Is everyone who uses a weapon for target practice secretly thinking about violence?

[Atypical Liberal]

45. This is like saying sex conditions people to rape.

...that in the human mind weapons and violence are inextricably linked. This does not mean that everyone who picks up a rock to cast is contemplating violence at the moment, but it does condition them to commit it and the likelihood that they will increases substantially.

No. Throwing a rock at a target only conditions throwing rocks at a target. Shooting pieces of paper does not condition you to do anything except shoot pieces of paper. Just like having sex doesn't condition you to do anything except have sex. Having sex does not condition you to rape.

But that is not what I'm saying, but I imagine you would have to agree that everyone who rapes was contemplating sex beforehand.

Ignoring the fact that rape is about violent control, not sex, it is not a bi-directional situation.

Yes, contemplating rape implies contemplating sex. But the reverse is not true - contemplating sex does not imply contemplating rape.

Likewise using weapons for games.

Contemplating harming someone with a weapon implies contemplating weapons. But this does not mean that contemplating weapons implies contemplating harming someone with them.

People can also contemplate weapons while contemplating using them for non-violent activities. Just like people can contemplate sex without contemplating rape.