Another Mass Shooting In The Us...

[ElQueso]

Somehow I still believe despite all the arguments in this thread that anyone who gets a power rush from shooting a gun needs to get their head checked. So what if the founding fathers believe in someone's right to carry a weapon? It's 2016 and the circumstances have changed. Although, I'm in awe of the 81 year old grandmother who shot the penis and testicles off her granddaughter's rapists with her legalized hand gun. You go grandma! Thank God for out right to carry a weapon.

http://www.miamiactu...o-de-australia/

You denigrate the feeling of firing a weapon, of using technology even in a peaceful manner as I described it, to a "power rush." You don't understand it, so you tell people like me I'm crazy. You would control my right to feel that "power rush". Does that give you a "power rush"? Have you ever swung an ax into a piece of wood and felt the satisfaction of using a tool in that way? The thud of the head as it bites into the wood, the heavy steel parting the molecules of the wood, yet providing a resistance that stops further penetration. Am I in need of having my head examined, perhaps I'm an ax murderer? An ax actually used to be quite a popular weapon of war.

"So what if the founders believe in someone's right to carry a weapon?" Really? To hell with the constitution then? It's just kind of a suggestion, doesn't really have any force, when enough of "the people" feel differently just make laws that ignore it? Why don't you start a movement to amend the Constitution? I'd imagine because no one would get enough votes to even contemplate further restricting the 2nd Amendment.

And people wonder why there's such a divide in the US? Half the people think we should follow the Constitution and the other seem to think we should find ways around it (and certainly not use the writings of those who wrote it to try to clarify their intent!) - the percentages may not be entirely accurate but I'm sure the numbers are not spread along party lines, either...

 

[StevePalermo]

I'm not sure if this is what you mean by 'a well regulated militia', but after the latest murders of black men by agents of the state, it looks like the citizens are fighting back, at least in Dallas.

http://www.smh.com.au/world/police-officers-shot-during-protests-in-dallas-texas-reports-20160708-gq1fp7.html

 

[gpop]

I'm not sure if this is what you mean by 'a well regulated militia', but after the latest murders of black men by agents of the state, it looks like the citizens are fighting back, at least in Dallas.

http://www.smh.com.a...708-gq1fp7.html

I'm reading about snipers shooting 10 cops. Suddenly... snipers (and crack shots taking out 10 cops)... doesn't sound suspiciously PLANTED? Demonstrators are amped up and emotional, a sniper has to be stone-cold steady and relaxed. Sounds like pros to me.
This is already going south fast. I'm seeing a lot of "civil war' being tossed around on social media.
Chilling reminders of Yuri Bezmenov interviews from '84.

 

[nikad]

This was a very interesting read. I don't honestly think guns can be controlled ( just like anything else, when there is a will there is a way )

There are in my opinion different groups of people that should be evaluated differently: You have regular people that feel they have the right to own guns, etc and they do not want to give up on this.

Then you have criminals / terrorists that need these tools and will get them no matter what kind of laws you try to enforce, and then you have people that are mentally unfit. I feel that it is this last group the one that authorities should focus on: widely available mental health services ( free ), more open debate on mental health issues, more information and campaigns.

At the same time movie / entertainment producers should adjust the use / need for guns and shootings in their movies, video games, etc as I believe they have a big influence and "naturalize" the shooting for anything and everything mentality.

 

[khairyexpat]

Hi @nikad:

A whole group is missing from the argument: ... i.e. those who do NOT want guns.
This group exists and are part of the problem and the solution.

 

[nikad]

Hi @nikad:

A whole group was missing from the argument: ... i.e. those who do NOT want guns.
This group exists and are part of the problem and the solution.

People that want to keep their right to have guns, and people that do not want guns are not the problem. Guns themselves are not the problem either. The real problem are criminals / terrorists and mentally unfit groups. Movies and media greatly influence this last group as well.

 

[khairyexpat]

That is fine and dandy !
I was hoping it was just accidentally missed, .. an oversight.

We just agree to disagree.

 

[walosito]

I agree that debating gun control will not yield any definitive answers. We have been killing each other from the beginning and bloodlust, for some, is part of human nature. Access to guns are merely a convenience.
I would propose that "we" need to learn to accept that mass shootings and other seemingly pointless and meaningless acts of violence are a consequence of our (highly successful) consumer based society, and in part, our attitudes towards safety.
I like using electricity and having half of my waking day to pursue personal interests.
I would bet that if we could see how any of the recent mass shooters spent their time, prior to their violent acts, we would find that they spent a lot of time planing and fantasizing about the acts that they finally committed.
Is democracy a failed system? I dont think think so. Again failure is a big word. I think U.S. democracy is a vibrant dynamic system that is in the throws of an upheaval, but is in no danger of collapsing... De-centralization maybe, but Failure no. Syria and Venezuela are failing states. Haiti is a failed state. Zimbabwe is teetering. The United States is a long way from any of these examples.
To be clear, my stand on guns is this: buy them, go hunting, worship them as a phallus symbol, maybe just collect them as a hobby. But don't shoot your neighbor. If you do, you should get the death penalty.

 

[nikad]

I would bet that if we could see how any of the recent mass shooters spent their time, prior to their violent acts, we would find that they spent a lot of time planing and fantasizing about the acts that they finally committed.

This is the real problem: sick minds with no access to mental health ( and their circle of friends / family that most likely were not able to see that they were mentally unfit but thought them harmless ). Just like they did with cigarettes all over the place: education, campaigns, and of course easy access to treatment.

 

[bobg]

I appreciate the education several of you provided on the Second Amendment. So, ok, assuming that the Second Amendment means what several of you claim, is there any solution to tragedies such as Sandyhook, Columbine, etc.?

Bob