"This is what I meant by your missing my point. You conflate possession with use. To you, possession of a gun makes one a murderer, possession of a car that can exceed the speed limit makes one a speeder, and possession of a vagina makes a woman a prostitute."
HUH? Put down trhe whiskey bottle! Where did you ever get that from?
No, possesion does not indicate use, but possession facilitates use. While there are valid reasons for using a gun, there are also plenty that aren't valid.
We all have hammers, screwdrivers, crowbars, baseball bats, automobiles and soup spoons, don't we? And they can all be used as weapons, can't they? Of course they can, but, the difference is that unlike a gun, those tools were intended for (and still retain) other uses that DON'T involve the taking of another's life. A gun has only one purpose, unless you use yours to hang picure frames with.
In that regard, a gun is VASTLY different than a hammer or a crowbar. And simple possession of one without the intent to use it for it's designed purpose (i.e. shooting something or someone) is inextricably linked with poissession; you wouldn't have one unless you intended to use it for it's intended purpose. Otherwise, you wouldf throw it away in the same fashion as one disposes of the other useless junk we all accumulate in our lives. Otherwise, why do you want the gun? Is it some strange fixation or perhaps some form of OCD? I own guns and I have them around for defending my homes, and occasionally shooting skeet or the occasional deer. Otherwise, they have no use. I don't expect to have to repel the Gub'mint stortroopers anytime soon, fighting for the Ol' Homestead to the last round. If the government wants me bad enough, for whatever reason, it could easily lob an artillery round at my house or fly a Tomahawk cruise missile through my bedroom window. My shotgun won't help me at all in that scenario. Chances are, I'll never even know I was targeted before I take the dirt nap.
As for you "Because I want to" routine, check back 20 or 30 posts and see exactly where you posted that and in what context. I'm not going to do it for you. Your assertion was that you should be able to own any gun you want, free of regulation, and that was predicated upon the notion that you have the right to do whatever you feel like, despite what the duly-enacted laws concerning that action or activity have to say about it.
I'm not putting words in your mouth or twisting your intended meaning; it's what you said, plainly. If you meant it in a more philosophical or rhetorical manner, then you should have indicated such.
And really, I would never ever do what I said in that post (I'm not that kind of animal), but it was intended to show you how easily your "because I want to" attitude could be extended to cover just about any range of inhuman behavior and point out the logical fallcies contained within.
Never been hunting, I take it.