"Disturbed" youngsters...

Sorry for the poor description, I didn't know what else to say.
I have what I'll call a healthy interest in weapons, specifically explosive devices. The problem is, I don't want to tell people because I'm afraid they will label me as violent and disturbed, which I am not. I just find the rapid expansion of gases very fascinating I do NOT support killing, maiming, or otherwise damaging other individuals (unless they are zombies or something). But if someone sees a teenage boy even showing an interest in anything destructive, most people will think he is violent, wants to kill everybody, etc.

I think of this attitude as a stereotype, and a harmful one at that. I can tell you from experience, it's not fun to be regarded as demented or possesed just because of my interests.

Bah, don't worry about it. I, myself, personally love things that explode. I love explosions, watching movies and television shows with detonations. I especially love nuclear explosions. That said, I don't like seeing people getting hurt, hence, my love for action movies. I also adore weapons, but again, I don't support using weapons to commit murders. People have their own interests, so what if others don't agree with what you are interested in? They are not you and they don't control you.

Not everyone will label you as so. That would just be the crazy gun haters. They think anybody who even fancies the smell of burning powder is a maniac ready to destroy the nations.

I find firearms and explosives to be interesting, myself. Just the way it all works and looks is cool and shtuff. I wouldn't want to see a person explode, though, as that would be messy. I am kind of disturbed (but not in the kill people way...just mentally unfit...and not in the way the trendy gothic kids say they are), though, so I'm sort of a bad example.....so let's move on.

I have some cousins who are gun freaks, but I think they just want to have them to assert their masculinity more than anything. You don't have to be demented to want some sort of weapon, or to find them cool.

as long as people that are fascinated like you are with it choose to kill, the stereotype will exist. There is nothign wrong with having that passion, as it is extremely interesting

I used to be a pyromaniac - and not just one of those self-diagnosed ones who claims they're a pyro so they can get attention (I absolutely can't stand when people light matches on fire and go "omg I'm such a pyro!!!"). I'd make model rocket fuel, black powder, and I'd separate water through electrolysis, put the hydrogen and oxygen in a film canister, and light it. at one point (and my parents actually let me do this, I don't know why) I put a trail of gasoline down my driveway and lit it. that was fun. anyway, nowadays I'm not as interested in it.

so I know what it's like.

what you need to do when you tell people about it is just say you like chemistry, and especially combustion. nobody thinks you're a lunatic if you say it's for the science...

I like watching things go off and stuff. But I feel the same. I love knifes and swords, I dont know what it is. I wouldnt use one on someone I would admire it and swing it about on my own. I dont know what it is about them, I wanted to get this knife that looked a bit like the Knife on Sands of Time the one that collects sand, but I wanst allowed, my parents said they worried about me when I told them.

People love to give nametags and numbers, because all this world is made of is labels and statistics.

Don't be afraid to tell people that you like guns. Why do you think there's rifilry? Personally I like medieval weapons and fire but no one lables me dangerous or a pyro. And I think explosions are cool as long as no one is hurt. And if someone does think you're dangerous then its thier problem not yours.

I have a bit of the same problem. I know a bit on firearms and explosives and everytime I bring a book on guns to school and start reading it, people will start to say, 'Oh man, hes gonna be the next Coulmbine Kid!' I usualy pass that off as a joke and then tell them the difference between me and the Columbine Kids. But what annnoys me is that when I bring a book on fireamrs to school and start reading it in class, the teacher will tell me not to bring it agian,' due to what happened in Columbine.' or something of that matter. Personaly, I think it's bulls***, because it's a book on firearms not Mein Kampf or the Turner Diaries, so why try and have it out of the school?

Don't worry about what people say, just go ahead and be yourself.
Personally, I love weapons. Whenever my mom gets sent a weapons catalog, I always take it and look through it, and then try to draw the ones that I really like (usually swords of many sorts, or battleaxes, or knives). Every now and then I'll find one that looks so awesome, and I'll show it to my mom, or my brother.
Heh, my mom said that she was worried about my fascination with them. But I'd never kill anyone. I hate seeing bees and wasps get squished, what makes her think I could hurt a person?

I also have a fasination with weapons, but not really with guns of exposives. I like swords and knifes. I even have a Celtic sword and a few daggers. I also have a fasination with snakes and reptiles. I have two snakes as well. But my biggest fasination is with cultures of the world. I want to be and Anthropologist if I can.

Now, with all these fasinations of mine, people think I'm wierd. One of them is my own mother. First off, with my sword, she thinks that me having one is not right and that I should get rid of it, but obviously I'm not. She also hates snakes, and wants me to get rid of them too. I can understand why people might think I'm wierd or disturbed for liking snakes. But the one that makes me mad the most is when she got made at me for studying cultures. When you study cultures you study everything about them, their religion, their way of life. One culture (or really a type of religion) I find interesting is wicca. I was looking at it on the internet and my mom saw what I was looking at and got all made at me. I told her I was only studying it. It's one thing to study something, it's another when you practice it.

Anyway, a lot of people find me wierd for those threes things (and for a few others). But there are a lot of people who think I'm cool for those three things as well.

I love firearms and knives, but I'm not crazy. But people accept me because I don't go around saying that I want to stab someone with a comb...
And if a stupid hippie says I'm going to start another Columbine, I'm not the idiot here.

Well, I'm glad to see I'm not alone!
I'm thinking of digging a "bunker" of sorts in the backyard. My parents are cool with it.
The main reason I want to dig a hole is to hang out there with my friends in the summer. It gets pretty dang hot here.
But I'm also thinking of putting in a firing range in there, too.
I think it's ok with the city if I go into my private little hole and work on my accuracy, as long as the neighbors can't hear.

Originally Posted by Nox

I have a bit of the same problem. I know a bit on firearms and explosives and everytime I bring a book on guns to school and start reading it, people will start to say, 'Oh man, hes gonna be the next Coulmbine Kid!'

That reminds me of the days that I sat in the library with an encyclopedia about nuclear weapons in Elementary school. My friends would go: "Zomg, are you going to be a bad guy, reading books and articles about nuclear bombs!?"

Im a semi-pyro, i once got 2nd degree burns all over my face when i cruched up some model rocket engines and lit the powder (hey! I was like 9!) But for some reason im deathly afraid of gasoline and stoves or grills. Revolvers are my most favorite weopens next to knives. I just love the feel of one of them and how accurate and just plain cool they are. You could be trapped on a desert island filled with like Raptors and still survive with one revolver and enough ammo. Rifles are cool too, but it hurts when you fire them to often. Dont let it bother you that people think your disturbed. There are alot of trully disturbed kids out there and you would never even know it.

Im often stereotyped as a psycho because I design explosive devices, I just like to see things blow up and understand the chemical reaction at work. Its awsome... dont let peoples annoy you about that. If anyone wants ideas on how to safely make some pretty cool devices PM me :p

Antartcicbase, don't be afraid to be yourself. Your interest could be very useful, and land you in a career designing explosives (or what not). Follow your passions.

I personally find explosions entertaining on the screen (as long as whatever I'm watching isn't entirely composed of explosions), but they scare me to death in real life. I used to barely be able to stand those 4th of July sparklers (I still have a fear of sparks). But I'm just weird like that.

Originally Posted by antarcticbase

I do NOT support killing, maiming, or otherwise damaging other individuals (unless they are zombies or something).

Jumping back to post #1. I found it funny how you said 'damaging individuals', as if they're objects.

Nowadays its common for people to be interested in weapons (Guns, Knives, Bombs etc.), anyone that would assume you are disturbed because of you're interest in any of these things is just plain stupid. The ones I consider 'disturbed' are the ones who actually use said things for a no good reason. I have a fascination with Atomic Bombs and radiation, it doesn't mean I'm going to nuke a country when I'm older.