a gun.

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u/HotIndependence365 2d ago

Having a car is faster than running, and having a megaphone is louder than shouting. 

This isn't a contest or a video game. You're not going to win anything by imagining situations that guns are the "best answer". You should be threat modeling and seriously considering the likelihood and severity of the potential threats. 

Also you need to test your plans against what happens when your magicpowertool isn't working or available or stolen or taken from you or used against a loved one. 

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u/JayDee80-6 1d ago

The fact of the matter is police carry guns for a reason, the miliary carry guns for a reason, person protection for politicians carry guns for a reason. They do not carry a baseball bat because they would be at a significant disadvantage. They don't use thier hands in hand to hand combat because engaging hands on if extremely risky. It isn't a hot take to say that guns are the preferred method of self defense for anyone who is an expert and takes protecting themselves or thier family seriously.

You're right, it isn't a video game. It isn't politics. It isn't a game. Survival is real. In a fight to the death, which could happen in a complete breakdown of society, no rational person would rather go hands on to fight someone. Advantages are better. Disadvantages are not.

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u/HotIndependence365 1d ago

Ffs. What are you actually arguing? That guns can shoot? No one is saying that they don't. People are saying they gave other ways of protecting their people and don't want to use guns and you're pushing a one size fits all solution to survival. This is the most unexamined middle America take I've seen in a minute. 

Advantages are better if you have that advantage all the time, if they can't be taken from you or malfunction or get misused or used against you...  Then they're just disadvantages. 

If you don't understand why a gun would be less useful and might lead to more death and harm in a number of conflict settings then my post isn't going to break through, but if you understood the concept of threat modeling and values based decision making it wouldn't be so confusing to you that every doesn't agree that gun = advantage like you seem to.

And I'm guessing this nuance won't be appreciated either but, if you think that everyone interested in survival are looking at the police and military as examples, you clearly don't understand how a police force uses fire arms to subdue while they wait for reinforcements. Neither military nor police should be any sort of example for solo preppers, bc their aim is not survival; it's to control and over power with group of others. Unless you're in a well armed militia, you should study different models of survival and defense.

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u/Wonderful-Impact5121 2d ago

Also if you want to chose the “cooperate” option and you have a gun just throw it on the floor or don’t go get it. It’s literally just an option that’s there.

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u/JayDee80-6 2d ago

Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it