I don't think it's irrational at all to be a non-popper but be into guns.
When you shoot, you learn to IGNORE the bang, and you learn NOT TO ANTICIPATE the recoil.
But with balloons, you CAN'T ignore the danger of the pop, because the danger of the pop is a big part of their excitement. Plus, for me, I'm mostly a non-popper because a big tight balloon is so much fun when blown up, but absolutely no fun after it is destroyed. (I just don't get the same KIND of excitement about ammunition, even though I do think ammunition is interesting.)
