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Comment by huntertwo | Hacker News Reader

This article addresses the recreational use of guns: if you need the key so you can go hunting, just wait the 5 minutes required to thaw the ice.

A home invader is unlikely to be so accommodating.

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In a home invasion I would have thought the last thing you would want is a gun. If you're in the US, then the invader likely has a gun, so if you also have a gun then you're giving them a pretty good incentive to shoot you. If you don't then you might get robbed, but home insurance will cover that.

Well, if I was a woman, I wouldn't take your advice.

I have the strong suspicion that in the majority of home invasions in the U.S., the intruder does not have a gun. I think that most are unarmed (to be armed and caught is a much, much worse situation), and most do not intend to encounter anyone.

A loved one or similar type individual may be able to have a second/backup key on their person in the event of a home invasion. That way there's a layered approach but also a level of self-advocacy/self-agency in the issue, which I'd argue is the supreme thing fighting against the depression itself.

Taking away the self agency, and you might as well probabilistically condemn them to die in another way. (Though that's just my two cents from my experiences surrounding suicidality and/or other suicidal individuals).

It's emblematic of the approach to guns as a whole. We're not very concerned with why people are trying to kill themselves or others, but we're awful fired up about the tools they choose. It's crazy!

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