[hga]

I think, to the typical anti-gun bigot, by definition nearly all of us gun owners are "rednecks", in spirit if not quite so the stereotype.

Quoting production and sales numbers isn't likely to help with them, except to possibly scare them away from trying to pass gun grabbing laws that will result in massive resistance and/or civil war. We're holding our breath right now with Connecticut, which was surprisingly quite pro-gun in practice pre-Sandy Hook and which, due to passive resistance, has now created an estimated 300K felons, with the usual suspects calling for all of them to be prosecuted.

And a cherry on the top with Connecticut State Police Spokesman Lt. Paul Vance telling a newly made subject of the state, after she said "You're the servant, we're the master", that "I'm the master, ma'am. I'm the master"(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUxjuz2o9Gk; jump to the end).

I don't think these people understand the forces they putting into play.

[reader5000]

Not necessarily rednecks, just low intelligence people that live in a fantasy world.

[DanBC]

This is not a new account.

The problem with HN comments is not just new users who do not know that the expectation is of colleagues discussing a problem to work to a solution, but also of long standing accounts that allow themselves to be "trolled" by emotive subjects.

Some people should stay away from gun control; abortion; Israel / Palestine; vi vs emacs; etc etc.

It'd be great to see some research on online communities where approaches to this have been tried.

[evilduck]

Your ridiculous hyperbole undermines your attempt to position yourself as the intelligent side of your false-dichotomy.