I think the number of guns you see, and the way they're employed is probably influencing your view on guns. if you saw cars violently engaged in demolition derby type driving all day long, you probably wouldn't want them around either; the gun is a tool, and just because some people misuse them, that doesn't mean we should strip others of the right to have them.
i agree with you that lots of people don't camp because they don't want to work hard. but, there are some that don't go out of fear- and them having a gun on their persons in order to defend themselves wont affect you in any negative way, you won't even notice them.
this is my last post on the subject, because I'm not going to pretend I can convince you of anything you clearly don't care to learn.
This is not about GUN RIGHTS. NO ONE HAS SAID ANYTHING ABOUT GUN RIGHTS IN THIS THREAD. This is not about my VIEW on guns or gun rights, which I have not talked about here. I learned how to shoot; I grew up around guns and hunting. I am stating the fact that I do not carry a gun, I know no one who does when backpacking, and I have never seen or heard of any situation in which gun use in the wilderness would have prevented personal injury. You are the one who is filtering and reading into this; I don't debate gun rights in public, just like I don't debate religion or politics.
What I see going on around me in the city is a fact of life in many California cities - gangs, gun violence and crime. This doesn't affect my opinion of guns in the wilderness BECAUSE THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN on the trail. Crimes on the trail happen at the trailhead, in the form of car breakins, and sometimes in very busy backcountry camps I hear tales of gear being stolen from unattended camps. This doesn't happen when in the true wilderness where only backpackers go. Injuries in the wilderness areas I frequent are typically accidental or due to lack of preparedness on the part of the hiker - dehydration, getting lost, falls, physical health issues.
If violence happens in Texas when backpacking, I will not be going to Texas, ever. 99% of my way of dealing with threat from others is avoidance; hiking onward instead of making camp when I run across a person who gives me cause for concern, going in a group instead of alone, whatever. There are plenty of miles of appealing wilderness to explore where people don't threaten other people. I don't need a gun on the trail, and I don't think anyone else does, either. Period. People who choose to carry one get to carry where legal - I'm fine with that. Paranoia is still legal too. I won't even complain about other unnecessary weight in their packs, especially if they share their bottle of tequila at camp.
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