Why do you think you should have the right to limit me? Am I harming anything? Do you have more of anything in your home than you need? Why do you want to make laws that limit me? What have I done? Why don't you look deeper to find out who the is so you can limit the bad guys?

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what exactly (be specific) you believe you need protection from?

As far as protection, the bad guys, snakes and anything else I decide.

Here is what I believe to be the elephant in the room. Many guns are out there. They came over with Caucasians and have been there ever since and in increasing amounts. Both sides of everything have had them. At this point no amount of confiscation of regulation will get them. The bad guys will be the last to give them up. As such even if I didn't like and use guns I would still want one. As such I don't want any limitations to me and mine to protect ourselves.

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My interest is not in discussing handguns, or hunting rifles.

Therein lies a most ignorant part of what anti-gunners are guilty of. They are now and have always been one in the same.

Waaaay back in '77 I watched as 6 liberals lead by Geraldo talk down to a gun expert about "assault" rifles as he quietly pulled a wood stocked semi-auto out, easily removed the wood and replaced it with black plastic. .... You see? They are one in the same. My Remington 742 semi-auto 30-06 can become more dangerous than what that fool used yesterday just by replacing or painting the wood.

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Explain to me why civilian ownership of semi-automatic, military style rifles, and the right to openly carry such rifles, is a good and necessary thing?

Good and necessary is explained above. In fact I'll expand on good. If I am open carrying a handgun or rifle I will either #1. deter any bad guys from starting shite or #2. cause them to shoot me first giving others a precious few seconds to GTFO.

Semi-auto: We hunt with them ... and yes, I've needed that 2nd and even 3rd shot to take down an animal so not to lose the animal or allow it suffer.

Military style: As explained above, no difference except black or camo is more stealthy. Would the gun lobby be satisfied if we replaced all the black stuff with wood. That would make them the same as they were before. Some actions were developed for the military however they used the rounds already on the market. Changes were developed or made to actions for military durability.

Military style part 2: What is military style? The military used muskets at one time. I have a bolt action rifle that has a wooden stock. Carlos Hathcock used one in a smaller caliber when he was a sniper in Nam. There is little in the military that is as accurate or powerful to this very day. Is that military style?