On 23 Jun 2005 16:02:50 -0700, "twoguns"
wrote:

If you are right Rhys I guess we will just have to take the slingshots
and bows & arrows and leave the firearms at home. It is not a matter of
feeling a need for protection it is a matter of pure fun. We all enjoy
target shooting in one form or another. As far as know we won't be
entering any pirate infested waters.
Dennis

I come from a family with both military firearms instructors and
tactical squad police officers in it. I am neither squeamish nor
afraid of guns: they are tools with a limited set of applications. I
wouldn't take a running circular saw on a crowded bus, and I wouldn't
take a rifle on a boat: the complications outweight the benefits and
the "fun" in my estimation.

Strangely enough, though, the "slingshots and bows and arrows" are not
a bad idea, as they are quite legal in almost every country. Several
pioneering cruisers used slingshots to send film canisters and small
pieces of mail onto passing ships, and a bow and arrow could be used
for fishing in some situations or for sending a messenger line to
another boat over some distance.

For self-defense, I like the 12-gauge flare gun, or maybe a crossbow.
Realistically, though, if five guys with AK-47s board you, you would
be rash to have a go at them with guns. Maybe a small missile to blast
their boat before it got within machine gun range?

R.