Anybody else pack a heater? (Non-burgerlanders, we know this is not normal or good, but we are surrounded by frothing at the mouth chuds with guns). Right now I carry a pepper spray and a legal knife, never needed to use it, but I'm thinking of carrying. What are your thoughts on this from the trans perspective?
I'm getting a gun myself when I have the means to do so. Maybe I'll be able to afford one after I transfer departments.
What kind are you thinking about?
Not sure yet tbh. Probably a rifle of some kind but I'm not a gun expert. They tend to be safer than handguns.
Well, what do you want it for? If it's home defense, that's a big no go. Rifle rounds will penetrate into your neighbors home, let alone possibly hit your family members in other rooms. Best home defense is a short barrel shotty with shot shells so they won't really make it through drywall with any real power behind them. 9mm pistol is also not good for in-home due to it's ability to penetrate, but pairing a 9mm with hollow points with less propellant is good for personal defense when out and about. Safety is relative to your awareness of the weapon. A rubber pistol or airsoft gun can be a good way to get your feet wet with ergonomics and handling practice.
This is inaccurate. A .223 round from an ar-15 has very little mass and will slow down and be stopped by fewer obstructions (walls and such) than a 9mm or a shotgun with appropriate home defense ammo. It also has much less recoil, you can have 30 rounds in a magazine, and you can easily attach a strap and light to ensure you can retain the weapon and identify your targets.
A full size hunting rifle is a bad idea, but an AR-15 is really the best home defense gun there is.
Sure, it can be in the hands of an experienced shooter, but for a novice looking for basic home defense, shotty. A rifle platform needs shots placed precisely, otherwise even a home defense round is still potentially lethal to people on the other side of a wall. I don't care if it's a bleeding edge cartridge that's $10 a round and says it doesn't penetrate drywall, it's still a high velocity round that concentrates energy to a pinpoint, I wouldn't risk that if I weren't well practiced. An inexperienced person is liable to be shaky, having some spread with lower mass projectiles (that even if they made it through two layers of drywall, wouldn't have enough energy left to kill). And if you did have a low enough power .223, a beginner gun owner isn't necessarily going to know if it will have enough gas pressure to cycle. A simple R870 or M500 can attach lights and a sling as well. Additionally, cost as a barrier to entry and reliability for a novice shooter - a simple $250 pump action with a short barrel is going to be as reliable as a hammer.
One is a manually-cocked weapon with (usually) poor sights, high recoil, and a small magazine. The other is semi-automatic, accurate, easy to make quick follow-up shots with, and comes with 30 rounds standard. Both will punch clear through drywall, though the 223 will penetrate fewer barriers unless the shotgun is firing birdshot (please don't try to defend yourself with birdshot). Both of them, you need to be able to accurately aim it at your target.
Shotguns do tend to be much cheaper though, and that is a barrier for some people.
Also you can rack a shotgun and that is way scarier than just silently flipping the safety off.
I also feel like I'm being needlessly argumentative and I'm trying to stop doing that, so sorry about that.
Yeah, gun arguments can get pretty annoying, you're fine though. You have valid points for a .223. I'm comfortable with any firearm due to my combat training. I've just tended to recommend a shotty from various old timers and the people that trained me. Either way, people need to train and be familiar with their weapon.
Something something, trees of liberty.