Handguns are both offensive and defensive. In a philosophical manner, you could argue that if you are using a gun to defend yourself, then you are using a weapon in an offensive manner to protect your own life and perhaps the lives of others. The discussion of what is offense and what is defense has to be subjective based on the situation. If you are walking down the street, and a bad guy approaches you, pointing a gun, demanding money or your life and you shoot your weapon...that's self defense. If, when the bad guy sees your gun, turns and runs, and you chase after him and shoot...that's assault with a deadly weapon. We, pro 2A folks and liberals, don't want to hear anything that doesn't support our political positions. If we do hear something we don't like, we attack. It's a sad statement of life in America, when we vilify that which makes us Americans.