"...Can you honestly look at a gun with full knowledge of its intended purpose, knowing how many lives it has ultimately cost and regard it as something positive and worthwhile? Can you admire it as a thing of beauty when you know how ugly its purpose?..."
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Well firstly, no firearm I have owned has ever been a thing of beauty. Not because I don't think a firearm is capable of being a thing of beauty, but because they simply weren't. In fact they were/are dog ugly. :lol:
However, bearing in mind that a firearm is a crafted, engineered item, it is as much worthy of being described as a thing of beauty as any other inanimate object, whether it is an Amiga computer, a fighter jet or a fountain pen. Some firearms are beautifully crafted, and are collector's items (such as Holland & Holland shotguns).
Others are so precisely engineered and have such good ergonomics that they have an aesthetic kind of beauty. Kind of like when form meets function (such as the precision Anschutz rifles).
I can appreciate why some people admire the engraving on a gun and the finely crafted stock, possibly made of walnut. Some of these people don't even fire those, the guns become 'safe queens.'
Well I have to admit that I don't care much about the looks of a firearm. I just want it to be accurate and have good ergonomics and safety features. That's because I want to be able to comfortably aim the thing and hit my target.
Now you say, what is the big deal about target shooting? Surely I can find something to replace that? Well video games are nice, I play darts, I've tried paint ball and laser tag. But none of those require the discipline and skill it takes to hit a target at distance with a precisely-aimed projectile. There isn't a substitute for the real thing. It is like substituting YOU for a sock...see what I mean?
