• Twofacetony@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    32
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    1 month ago

    The firearm culture, and how normalised it is.

    I went into a Walgreens in Chicago, and waited in line behind two other people. There was a cashier free but the person in front of the line was waiting to be called. The guy behind the person in front politely said, “ma’am, the cashier is free” ‘I’m waiting to be called” was the response.

    So the guy behind her just walked past her, and she pushed him and said, “Careful buddy, you’ll get shot for doing something like that”

    I was taken aback at how quickly a simple discourtesy escalated to shooting someone. It just blew my mind that shooting someone over queue jumping was verbalised, and seemingly normal to each other.

    • HelixDab2@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      9
      ·
      1 month ago

      That’s not gun culture per se, but gang culture. Gun “culture” in the US is something that trends far more right wing in general, and tends to be mostly white, mostly (nominally) christian.

      I can’t speak to other cities, but the south side and west side of Chicago (esp. around Garfield Park, Douglas Park, and all of Austin) have a serious gang problem. If you aren’t willing and able to engage in violence at the slightest perceived provocation, then you tend to be victimized. The net result is that someone that jumps a line can end up getting a beat down, or killed. (And, BTW, the gang problem is a result of a century of institutionalized racism, combined with a few decades when CPD was exceptionally effective at jailing gang leaders; instead of just two or three major gangs in Chicago, you have hundreds of small ones, all constantly fighting over tiny patches of turf.)

      • Twofacetony@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        1 month ago

        I get what you mean, but this was in the central loop, in a business district, between a white woman in her 50’s and a black man in his 30’s. Very much gun culture by your definition.

        Gang culture I can somewhat understand, but this was just wild to me.

        Not saying it’s right or wrong… not my circus. But at a chemist?

    • Wahots@pawb.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      4
      ·
      1 month ago

      Yeah, that is definitely not normal. Never heard anyone say anything like that (western US)

    • ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      1 month ago

      Btw, it’s illegal to kill someone for checks notes cutting you in line. Had he wanted to waste the next three hours he could have reported her and if the cops decided to do their job it is a crime. I don’t think that criminal acts gun owners aren’t allowed to do are really part of the “culture” just because criminals sometimes do crime, like, people steal but theft isn’t part of “shopping culture,” y’know?

    • 01011@monero.town
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      edit-2
      1 month ago

      That is not a normal interaction anywhere that I’ve been in the States and not in Chicago. Despite what the press says Chicago is a very beautiful and relatively safe city. The people tend to be civil, for the most part.

    • KillingTimeItself@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      1 month ago

      Careful buddy, you’ll get shot for doing something like that”

      i guarantee you this is a joke.

      Not that it can’t happen, but i am willing 100% to bet that this was a joke.