[MidnightViper88]

Originally Posted by Kyuusai

Any one who chooses a firearm for its large caliber without consideration of their ability to fire it proficiently needs to reevaluate their decision and their life-view in general.

Caliber handling also has to do with strength and practicality...I single out the .40 S&W and .45 ACP because they're both manageable and practical, since a well-trained shooter can control the recoil and group close shots together pretty easily, and they're just enough for self-defense/offense against an intruder at their most...That wouldn't be the case so much with, say, a .357/.44 Magnum, or (To those that play too much CS or watched "The Matrix" too much) a .50 AE, lest you have problems with elephants and bears breaking into your house, but I don't think that'll be the case in most of America...

Originally Posted by TinyRedLeaf

Speaking as an outsider, I find many more freedoms in the United States worth celebrating other than its citizens' right to bear arms.

It has to do with history; We wouldn't have our other freedoms if Colonial American citizens didn't band up into a militia and successfully revolt against the British Empire, so the right to bear arms goes hand-in-hand with many of our other rights, and there's a reason why it's the 2nd Constitutional right, after the freedom of speech 1st Amendment clause...