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The example you are bringing answers the question of why would someone need such a powerful item. It is justified under my view. But yes, impulse control, self-awareness, emotional intelligence should be stressed and taught to people that inevitably will be in touch with them. You mention hunters for example or in certain areas of the world where it is essential (I'm thinking of Fosdick living in Alaska. Don't know why I imagine harsh blizzards, a bear, having to venture through the forest..)

I would be worried though, as a Buddhist, if living in a an area where being armed for self defense purposes is common is good for my practice. Maybe the challenges of bearing a firearm for self-defenses, the risks of taking a life, even if it were for self-defense.

@Lionduck said:
The question, "Should Buddhists own Guns?"
The question should rather be,"What attitude or mind set should Buddhists who own weapons have regarding their ownership and use of said weapons?"

True @Lionduck ...The problem lies in the fragility of the mind, so easily swayed by the defilements that come with being human, fear, anger, rage, hate, delusion and the rest.

@shoshin1 said:
We are involved in and with politics whether we like it or not. Even Buddhists, who seek peace and compassion, cannot escape the consequences of silence or inaction. Every choice, every word, shapes the world around us.

Some try to avoid their own discomfort by denying the injustice happening around them, or by claiming both sides are equally to blame, using that as a way to soothe their conscience.

My take on this: if you feel you have to speak, speak on peace, compassion, equanimity. Justice is not one of the brahmaviharas, for good reason — it stirs the passion, and does not lead to dispassion or letting go or happiness. The Bodhisattva’s path does not lead to greed or hate, and we can by our speaking lead others to that example.

most gun deaths are accidental or suicide.

Most gun deaths are suicide. Accidental deaths make up only around 1%, and homicide accounts for about 34%.

I think its similar to the question of political involvement. Does it move us toward liberation and compassion, or deeper into suffering and entanglement?

We are involved in and with politics whether we like it or not. Even Buddhists, who seek peace and compassion, cannot escape the consequences of silence or inaction. Every choice, every word, shapes the world around us.

Some try to avoid their own discomfort by denying the injustice happening around them, or by claiming both sides are equally to blame, using that as a way to soothe their conscience.

I also don't feel comfortable with the notion of "should". People, and Buddhists, can do what they want with their lives.

Yes, a Buddhist can technically do whatever they want (and I know I often do), but the real question is whether those choices move us toward liberation and compassion, or deeper into suffering and entanglement.

Bearing in mind that guns were developed for the purpose of killing or maiming, their very existence sits uneasily alongside the Buddhist precept of avoiding harm.

@Jeroen said:
Certainly you are welcome to practice Dharma as you see fit 🙏

But I think one Dalai Lama or Thich Nhat Hanh has an impact far overshadowing most boycotts or pickets, and perhaps it might be worthwhile to write letters to Buddhist worthies calling on them to support the practice of peace in word and deed…

I do what I do, and what others choose to do is entirely up to them. Some are actively involved, while others choose not to be, and that is their path.

For my part, I attend peaceful solidarity rallies and marches each week and have written numerous letters to my local newspaper. These have been well received by the community, with many readers now actively involved, advocating for an end to the violence and accountability for those responsible.

From what I understand, Thich Nhat Hanh was deeply involved in anti-war activism during the Vietnam War. Through his philosophy of “engaged Buddhism,” he demonstrated that spiritual practice and social action can go hand in hand.

This morning, I, along with hundreds of locals, attended a massive rally and march in the Auckland CBD. The ferry over was full of keffiyeh-wearing, Palestinian flag carrying locals. Thousands came from around the country to join the march for humanity, and no doubt many Buddhists were among the crowd.

I check in to read pretty often @Jeroen, always good to "see" familiar folks still here!

😂 I'm just finding Facebook frustrating today. I am pretty careful about my friends list, which is limited to family and people I know well. It's hard to have lgbtq loved ones, including one of our kids, and seeing family defend someone as a "good person" who did nothing but harm that community. But at the same time, I don't condone what happened to Kirk and it makes me equally sad to see the amount of hate flung at the shooter's family right now. The world just feels hard a lot these days, and FB seems to exacerbate that. So I come here for some levity and sanity

Most people are firmly entrenched in their label-identity and work really hard to defend it, no matter which "side" they might be on. The same people are almost all "guilty" of the same behaviors that they accuse their supposed enemy of. People do so little introspection into their own minds, hearts, and behaviors that they just enjoy accusing someone else of doing something while they do it themselves...and they truly don't see it because they are so entrenched in the importance of their assumed identity labels that they feel justified in defending those labels no matter how hateful they have to be to do it.

I live in MN where our democratic state legislators were attacked and killed in June. People who I know actually said things like "That's what you get for being a liberal." And now when someone says the same thing about Charlie Kirk, they say "You are a horrible person, NO ONE should die for their political beliefs." And they absolutely refuse to see how they are exactly the same thing. And there is no hope to point it out to them, even if you screenshot it side-by-side they do mental gymnastics to convince themselves they are not the same.

What frustrates me the most right now is that our politicians and political activists (on all sides) seem to believe it is ok to say whatever you need to "stick it to" the other person, but that they believe themselves to just be playing a game, that words don't matter, that they are just campaigning and that's how it works. They don't accept that their words have consequences, that they contribute to devaluing people and creating desperation and desperation always breeds violence. Then they say, "Political violence should not exist, people shouldn't die for their beliefs!" As if the games they play during fiery speeches don't have very real world impacts on people's lives.

The older and more curmudgeony I get, the more I think social media is the worst thing to happen to humanity. It allows people to immediately share the diarrhea of their thoughts (most of which do not deserve the power of a voice) and cement it as real. Then they are shown algorithms that reinforce the collective mind diarrhea. The amount of hate hiding in people's minds is astounding.

I am endlessly grateful for my meditation practice and my time spent in Nature, which, as Mary Oliver said, "they save me, and daily."