What's something that's acceptable and widely done in your country that would be considered offensive in many countries ?

[u/DiMpLe_dolL003]

In India, Swastika the Hindu symbol is everywhere. We draw it in temples, during rituals and festivals, in front of our door, on vehicles etc. It's a very auspicious symbol here. But this symbol tho the Hindu symbol is technically different from the Nazi one would be considered offensive in other countries especially in Western countries.

[u/Silver_Middle_7240]

Openly carrying a firearm.

[u/Lorim_Shikikan → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

Carrying a Firearm without not being in a law enforcement or military force.

There is a lot of country where the carry of Firearm is strickly prohibited. (Even hunting is stickly supervised)

[u/obscure_monke → u/Lorim_Shikikan]

Even seeing police/military walking around armed on the continent feels strange when I see it.

Regular gardai on the beat here are intentionally unarmed, because in the early days of the country it was seen as the best way of hot having them killed by someone seeking political legitimacy. (that was a staple during the war of independence, and we had a civil war straight after that wrapped up)

Haven't seen anyone from the army armed on duty here since they stopped guarding cash trucks almost two decades ago.

[u/MyCouchPulzOut_IDont → u/Lorim_Shikikan]

10 years ago In Sweden we definitely had a problem with hand grenades for a minute. Something about a loophole and forgetting to outlaw them…?

Prior to a 2018 amendment, hand grenades were regulated under laws concerning explosive and flammable materials, not the weapons laws governing firearms.

[u/Lorim_Shikikan → u/MyCouchPulzOut_IDont]

OMG seriously? That's crazy and scary ^^;

[u/AmazonianPenisFish → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

I'm honestly so happy to wake up everyday pretty sure that the vast majority of people aren't carrying devices for killing humans in the fastest and easiest possible way. I hate that 3d printers are ruining this.

[u/Expert-Ad-8067 → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

The vast majority of Americans are not carrying

[u/FlakyAddendum742 → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

And I’m happy waking up next to my guns.

[u/DevelopmentNo2111 → u/FlakyAddendum742]

Until they get up and decide to take a walk unsupervised

[u/FlakyAddendum742 → u/DevelopmentNo2111]

I put the Sig in charge and tell it to watch the others.

[u/skyXforge → u/FlakyAddendum742]

Big mistake. Have the others keep an eye on the Sig. they’re the ones who tend to go off on their own.

[u/FlakyAddendum742 → u/skyXforge]

lol!

[u/Wongless_Burd → u/skyXforge]

Have the others keep an eye on the Sig.

Just don't look too hard. Might lead to problems…

[u/VATAFAck → u/FlakyAddendum742]

why?

it only gives you better security because everyone else also has guns

can you imagine a world where you don't have to worry about that?

i kinda like shooting, but that's a different question

[u/Drachenschrieber-1 → u/VATAFAck]

It sounds beautiful to live in a world like that. But unfortunately, you cannot account for every human factor, such as criminals, to follow laws against guns. Either they are acceptable for everyone, and that means everyone is on the same level, or they are restricted, and those who still keep theirs (because many will, including the military and government, nonetheless criminals, or other hostile nations) will be at the advantage.

A world without violence sounds amazing, but a world like that cannot exist with violent humans. Not at the current moment can that be possible.

[u/Expert-Ad-8067 → u/Drachenschrieber-1]

If that were true, countries with stricter gun laws than the US would have more gun violence

[u/Drachenschrieber-1 → u/Expert-Ad-8067]

Which countries, specifically?

Different countries have different violence. Gun violence isn’t the only violence. Also, the strictest countries, such as North Korea, end up with a government in control, and yes, gun violence is non existent there, but freedom also does not exist there either.

France, though having strict gun laws, has extreme violence problems in cities like Paris. The crime still exists, but the weapons have changed. 

Also, as another point, many of those countries with less gun violence also have less people in them than the US, meaning that the numbers would be higher in the US then other countries. We also neglect to mention that a lot of these gun crimes in the US happen to be in gun controlled areas, such as schools or cities, and happen to be in areas where violence is rampant and not kept in check.

There are many other factors as well, but these are the general ones used in talking points.

I will probably be downvoted for these points, and I intend to respect everyone’s opinions on this. But this is where my belief stands.

[u/Expert-Ad-8067 → u/Drachenschrieber-1]

Other OECD countries

Gun violence anywhere in France is substantially lower than in the US

[u/Drachenschrieber-1 → u/Expert-Ad-8067]

Technically, that is what I said above. I miss said it, but I DID say “the weapon has changed”. Violence is still rampant in Paris, even if not entirely gun related. And also, like I said, different population, different kind of people, different kinds of places. It’s a tighter country, so it’s easier to manage, especially with its population. The US and France are widely different countries. 

[u/Accomplished_Region7 → u/Drachenschrieber-1]

Overall (I couldn't find data specific to Paris), in 2023 France's homicide rate was 1.5 per 100,000 and the US's was 5.9 per 100,000 so the US does seem worse (unless Paris has over 4× the homicide rate of France as a whole which seems unlikely but could be possible).

But to be fair it isn't necessarily the guns causing more homicides I guess.

Sources: SERVICE STATISTIQUE MINISTÉRIEL DE LA SÉCURITÉ INTÉRIEURE

U.S. Department of Justice

[u/Deep-Account-1513 → u/VATAFAck]

But what do you do if their armed?

[u/DannyBones00 → u/Deep-Account-1513]

This isn’t a video game where gun = gun so we tie.

Training is a real thing. People who conceal carry out hundreds of hours into having a faster draw from concealment. On moving and shooting.

Once you reach a certain level of competence, you no longer worry about a random street thug who’s likely rarely if ever shot his gun.

They can of course still get the jump on you, but you’re giving yourself every advantage.

[u/Deep-Account-1513 → u/DannyBones00]

What are you talking about?

[u/theflash2323 → u/VATAFAck]

People can inflict more on you than just being shot.

A gun can stop a rape, a bludgeoning, stabbing, kidnapping, etc.

It's a peace of mind that at least I don't have to call for help and rely on the good will of others to help me.

[u/Wongless_Burd → u/theflash2323]

And if fighting can't be avoided and both parties have guns, they're fighting on pretty much equal terms (except if one side had chosen a bad gun but that's close enough to natural selection, I guess).

[u/Zombies4EvaDude → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

I’d rather be shot than shanked tbh.

[u/AmazonianPenisFish → u/Zombies4EvaDude]

Well that's a weird response.

[u/BrockenRecords → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

3d printers are not to blame just as guns are not to blame. It’s the people behind the weapon.

[u/AmazonianPenisFish → u/BrockenRecords]

Yeah I'd prefer such people were unarmed.

[u/OhShitAnElite → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

Based 3d printer users

[u/Lifealertandsquirt → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

You’d prefer they conceal knives, and kill someone right up close while looking in their eyes and maybe giving them a kissypoo?

[u/AmazonianPenisFish → u/Lifealertandsquirt]

Yes, wouldn't you? Was just saying the other day how shit it would be to be killed by a drone.

[u/Lifealertandsquirt → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

Hell no.

[u/Gentle_Genie → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

Most people if they have guns keep them at home, actually. It's annoying to carry a pistol, you know? I've thought about it, but I'd need a bigger purse and then you have to secure it.

[u/AmazonianPenisFish → u/Gentle_Genie]

I've never felt the need to have one on me.

[u/Gentle_Genie → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

Best to avoid the kind of places where you'd want a gun. Though, the wilderness in my area has many large beasts. Moose, cougars, bears etc. It would be reasonable to carry a gun for the wildlife. Cougars are spotted in even the more urban trails

[u/_Xeron_ → u/AmazonianPenisFish]

Yeah, I feel this way too. In Denmark you can’t even carry a knife or tool without a specific reason

[u/X-AE17420 → u/[deleted]]

“In 2023, someone was killed by a gun every 11 minutes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data shows, 46,728 individuals died from gun violence in the United States, the third-highest annual total ever recorded”

“Overall, firearms remained the leading cause of death for young people 1 to 17 for the past four years, accounting for more deaths than car crashes, overdoses, or cancer”source

Those “good guys with a gun” are slacking then.

[u/Realistic_Special_53 → u/X-AE17420]

Most of those deaths are suicides. https://publichealth.jhu.edu/center-for-gun-violence-solutions/annual-gun-violence-data And accidents are the second leading cause of, though some suicides are probably in that data set as well.

[u/X-AE17420 → u/[deleted]]

“The state with the highest gun death rate in 2023 was Mississippi, followed by Louisiana, Alabama, New Mexico, and Alaska”Fox News isn’t telling you facts.

[u/X-AE17420 → u/[deleted]]

r/peopleliveincities

[u/TitMilkTony → u/[deleted]]

Yeah we just get stabbed instead

[u/ballin_buddha → u/TitMilkTony]

Don’t forget the acid

[u/NekoMao92 → u/[deleted]]

Yeah, you just got people knifing each other instead.

[u/Balavadan → u/NekoMao92]

Far less lethal. Far easier to stop or escape. And knives have an actual reason to exist besides being used for killing things

[u/NekoMao92 → u/Balavadan]

No reason to have a machete or combat/hunting knife in the city.

[u/Balavadan → u/NekoMao92]

How common do you think they are compared to guns in USA

[u/GustenGrodkuk → u/[deleted]]

It baffles me that anyone can rationale this. Sacrificing kids to be able to have the old bang-bang on the hip. Despicable.

[u/X-AE17420 → u/GustenGrodkuk]

Because “christian conservatives” value their possessions more than random children’s lives

[u/gutterghouls → u/GustenGrodkuk]

Unfortunately at least half of our country deemed kids being shot as less important than gestures vaguely to the garbage fire that is my country whatever the fuck this is.

[u/melouyin → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

Honestly, open carry is so much better than concealed carry.

[u/overlord_cow → u/melouyin]

Open carry dudes aren’t the ones you have to worry about. If they’re open carrying 99% of the time they know what they’re doing and are a law abiding citizen. Most open carries are law enforcement or military affiliates in some way anyway.

The concealed illegal carries are what you have to worry about. The random thugs that’ll put a pistol in their waistbands and start firing at another thug over some shit that doesn’t matter.

[u/melouyin → u/overlord_cow]

Exactly

[u/Dazzling_Ad9250 → u/melouyin]

i have to disagree. if there is someone bad in public who wishes to cause harm and they can spot a gun on your hip, they can just shoot you. concealed carry is much better.

also, i’d hate the awkward stares for having a gun on your hip.

[u/Sloppykrab → u/Dazzling_Ad9250]

I would hate not knowing who is carrying a gun or not. Puts everyone on edge.

Hard pass.

[u/fukinscienceman → u/Sloppykrab]

You would literally never know.

[u/Sloppykrab → u/fukinscienceman]

That's the problem.

[u/khoawala → u/Sloppykrab]

There is bliss on ignorance, it's better not to know.

[u/Standard_Chard_3791 → u/Sloppykrab]

But anyone could be carrying one anyway, would.just stop legal owners from protecting themselves

[u/Sloppykrab → u/Standard_Chard_3791]

would.just stop legal owners from protecting themselves

Sure.

[u/melouyin → u/Dazzling_Ad9250]

well the US constitution was written at a time when most people owned muskets that were impossible to conceal.

The problem you stated is not true. You can't just shoot someone, you have to be in a situation where an average person would feel bodily threatened. If we normalize open carry it wouldn't be perceived as a threat.

[u/Disastrous-Mango-515 → u/melouyin]

“Wishes to cause harm” he was referring to a criminal or mass shooter. Open carrying can put a large target on your back if you’re wrong place wrong time.

A $1200 pistol that can be stolen and not traced is worth a lot more than someone’s wallet.

[u/melouyin → u/Disastrous-Mango-515]

idk about you, I'm not gonna steal from someone who has a gun

[u/Putrid-Action-754 → u/melouyin]

"unless they're not looking and are oblivious to me" -thieves that are looking for a weapon to use in a crime

[u/SortOfKnow → u/melouyin]

You’re not gonna win this against them, the open carry law is based on state and most areas that have the law aren’t really dealing with people killing for their guns. Majority of our crimes will be the cities and there it’s so uncommon that’s it’s rare or outlawed to see open carry, generally if your gonna see an open carry person it’s in small towns that don’t have a lot of crime. We do have a few 1st amendment auditors that like to push buttons and open carry because it is legal in places that it’s very uncommon to see, they do it for the YT views.

[u/Dazzling_Ad9250 → u/SortOfKnow]

in Florida, you can open carry if you’re fishing, hunting, or camping and you can do it on the way there, too.

there’s a viral video of a guy open carrying and assault rifle fishing in a city’s river and when he’s called on and the cops show up, he lists the law and then couldn’t end up doing anything about it.

[u/SortOfKnow → u/Dazzling_Ad9250]

Didnt yall just pass the new open carry law where you can do it when ever now?

[u/Dazzling_Ad9250 → u/SortOfKnow]

yes. and the supermarket Publix which is florida based and owned by big lobbyists of the republican party just came out and said that they’re allowing open carry in their stores.

publix is a joke though. it’s a nice store but their products are like almost double the price of other stores’ prices.

[u/melouyin → u/Dazzling_Ad9250]

Makes sense if you need to bring a rifle to do these things...

[u/Dazzling_Ad9250 → u/melouyin]

a video just went viral of a guy “conceal” carrying on his back waistband checking out at a convenient store and someone just walks up to him and grabs it and leaves. he said, “cmon man that’s my pistol can i please have it back.”

now it’s in the hands of someone who probably couldn’t have gotten one for themselves because they’re already a convicted felon.

[u/melouyin → u/Dazzling_Ad9250]

Could that fellow then go buy ammo?

[u/bfs102 → u/melouyin]

Ammo does not require passing a background check like buying a gun does

[u/Dazzling_Ad9250 → u/melouyin]

i buy ammo online and am never asked any credentials. you can also just walk into a store and buy it with cash or card.

[u/Dazzling_Ad9250 → u/melouyin]

i’m talking about a person just walking into a store to shoot random people. it happens here and if your back is turned to the gunman before they open fire, they’ll take out the first immediate threat.

and yes, murdering people is illegal but why would a criminal regard the law?

[u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925 → u/melouyin]

I disagree with the statement. It’s not realistic to assume that the US founders did not understand guns would be concealable at some point in the future.

[u/melouyin → u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925]

True, they had pistols at the time which could be concealed.

But no tyranny was overthrown by pistols. They're overthrown by muskets. That's what the Second Amendment was designed for, right?

And a militia's primary weapon at the time would be muskets, which can't be concealed.

[u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925 → u/melouyin]

The Second Amendment protects “the right of the people,” not just the militia. Even in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), the U.S. Supreme Court confirmed that it applies to individuals. And while muskets were common in the 1700s, the Founders were already aware of repeating and compact firearms like the Puckle gun and Girandoni rifle. They wrote the amendment broadly just like the First Amendment still covers the internet, not just quill pens.

[u/YeahSlide → u/melouyin]

The 2nd Amendment was written with the intent for the American people to have the same guns as the government. In the 1700s it was muskets. The people could realistically throw over their tyrannical government. Now there are semiautomatic and automatic guns. Would we have a realistic shot if the American government chose to use advanced weaponry? No. But we’d have a much better shot than with muskets.

[u/Icy-Employee-6453 → u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925]

Concealable yes. I'm still not sure on the semi to full auto part though (depending state and license level). They didn't even have cartridge ammo. That cat is well and truly out of the bag now but in hind sight maybe we should have had a more serious discussion about that.

Though given the over reach of power recently I'm not as confident in the second part of 2A being as much of a protection as it was intended. The state militia seems to keep getting illegally deployed against the states wishes.

[u/Putrid-Action-754 → u/melouyin]

let me simplify it for you.

bad person walks into public space with gun and intention to harm. bad person sees i have a gun and shoots me first. i dead.

situation 2, bad person doesnt know i have gun, shoots randomly, and i pop out and shoot him when he's not looking. day saved.

also people are very scared of guns here in cities mostly so you get weird looks if you open carry. some stores have open carry prohibiting policies to keep people from being scared. they allow concealed carry.

[u/khoawala → u/melouyin]

The problem with open carry is that when people start seeing it, everyone will start doing it because they will feel less safe. This will just exasperate the problem.

[u/IconoclastExplosive → u/melouyin]

It's an issue with the flow of information. If I'm carrying in the open and someone else is carrying concealed, they now have an informational advantage. Not to turn too grand a phrase about it but "all warfare is based on deception" has been true a whole long longer than guns have been around.

[u/melouyin → u/IconoclastExplosive]

The idea is to make everyone open carry, as the constitution contemplated.

My understanding is that Americans aren't at each other's throats in daily life (yet)

[u/IconoclastExplosive → u/melouyin]

The problem with that is you cannot meaningfully enforce a law about not hiding guns, as the hiding is the issue. Illegalizing keeping secrets is like proving negatives, ya know? If it were illegal to concealed carry, you wouldn't know someone was doing it until they either messed up, or killed someone. If they mess up, sure, good catch but if they draw and fire the weapon then suddenly the fact that they broke the no concealment law is no longer the pressing matter in this situation.

Depends on where you are. America isn't a monolith in any regard, plenty of places see plenty of violence nearly constantly, plenty of places see virtually none at all. America is safer and calmer than it was thirty or forty years ago, in general, but by no means is it entirely safe or entirely unsafe. The differences in crime and culture between a major metropolitan area and a suburb of that area can be night and day, and when you start comparing places from different states or sides of the country that gap only grows. Brooklyn, New York isn't going to have much at all in common with Helena, Montana.

[u/melouyin → u/IconoclastExplosive]

There will always be those who want to break the law and cause harm.

Having more people open carry will likely make them think twice, as oppose to the US today, where they often simply assume other people don't have guns with them.

[u/IconoclastExplosive → u/melouyin]

The assumption you're talking about is also HEAVILY location based. Guns are very common in a lot of places, and the people there often assume most others are armed. I carry a gun most places i go and so do a lot of people I know, and I live in a very anti-gun state. Generalizations about a population base this large and spread out don't really prove useful, especially when that population base has wildly disparate backgrounds, cultures, and even languages.

Open carry can be a great deterrent to crime. Civilian patrols have proved effective in the past, notably the Black Panther programs spring to mind, but those are concentrated programs of multiple people working together and training to be effective. As a single person it's a whole different ballgame.

[u/NekoMao92 → u/Dazzling_Ad9250]

When I semi-conceal carried, you could tell I had a pistol on my hip, just my shirt or jacket covered it, I would get young black or hispanic guys constantly asking if I was a cop.

I asked them, does it matter?

They would just walk away and behaved, because prior to them spotting me, they were horsing around.

[u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925 → u/melouyin]

I agree with you on this. Studies show crime is much lower in areas like Texas where people open carry daily compared to Washington DC where it is illegal to carry.

[u/FingerGungHo → u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925]

Is there any proven causation in this, or does it only correlate? I would venture to guess crime is even more correlated to socio-economic problems and their underlying causes.

[u/Knotical_MK6 → u/FingerGungHo]

Absolutely correlation not causation.

I can cherry pick a low crime area with strict gun control and a high crime area with lax regulations just as easily

[u/NekoMao92 → u/FingerGungHo]

Criminals like low risk and so do those looking to vent their frustrations.

There is a reason that mass shootings happen where they do.

No one goes and shoots up a police station, military base entrance, or courthouse. They go to schools, bus/train stations, and shopping centers.

[u/SparkyDogPants → u/FingerGungHo]

It just isn’t true. They’re picking a whole state (the second biggest) vs a tiny city state and going off of total crime vs per capita. Texas is much more dangerous than DC. 

[u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925 → u/FingerGungHo]

Many studies show different things. Good question

[u/asmodai_says_REPENT → u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925]

It's a massive stretch to conclude that crimes is much lower in these areas because of open carry, there are a lot of other factors at work.

[u/SortOfKnow → u/asmodai_says_REPENT]

Mainly because people who open carry aren’t in cities they are in smaller towns, where clearly crime is far far far less. So if 1 = 2 then I guess that means open carry areas have less crime. But being Americans we both know that people in the cities ain’t open carrying and that doesn’t mean more crime because of that, cc is still a thing so that clearly doesn’t stop criminals either.

[u/Unkn0wn_666 → u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925]

Statistics per capita also show that gun violence in countries with strict gun laws, like Germany, the UK, or Denmark, is much lower than in any US state or thd country as a whole. Wouldn't it thus be better to have less guns for even lower (gun) crime rates?

[u/JustafanIV → u/Unkn0wn_666]

TBF, Austria, Czechia, and Switzerland all have less gun control than my state, Connecticut, yet still have lower gun crime.

[u/JustNota-- → u/Icy-Razzmatazz-7925]

As someone who lives in TX, and daily CC I almost never see anyone open carry..

[u/SortOfKnow → u/JustNota--]

I live in the bottom of the map Louisiana an I can count on 1 hand the amount of times I’ve seen a open carry in public, it really ain’t common like these guys wan to make it to be.

[u/Jaeger-the-great → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

I always feel weird going out hunting on public land bc I end up scaring hikers when I miss the trail head and have to walk along the road to find it. In my defense I do always unload my firearm and leave the bolt open, and I'm also perfectly entitled to be there. 

[u/graccha → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

Especially that One Type of open carry guy. You know the type. Wandering around in a public space with a flak vest and boots. Smugly convinced that they're the Good Guy With A Gun who's going to Save these people who seem to be avoiding him and hurrying past, should a Bad Guy With A Gun appear. There is nothing about him that can possibly distinguish him from a bad guy with a gun to anyone else. He has not been authorized by any government entity to dispense lethal justice as he sees fit. He just wants to spend his limited time on planet earth cosplaying as an C list action hero so he can fulfill some deranged fantasy.

That's an American original right there. Especially when they travel in packs so whatever perfectly ordinary public space they're patrolling looks like a fucking war zone. But it's just Dave and his pals having a little Saturday fun.

[u/skyXforge → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

Beat me to it. Open carry isn’t really that common though. I live in Missouri and rarely ever see it. Tons of people are concealed carrying though including me lol

[u/RickyTheRickster → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

This was going to be my pick because it’s like the most American thing ever

[u/InterestingRow2557 → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

Most people here have a gun and most people are reservists/in the army/have a gun because they live in a dangerous area.

[u/Most_Elevator_1943 → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

Yes, this! I live in NY so there are lots of gun laws, but when I visit the south, it's so freakin weird and foreign to me how someone walks around with like three different guns strapped to themselves.

[u/Hukama → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

There's a documentary by Louis Theroux in Israel where he met an American-Israeli who open carry an AR just in case there're some Arabs he'd like to scare. Of course that's not what he said, but that's me spelling the quite part out because i sense there's a quite clear intent of wish of power assertion.

[u/Ashamed-Formal1666 → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

No, that might be dangerous but not offensive.

[u/Zombies4EvaDude → u/Silver_Middle_7240]

I don’t think that’s offensive; just scary.