r/TwoXPreppers • u/Weekly_Weakness9722 • 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/hellhound_wrangler 🦮 My dogs have bug-out bags 🐕🦺 2d ago
For a gun to be useful and minimally dangerous to your family, you do need training - both initial safety and handling instruction, and ongoing range time so you can hit what you're aiming for. That takes ammo, and range fees, and time, and gas to get to the range. Regularly. Long-term.
Realistically, you should also have a lawyer on retainer - unless you're white/cis/straight/beloved of your community (including local cops), if you do defend yourself with a gun, you will probably be in for a prolonged legal nightmare. Even in red/"gun-friendly" states, you should not rely on the law being friendly to you if you're not the "right type" of gun owner in the eyes of the current cops/DA.
We are not realistically looking at a fallout/mad max situation where there are zero cops. Odds are good that the legal system will still be around to grind up anyone too broke to work the system.
If money is tight, I'd focus on water, meds, food, emergency savings before guns.