What, aside from the obvious reason? Someone in the military follows orders and serves the nation while someone with a gun will probably do whatever he/she feels with it and nothing actually useful. How is that?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent_State_Shootings
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campbell_v._City_of_Oakland
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Hampton#Assassination_by_C...
And for you fans of enterprise solutions:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dresden_firebombing
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_hiroshima
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warsaw_Ghetto_Uprising
~
Your moral reasoning needs practice, kid.
Heh, I'm < 25 yrs old and a coder at a top software company with a six figure salary. And I've only been coding for a couple of years. I give you advice, kid.
You do realize that your point there is exactly the same that most gun-control opponents make? If we are to accept your point, you need to accept theirs.
What do you work on, out of curiosity? Maybe it's something you're actually qualified to give me advice on--I'm always up for learning. :)
Good luck convincing us to willingly give up another inch on this issue.