Karl Malone offers opinion on Guns and the Arenas incident.

[Mjolnir]

Malone is from Louisiana and he has been an avid outdoorsman (i.e., hunter and shooter) since his days in college (I know); perhaps as a kid. It was one of the things that engendered him in Salt Lake City. I recall reading that many Black basketball players dreaded being drafted by The Jazz as many pro players are urban and their way of life contrasted with that of rural and rural-cultured White America. Not so Malone.

[HK51Fan]

I like his overall premis, but the privilige part sits wrong with me, although he's proablably just repeating what he's been led to believe his whole life.....The Gov't has been trying to sell this for years and have most people believing it until the past 10yrs when the internet has really come into it's own. It's amazing how the informed masses can make a change. I bet the gov't of the world with the internet was never developed on the scale that it is today!

Without it...how many of us would really know that there are so many like thinking people out there? I was always a bit uncomfortable bringing up the issue becasue I thought I was part of a small minority, so I had people of like mind all around but didn't know it because nobody wanted to be the first to bring it up.

[glocktogo]

The big picture is that guns won't protect you. If someone really wanted to get you, they would. If you still feel you need that protection, get yourself a bodyguard who knows the rules and knows the laws.

Sounds a little elitist to me. Overall it's a pro-gun message, but it sends some very wrong signals at the same time.

[Heavy Metal]

I self-bodyguard. I am a Bodyguard of one!

I am a real sonofabitch to work for. A total prick for a boss. Just ask anyone who knows him..err..me!

[10MMGary]

In regards to the "bodyguards" and the taking the gun everywhere I believe he was referring to his fellow NBA players. Seemed to me he was saying that if your in the Assoc. and you have these concerns you are doing something wrong in your life. Make the proper changes and take some of that $$$$$$ and pay for professional protection. I could be wrong but I want to believe he meant well.

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

He shoots - rimming - and the shot is not good.

[A-Bear680]

In regards to the "bodyguards" and the taking the gun everywhere I believe he was referring to his fellow NBA players. Seemed to me he was saying that if your in the Assoc. and you have these concerns you are doing something wrong in your life. Make the proper changes and take some of that $$$$$$ and pay for professional protection. I could be wrong but I want to believe he meant well.

Seems that way to me , too. There have been some very ugly incidents involving pro sport players and firearms recently.
Sounds like he really wanted to say that dumb asses shouldn't use guns in irresponsible and unethical ways. That makes him a good candidate for some gentle persuasion , not attacks.

[woodandsteel]

I would much rather see Karl Malone's pro-2A message, than have him standing next to Bloomberg on a podium somewhere.

Not perfect statement, gentlemen, but a welcome one.

I agree. He could have said it a little better than he did. But, I still welcome him as a voice for our side.

Maybe he just feels priviledged living in a country where he has the right to keep and bear arms.

[CarlosDJackal]

I think you guys are reading into his commentary too much. IMHO, Karl Malone's comments are directed more towards the other NBA players than it is to us (ie: the bodyguard comment). When taken in that context, I think he's pretty much on.

[XKL]

As others have said, this should all be read in the context of an interview with Sports Illustrated about a fellow athelete pulling out a gun in the team locker room. Also it's not a prepared statement; it was a bit of a rambling answer, but still in the original context. Think of it this way, what if Oprah or Tom Cruise walked into a gun store and said "I want to buy a gun to protect myself." Certainly part of the rational response would be "uh, is this in lieu of personal security?"

On the other hand, I did find it interesting and surprising that he said he never takes his gun into a building. Frankly, I think that's only true in this context too. It's against NBA rules to take a gun into an arena or have a gun during public appearances. It's possible he's just saying that he followed that rule. Or he doesn't conceal carry because he's got body guards or isn't worried about stuff. That's ok too.

Also, I wouldn't read the "privilege" comment the wrong way. Every right is also a privilege. Owning a gun could be a God-given right, but around there world there are billions of people who had that right taken away. Idiots who do stupid things with guns give support to people who don't believe in that right, and will do what they can to limit (or eliminate) it. If you want to protect your rights, you remember that they are also privileges that could be lost. (For example, when/if Arenas gets convicted of a felony he'll lose his right to own a gun.)