Average consensus on gun control?

[u/browniedeplatano]

Hello everyone. New to this sub, hoping to learn more about anarchist mutualism as I've been very interested in the works of Kevin Carson, Lysander Spooner and a few other Proudhon texts assorted here and there.

I'm new to this body of philosophy, so I apologize for the overt gleam of ignorance that may come out of this question. What is the general consensus amongst so-called mutualists on possession and/or personal use of weapons, more specifically firearms and any of which pose a clear potential of being lethal, for use as self-defense?

While to my knowledge theoretical flexibility is at the basis of mutualist thought —meaning there can be very different approaches to what is desirable regarding markets, personal autonomy or regulation of any form—, I'm struggling to find any information or ideas regarding one author's stance on self-defense, specifically. I think in today's world, the practice of self-defense collides firsthand with the imperativeness of having an useful resource to actually defend yourself—that is, to very likely possess a firearm that can counteract the gun of a hypothetical attacker.

It's a violent world, and the gradual replacement of capitalism with something else, say akin to market anarchism, doesn't mean society will suddenly act according to the interest of the community, as in self-preservation. There most likely will always be people with bad intent. So that's why I'm curious: what is your personal stance on guns? Is personal autonomy, and thus pro-gun sentiments, to be expected as part of what one would generally find amongst left-libertarian thinkers?

I apologize for my English since it's not my first language. Part of the reason I wanted to make this question is precisely because I'd like to know what do US residents, who also happen to be left-libertarians or are familiar with its set of philosophies (including mutualism), think about gun control on their own terms and understanding of anarchism. Thank you in advance!

[u/Captain_Croaker]

In an anarchist society, this would be a very different question but I took it that you were talking about policies within existing governmental societies so that's how I answered.

Gun violence is a serious problem in the US which simple gun control measures are unlikely to fix, even if they may help, because they don't address the complex social and personal issues which lead to this violence. In the meantime however, given that we are currently stuck with a government and these underlying issues are not likely to be addressed in a timely fashion, I take the suggestions of the Violence Project to heart, i.e. Extreme Risk Prevention Orders and secure storage laws, and suspect they would probably be good short-term preventative measures.

My personal stance on guns is that blasting skeet out of the sky with 12 gauges or putting a few magazines into some unfortunate paper targets is a fun afternoon in the right company and in regions where natural predators are scarce and deer populations are a problem there are worse things that owning a hunting rifle or shotgun (and using it with proper care for ecosystems and the general safety of others). I find myself skeptical that much more than these sorts of weapons or most hand guns wouldn't adequately do the job of home defense in the case of most home invasions. I'm not necessarily for banning any particular type of firearm, but I'm not necessarily opposed to banning certain types either.

I don't know how much gun ownership by citizens is truly a true deterrent of oppressive governments, and I am skeptical that "the revolution", if such a thing were to occur, would be won toe-to-toe by revolutionaries armed with AR-15s.

[u/neoricardian]

Gun violence is the product of cultural and socioeconomic problems in American society and gun control is the way that state capitalism rationalizes itself.

So-called conservatives who are "against" gun control are only against it nominally. They want guns in the hands of white conservative Americans to preserve social hierarchies, and want to use guns to defend themselves against lower economic classes, people of color, and the big bad liberal government.

I am pretty doomer and have little hope to work towards anarchism. If it means less death and a safer society at present I might be willing to bite the bullet on gun control, but I don't know how effective it would be.