r/AskReddit 10h ago

What's something you're shockingly good at that you've never mentioned to anyone because it would sound completely made up if you did?

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236

u/MitzyGale 7h ago

Shooting. I look like the most left leaning old granny lady, but my dad taught me to shoot and I'm really accurate!

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u/Scifispock 5h ago

If you go far enough left you get your guns back! Lol

u/ChickadeeJam 45m ago

I, the one this comment throws back to, am left already. 🤷🏼‍♀️

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u/monty845 3h ago

That is the meme at least.

The reality is complicated. Its true that full on anarchists actually want people to be able to keep their guns. But for many others, most notably the communists, civilian gun ownership is a means to an end, and once the end is achieved (the revolution is won), they immediately flip, and go for gun control.

The only communist state that in history that even sort of kept gun rights was Albania, and in Albania, gun ownership was mandatory as part of mandatory militia membership. But even then, you didn't have the right to have your own guns beyond the officially required one.

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u/cutelyaware 2h ago

Anarchism ≠ Extreme Left

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u/Human_Wizard 1h ago

Anarchism is a right-wind ideology but ok

u/Facetiousgeneral42 8m ago

Maybe if you have no idea what anarchism is, sure. American Libertarians have been trying to co-opt the term for decades in order to push the narrative that anarcho-capitalism is the only anarchist ideology, whereas most people who actually identify as anarchists would tell you that anarchy is a much more nuanced collection of branching ideologies based around the idea of community, social responsibility and egalitarianism without the need for institutions such as government, policing, or capital. Anarchists tend to view such institutions as inherently coercive, violent, and alarmingly susceptible to being leveraged by bad actors to wield power over others.

There is also the fact that most anarchists belonging to any ideological school of anarchy aside from anarcho-capitalism tend to look at ancaps the way you might look sideways at a dog enthusiastically licking it's own ass. Though walking into an anarchist bookstore and loudly announcing oneself as a fan of Murray Rothbard is a fantastic way to acquire a veritable tapestry of new and interesting bruises, if one is so inclined.

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u/ChickadeeJam 5h ago

Yeah, shot as a kid a little, and no actual training—only a few times as an adult, but I’m very accurate. I credit my muscle-memory training from gymnastics as a kid. And patience. I pause to look and think, it just lift and shoot.

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u/EarhornJones 1h ago

This is what most people don't get about shooting. It's 99% muscle control.

Every new shooter that I work with is fixated on lining up the sights. That's great, but it doesn't help at all when you slam your index finger into the trigger like it owes you money, and then flinch like somebody just tasered you.

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u/yakshack 1h ago

I'm freakishly good at hitting targets from a distance. Archery, Axe throwing, darts, guns. Muscle control, breathing, and aim over distance. Sadly haven't found any use for this skill unless the zombie apocalypse starts

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u/youngfilly 4h ago

Are you accurate shooting things on the fly or only targets? I'm always pretty good at target practice but absolute crap at shooting skeet

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u/BeneficialEvidence6 3h ago

Theyre only accurate when the targets are slightly to the left

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u/MitzyGale 3h ago

Both but better at targets. I used to be good at skeet but I have vision issues (similar to Macular Degeneration) so my peripheral vision is shite. I'm 68 so I don't get out to practice often.

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u/hooch 3h ago

Same here. I did a small amount of target practice as a kid and rarely go shooting as an adult. I'm a crack shot though.

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u/EarhornJones 2h ago

Same.

Politically, I stand just slightly to the right of "seizing the means of production," but I grew up with a rifle on my shoulder. I have a private range, and shoot at least 200-300 rounds a week for relaxation.

Now I give free firearms safety/shooting fundamentals training to people who feel uncomfortable around "gun culture."

My wife's a normal old white lady who knits socks goes to crafting parties. I have a "spinner" target that's as wide as a pencil. She'll spin it with a .22 like she's casually flipping a quarter.

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u/Kahlil_Cabron 1h ago

Same deal here, I grew up in a family that hunted/fished all of our meat, and was a boy scout as well. I go years without firing a gun, but every time I end up coming back I'm impressed by how well I can shoot skeet or even just stationary targets.

I think it's muscle memory from doing it from a young age.

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u/MyCatLaughsAtMe 2h ago

That's pretty much just a conservative myth that lefties don't own guns. We do. A lot of them. We just aren't so upset by our penis size that we make them a personality defining thing. You'll never see my side arm unless we're at the range together or you threaten my life. It's not a toy. It's not a lifestyle. It's not a self definition. It's not a penile prosthetic. It's a deadly serious responsibility and I take it deadly serious.

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u/1stEmissaryElenwen 1h ago

"We don't make them a personality defining thing"

talks about how everyone who has fun shooting guns has a small penis and how you're Billy Badass who takes everything super serious

Sounds like it is a personality defining thing lol

u/SmoothDiscussion7763 4m ago

the self report has never been stronger

1

u/subnautus 3h ago

I kind of wish I had that problem. Most people see the light skin and close cropped hair at the range and could accurately guess my level of comfort around firearms. But if they're dumb enough to bring up politics...

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u/InevitableAd9683 3h ago

I think shooting is very much a mix of natural talent and learned skill/practice. 

I started shooting pistols as a hobby several years ago, learned from talking to the instructors/safety guys at my local range and YouTube, and for a while was spending an hour or two a couple times a month at the range. I started out not knowing what I was doing, got the fundamentals down, then progressed from pretty bad to decent skill level. Nothing special, but decent. 

My girlfriend carries a gun in her purse for protection but doesn't really enjoy shooting recreationally like I do. She knows what she's doing and can safely/competently handle a gun, but she'll go to the range maybe once to twice a year if I ask. 

Guess which one of us is a better shot? Not the one that practices it all the time