Angelina Jolie might be the most beautiful gun-toting celebrity but that does not mean she is able to avoid critique for her love of firearms. On Jan. 31, 2013, E! Online news reported that the Hollywood actress is on the list of high-profile gun owners — an illustrious list of names including controversial public figures like Whoopi Goldberg and Ted Nugent.
During a historic time in national politics where the gun control debates are heating up between folks who support second amendment rights and those who don’t, having your name tied (as a celeb who owns guns) with a political controversy may or may not be a public recognition that is enjoyed. Jolie is the daughter of outspoken conservative Jon Voight — but she is notoriously liberal. But that does not change the very real fact she supports gun rights — and some folks think that is a star quality to be despised.
Opposing Views confirmed the rumor by saying, “Bad girl Angelina Jolie has always enjoyed guns.” E! Online went on to share, “In past years, Angelina Jolie has said that, in no uncertain terms, she owns guns…” shared the entertainment news outlet.
According to the source, Jolie told the Daily Mail once during a celebrity interview that she and her partner Brad Pitt have already purchased, “original, real guns of the type we used in Tomb Raider for security.”
She further confessed, “Brad and I are not against having a gun in the house [even with our six children in residence), and we do have one.”
The Hollywood movie star and Goodwill Ambassador to the United Nations who has been named one of the most beautiful women in the world did not stop there. While expressing her views about why she owns guns, she went on to scare her interviewer a bit.
Adding and ominous, “And yes, I’d be able to use it if I had to…If anybody comes into my home and tries to hurt my kids, I’ve no problem shooting them…” she made her point about why she owns guns quite clear.
But one military member had this to say about the Hollywood celeb bragging about gun ownership during the days of gun violence in school systems and women entering the front lines of combat. The Daily Sentinel posted an editorial letter on Jan. 30 that essentially said female Hollywood stars were out of line for supporting second amendment rights, saying,
As for women on the front lines of ground combat, why are we having this discussion? Sure, Angelina Jolie and her female action stars toss burly, macho crooks around like rag dolls, and I’ve heard that the next “Expendables” film will feature a female cast, but why must we celebrate women as finally achieving the expendables status in real life front-line combat?
Reading the letter, it sounds as if they were being more critical of the actress for looking beautiful than they would have been if she was more manly. As such, one has to wonder… if Jolie was not so pretty and delicate looking, would she be a more effective spokesperson for an organization like the NRA? Could her opinion truly be meaningless because she is a supermodel and not someone gruff and husky with an androgynous figure — or worse? Are men the only people who are supposed to look sexy toting guns?
If so, the negative comments about any women who have enough inner strength to want to defend their family and country seem wholeheartedly demeaning. The remark may have been intended to insult Jolie but the writer’s commentary left caustic shrapnel in the mind of any female gun owner or military woman — potentially causing collateral damage to their self-image if they take the comments seriously.