Senate Gun Control

To say that gun crime is declining in the United States is disingenuous. Yes, it's true, but it's not the whole story. All crime has been declining since the early 1990's. And "crime" doesn't include the tens of thousands injured and killed by accident and suicide. And gun deaths in the U.S. are set to eclipse automobile deaths this year. Funnily enough, it's possible to make safer things that aren't meant to kill.

 

No, once Congress and those that govern the NRA decided killing children was bearable, it was over.

 

Yes, all crime is on the decline, but I only mentioned gun crime because to me that was the more appropriate set of statistics, within the context of a thread on gun control. In any case, I don't see how that undermines my points very much, which in fact call for even more oversight and education than is already required for citizens to practice their Second Amendment rights. I really really don't like the idea of so many people running around packing heat, when a potentially high percentage of them don't fully appreciate what that little piece of metal and plastic they're carrying can do if they're careless or make bad judgements (like, say, drinking while armed). Guns are absolutely designed to kill things, I said as much in an earlier post.

And yes, I've also said that cars can be just as deadly when mishandled, including driving while drunk, high, on the phone or—gah—while the driver is texting.

Fixing gun injuries and deaths by accident or suicide is easier to do when you look at it from the perspective of what is causing the accidents (most often irresponsibility on the part of the gun owner, including neglect and over-zealousness), and what is leading to people feeling the need to take their own lives (a myriad of reasons here, which I won't go in to). Banning guns won't really prevent any suicides, as the person intent on dying will just find another way to do it. And before you ask, I do not in the least bit feel comfortable in having written that sentence.

So again, I state my stance: increased awareness and training, and make it a part of the coming-of-age experience here in America. It's already a(n admittedly dangerous) part of the culture here, so we may as well go whole hog and ensure that as many folks as possible are able to understand guns and the awesome power they represent.

 

Wrong. Most suicidal people end up reconsidering, and an easy means available to them doesn't give them that opportunity. People who have guns in their home are more likely to kill themselves.

 

A fair point. I guess I was more focused on certain recent suicides than the overall picture.

 

This is true. Things got bad for me a few years back and I tied a noose around my neck. I didn't secure the rope enough, however, and I ended up on my rear rethinking my life. Had I had access to my fathers hand gun at the time, I very likely wouldn't be here with a college degree telling this.

 

I guess I could mention the fact that I actually did attempt suicide once...with a long rifle that I owned...but was too much of a coward to do it. Ended up accidentally shooting a round into the air, though, which brought my dad out of the house and we talked things over.

This was ages ago, and since then I've really come 'round in a huge way.

 

I didn't say society should work that way, I said that it does work that way. You can have a group of people and somebody (a minority) will do something stupid or evil which prompts rules/norms to be introduced to prevent further occurences of stupidity or evil, which in turn affects everybody. Guns are no different. This is how laws develop, even outside of high school. Smuggler was questioning the morality or legitimacy of the concept..the concept is the foundation of our legal system.

edit: for example, in Australia one deranged guy decided to shoot up 30 tourists in Tasmania with a semi-automatic rifle. This prompted the government of the time to implement a ban on those weapons and a introduce buy-back scheme to get the remaining weapons off the streets. So responsible gun owners had to surrender their weapons because of the actions of one deranged lunatic. Now it just so happens that we haven't had a mass shooting ever since..so, yes,...sometimes you have to take a hit for the greater good.

 

can i just take a minute to appreciate how fabulous this little mini-biography is?

 

Charleston shooter should never have been able to get gun used to massacre nine people.

I feel sick...

Note: I put this in the Gun Control thread instead of the US Society and Black Men thread because this screwup by the whoever in the FBI that was doing the background checks is completely different from the motives of the shooter himself.

 

I had wondered how he was able to buy it if he had that drug possession charge. Since he admitted to it, that should have been an immediate dis-qualifier for a period of time (don't recall how much) I believe. I'm more interested in knowing why there was the breakdown in the system between the local PD and NICS for the FBI. IIRC there are three responses you can get from NICS: proceed, delay, denied.

 

Apparently whoever was doing the processsing checked the wrong county instead of the one where the shooter had the gun drug charge.

 

IIRC Columbia is Lexington County. The article states that the Lexington Sheriffs Dept was called as that was the listed agency, and not Columbia PD. I'm interested in knowing how that mess up occurred.

 

So am I.

 

Four marines killed at a military recruitment center. Shooter's dead as well.

 

Yeah I read that too. Jesus wept.

 

http://deadline.com/2015/07/james-holmes-guilty-2012-colorado-movie-theater-shooting-1201476292/

Holmes is guilty rather than insane, per the jury.

EDIT: Oops, beaten to the punch.

 

Not a surprise. Now the real test: Will the jury give him the death penalty?

 

Surprise! another mass shooting, and once again in a movie theater.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/23/us/louisiana-theater-shooting/index.html

 

1 victim, and the shooter killed himself.

 

I'm seeing "three dead" at CNN.com now, plus others injured.