From the UK:
They have the right to bear arms, and these Americans are never going to let anyone take it away. Some of the leading gun enthusiasts in the country have been interviewed and photographed over four years for a new book We The People by Ben Philippi. The photographer asked his subjects - who range from families and their teenage children to more traditional male gun enthusiasts - to pose with their favorite firearms and explain why they hold them so dear. And the result is a fascinating cross section of the country's gun owners who will never give up the right to defend themselves, whether it be from violent criminals or threats to their own personal freedom.The book follows Philippi's previous work
God, Guns & Guts.
Right to bear arms: Richard and Kathy Scheidel who live near Sandusky, Ohio. Mr Schneidel said: 'Idiots like Bloomberg, Pelosi, Reid, Schumer and others are trying to eliminate our shooting sport at all costs. Some states are improving the sport and unfortunately, others are becoming nanny-states where the State controls everything' especially firearms.'
Left: Pope Dan Johnson and his sons Boaz and Judah at their church in church in Louisville, Kentucky. Mr Johnson said: 'The word ‘sword’ appears in over 400 verses in the Old and New Testaments. Peace in a man’s palace or home is the result of being armed, not disarmed.' Right: Michael and DeAnna Madsen of Malibu, California Mr Madsen quoted cowboy movie Alan Ladd: 'A gun is a tool Marianne. No better and no worse than any other tool; an axe, a shovel or anything. A gun is as good or as bad as the man using it.’
The Cheney family of Las Vegas. Dad Ron Cheney said: 'My son runs one of my retail stores, my wife is here with me and my little ones like to come in and mess with the guns and see who can field strip them the fastest or show daddy who's better at them.'
Todd Causley of Chicago. He said: 'I don't want to hurt anyone and I don't want anyone to hurt me. But do not take away the right for me to protect my wife and family.'
Ryan Dean in West Paris, Maine. He said: 'We have a massive society of people that let their rights be eroded from beneath them because they don't know any better. They think, 'Well the government says so, so it's got to be OK.'
Right: Melissa LaBoy and Kevin Jackson of St. Louis, Missouri. Mr Jackson said: 'Guns allowed freed slaves to remain free. Attempts at gun control were early attempts at putting black people under the authority of those who didn’t want to treat blacks humanely. Guns in America did what the Constitution had not: guns made black people equal.' Left: Model Tana Leggo in Louisville, Kentucky. She said: ' I’m an independent woman, and guns reinforce that independence! I’m a 115 pound fashion model! A gun makes me equal to any potential threat.'
Rusty Humphries in Phoenix, Arizona. He said: ' One of the reasons our homeland has not been attacked, (other than with flying suicide bombers) is the fact that we have over 300 million guns in this country, with millions of men and women who choose to know how to use them.'
Gun expert Jeff Zimba near Fairfield, Maine. He said: 'We have a Bill of Rights, not a Bill of Needs. The opposition doesn't understand guns so they develop a fear of these inanimate objects and hope they will just go away.'
Justin Harvel in Neosho, Missouri at his Black Rain Ordnance factory. He said: ' My grandfather has been a gun dealer all of my life and even way before; he is 95 now and although rarely 'deals' he still loves his guns. He lived back in the days when marksmanship was still taught in school.'
Fun for all the family: The Sumner family at the Knob Creek Gun Range in West Point, Kentucky
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2545820/Armed-opinionated-Americas-gun-owners-speak-out.html
