Comments by "" (@freesk8) on "Why the Swiss Love Their Guns (more than Americans)" video.

I love what you wrote above, GiRRoo7, I just have one minor quibble: it is not inequality that leads to crime, it is poverty. And poverty is not best reduced through government welfare programs. It is best reduced through private charity and better access to jobs. And both of these come from limited (smaller) government, and free market policies. Individual liberty does not lead to poverty. Instead, individual liberty reduces poverty. But thanks for the great comment! I agree, it should be pinned near the top! :)
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How is this not just a partial form of slavery? Isn't the draft just as bad if you are peeling potatoes instead of marching on the parade ground?
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@yeetcannon5907 Yep. The draft is a partial form of slavery. You are being forced to do labor for the government, for the politicians. And an all-volunteer military is far more effective. It is full of people who actually want to be there. Conscripts have higher desertion rates during combat.
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@timruegg2743 My main problem is that it is mandatory. Forced. If you refuse, men come with guns and haul you off. I want to live in a free country, and I want the people around me to be free as well. I think this will tend to produce more willing volunteers for an all-volunteer military, which tends to be more effective than one composed largely of forced conscripts.
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@yeahbee8237 I agree that such service teaches valuable lessons. And this is an important part of the persuasion that should be used to get people to do the service voluntarily. But it is immoral to force them to do this service. Persuade them. That is what civilized people do. We don't resort to force right out of the gate. Making it a legal requirement, or forcing people to pay if they refuse, is not moral. It's not right.
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There is a real risk that Trump is coming back. Or someone even worse. When that happens, I want this would-be dictator to know that there are millions of regular Americans out here with AR-15's. And that a lot of us have high-capacity magazines. Not that I want any of these weapons to be fired. The mere presence of all these guns takes certain very bad tyrannical options off of the table. The guns "work" even if they are never fired.
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One of the things I like about Switzerland is it's neutrality in foreign policy. I wish the US had a non-interventionist foreign military policy.
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@GiRR007 Where I live, homeless drug-addicts shoplift to feed themselves. It is their poverty that drives their larceny, not envy.
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"It would be unthinkable to invade the American mainland: there would be a rifle behind every blade of grass."
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The NRA shifted from being a gun safety organization too being a gun rights defense organization as a reaction to efforts from the left to restrict gun rights. And the 2nd Amendment ALWAYS defended an individual right. This is not some new interpretation. And the Supreme Court reiterated that many times.
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