Liberal Gun Owners

So, yes. I'm well aware of that. But thank you (and I mean that sincerely!) for pointing that out. I'll explain...

But first, as an aside, I'll say I'm not a fan of snappy when it's also grossly imprecise (or worse, dishonest). There's too much dishonesty and "spin" in politics as it is, and we could do with less. But I digress...

Anyway, while you're correct about it being shorthand, I submit that there are people that don't follow gun-related politics, but have heard "regulate guns like the cars" and take it to mean exactly that because they're unaware that it has a deeper meaning.

In fact, there are 2 (unrelated) people in my friend group that believed this, until I told them basically what I wrote above. I didn't do it as some sort of gotcha - they're my friends - I want them to be able to make informed decisions based on facts. And they're not dumb people - they were just ignorant of the issue and parroting said snappy phrase without understanding it was shorthand for something different. Now they have a better understanding of the topic, and a better understanding of what kind of regulations they do and don't support. I don't agree with their positions 100%, but that's fine. My goal was to educate and get them thinking about it, not convert.

So, with respect, I intend to ignore your suggestion about how to respond to this phrase in the future, for as long as it keeps being used in the same way without any additional explanation. Not because I'm trying to be an agitator (I'm not), but because I think this discourse is helpful for bystanders that aren't steeped in this stuff, so that they don't misunderstand.

After all, if there were 2 people in my little friend group that didn't understand the phrase as shorthand, there are probably plenty more out there.

And to that end, thanks again for helping by posting the missing "additional explanation".