You can reach out 1000yds with a .308, if you're good, and the conditions are just right. You don't need a cannon, just a little skill, and a little more luck. Remember, we're talking about a person, not a charging cape buffalo....and if you're being charged by one of those, you better have a .50BMG in your back pocket!
I tend to shy away from odd calibers. I like the standards...I like uniformity, and commonality. I can GUARANTEE you 2 things....
#1) If you take 10 people that no NOTHING about guns, and show them pictures, they'll pick out the .38, and the 1911
#2) If you go down your street, and go through EVERY house, you will most likely find 3 things...12ga. shotgun shells, .3bspecial bullets, and 9mm bullets.
I can appreciate the beauty of a fine Weatherby rifle...they're beautiful, but to me, they're impractical. I can get a variety of well made rifles, in .300 Win mag, or .375 H&H mag., that will drop any animal on the North American Continent, and most, in Africa. Now granted, Cape buffalo, and certain dangerous prey, like Kodiak Grizzly's aren't anything to fuck around with...but when the hunt is over, what do you do with that rifle? To me, any gun I would feel bad about dropping, and scratching up the stock on, I would rather not have. I like the working guns. Guns that you know, if shit hit the fan, and push came to shove, you could get the parts, and ammo from out of the carnage around you. I stick to standard NATO calibers, and common time tested calibers. A fucking .38 special will fuck a man up good...I don't need to turn him into soup, just stop him. And has been mentioned earlier, or in another thread, if you're past 6 rounds, you're into the spray and pray mode. You need to take a deep breath, regroup, and think about how, and where you'll be placing your rounds. Although I do carry a semi auto, that holds 12+1. To many cowboys think they've got the bases covered, because they have a 9mm with 17 rounds in it, but fail to realize, it ain't the same as a video game. When real bullets are coming at you, it's a whole different situation, and the price of poker goes up real quick, when lives are in danger.
However, given a LARGE amount of disposable income...or fuck you money, as I like to call it....DAMN RIGHT I'm buying some fancy high end shit....just because I can.