Time to discuss gun regulation in the US?

[Seranthor]

I simply don't get how you can be behind the current gun laws when it allows people like these crazies to buy guns and massacre twenty innocent children.

It sickens me that an entire nation have yet to realize that the streets get more dangerous when there are more guns going around.

I simply dont get how you can be behind adding more laws when they dont enforce the ones that already exist, and I dont get how the world raises hell over the way some of the offenders are punished.

[Shinzai]

so owning a gun for target purposes now does not exist?

Why are you singling out glocks? Are you aware other handgun brands exist? Or do you just get your knowledge on guns from the movies?

Why do you need to own a handgun for 'target purposes'?

[Bakis]

I dont really get the China angle, simply cos I'm unsure of the logic to compare them.

* Are China as used to these events as the US, i.e. have a rapid response in place within the police for it
* Do they have SWAT teams, different agencies which are all brought to the scene from the get-go
* Do China have as many officers close by as the US, I mean real officers not some decency cop or cop scouting for political disturbace what not

Would make more sense, since ppl get into this "children died in China blabla", to compare or debate what the death toll would have been at the school if the madman had a knife instead of guns.

Why compare it to an event when so many factors are probably not even remotely equal. Proving a point on probable faulty basis is just stupid.
Personally, if this guy had a knife I doubt he would be able to kill almost 30 ppl and injure more in the timeframe he had.
Oh did someone even die in China now that we are mentioning it?

[Leonard McCoy]

You don't see the downside of making a law based on a tragedy? During an emotional time you are much more likely to over react and use a sledge hammer where a scalpel will do. You would agree to laws that infringe on people's rights purely out of fear. See for example, the Patriot Act or the TSA in the wake of 9/11.

I agree those are bad laws and they were born out of IMO expressly bad intentions in a bad environment. However by the same token we can't simple tie our hands and say WELP patriot act showed us acting when the time was right means our hands our tied. You have to take this on a case by case basis.

[Paranoid Android]

I have no issue with Bolt Action, Revolvers, Pump action, and lever action weapons. I have issue with Semi-Automatics, and High Capacity weapons.

You can't stop crazy people from killing, you can't stop criminals from getting weapons, but you can cut off the ability of these people from getting military grade firearms.

99% of the weapons in the hands of Street Gangs where originally sold legally or where stolen from a legal place to buy weapons. about 1% come from south of the boarder.

An AR-15 that you buy in a gun store can easily be modified to meet current M16 standards. the kits are readily available on the internet.

http://mapartsinc.com/

You stated it well and my point exactly. I hop most rational people who call for more strict gun laws or banning of certain guns are talking about high capacity, semi-auto weapons. These are the guns that are doing the damage in these mass shooting and as a former hunter none of these weapons are used for anything but gun play, i.e. target shooting or as a mass killing tool.

As far as yeah illegal guns, people somehow think that people with criminal records are walking into gun stores and buying these weapons. Most are purchased through a middle man who can LEGALLY purchase them or stolen from a legal gun order.

[Violent]

Its rather new is not it?

So because it's new, it's not meant to work right away? I'm not sure I understand the point you are trying to make.

[Dabrix32]

Do you have an explosives license? That requires and interview with the ATF? No? Then making a bomb from that iss illegal.
People who want to use guns should get the same treatment. Have a nice talk with the folks from the ATF.

How would they know Im making a bomb? I have 400 acres of land and lots of woods and you cant even see my land from the street. I could be making bombs right now. Not that I would but Id rather a crazy guy have a gun than a dumptruck loaded with explosives. I mean look around the world where mass kilings take place what do they use? Usually explosives. At least when a guy starts shooting you know its time to haul ass and eventually he has to reload and hes going to miss as well. If a car packed with explosives parks outside a nightclub and goes boom thats all it takes. Theres no trigger pulling and no need to reload and no need to be a good shot. Also much more effective and messy.

[Leonard McCoy]

so owning a gun for target purposes now does not exist?

Why are you singling out glocks? Are you aware other handgun brands exist? Or do you just get your knowledge on guns from the movies?

You brought up glocks. Tell me what use do you use for guns? You can hunt with other things. Real hunting doesn't happen with a semi automatic rifle IMHO. Real men hunt with cross bows.

[WarFalcon1]

The point is, people ARE GOING TO KILL OTHERS, whether it's with a legal gun an illegal bomb, or a sharpened spoon brought from home. The problem isn't the guns, isn't the laws, it isn't what is or what isn't illegal... It's people killing people. The end.

But its far harder to kill people with explosives because they are heavily regulated, even items that can be used for explosives are monitored for any possible problems. Guns do have some regulation but not near enough.

[Paulosio]

Unfortunately I don't think more gun control would change a lot... The genie is out the bottle and there are already too many guns about and there's nothing much that can be done about it now.

[Magpai]

Wait, then why do we have speed limits? After all - it's the driver's fault, entirely. Let's let folks just all zip around at 120 mph in their McLarens and Civic Sis.

Stupid analogy, since firearm ownership is not completely unregulated. A better analogy might have been "why do we let people own cars?"

[WarFalcon1]

Stupid analogy, since firearm ownership is not completely unregulated. A better analogy might have been "why do we let people own cars?"

Pretty sure being allowed to drive a car is not unregulated either. Called drivers licenses.

[Kaneiac]

What else do you use a glock for? You can hunt with plenty of other weapons. Do you spread butter with a glock? Do you shoot down low hanging fruit from a glock? Do you feed your children with your glock?

It's a delicate issue.

I have an M1911. 2 years ago, someone attempted to break into my house at approximately 4 in the morning. Know what I did? I fired a warning shot. (Don't worry, I still called the police and alerted my neighbors that everyone was okay). He fled. And I'm glad, too, because it shook me up simply firing a shot. I don't think I could have actually shot him had he came after me.

I haven't had another break in attempt since.

Anecdotes, I know, I know, but still.

[Dhurn]

You don't see the downside of making a law based on a tragedy? During an emotional time you are much more likely to over react and use a sledge hammer where a scalpel will do. You would agree to laws that infringe on people's rights purely out of fear. See for example, the Patriot Act or the TSA in the wake of 9/11.

That's a fair argument if it's an individual incident, but these shootings have been taking place regularly. Especially this past year with Aurora, and this week. At this rate any changes made will inevitably be in an emotional state, because it's such a frequent occurrance.

[Stede]

Stupid analogy, since firearm ownership is not completely unregulated. A better analogy might have been "why do we let people own cars?"

The analogy was intended to provide basis for regulation, not outlaw of guns. In that scope, it served its purpose quite well.

[Leonard McCoy]

Unfortunately I don't think more gun control would change a lot... The genie is out the bottle and there are already too many guns about and there's nothing much that can be done about it now.

That's an interesting take on it but kinda defeatist. It basically saying the country is simple doomed to continue having events like this because so many guns are out.

[SilvaAger]

No, it's time to increase security. Don't punish 99.99997% of the population for some crazy people.

[Violent]

By that logic, why not allow assault rifles and the such to the masses.

Really, do not defend the deaths of such inoccent bystanders by a 'shit happens' defense.

So if you take everyone's guns away, the problem will go away then right? They do allow them for the masses, and don't pull the "military only" card out of your ass, look at what that soldier did in Afgan.

[Latetomyownfuneral]

Wait, then why do we have speed limits? After all - it's the driver's fault, entirely. Let's let folks just all zip around at 120 mph in their McLarens and Civic Sis.

Actually we only have speed limits to bring in revenue for for the cities and counties they are in. The crazy people will always drive wrecklessly. If you remove speedlimits, people will do something crazy, called: Paying attention.

[Faroth]

We have gun regulations in the US. Every year there are millions of Americans who own guns who do not commit a crime with them. There are millions of Americans who have owned guns the majority of their adult lives who will die having never committed a crime with them.

In the first half of 2012, the UK saw 29,613 crimes committed using knives as a weapon per UK Parliament.
http://www.parliament.uk/briefing-papers/Sn04304

According to the FBI Uniform Crime Report, between 2006 and 2010 47,856 people were murdered in the U.S. by firearms, more than twice as many as were killed by all other means combined.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headline...tistical-look/

Clearly the UK should ban all knives. No, no. You CLAIM you need them to cook in your kitchen, but clearly you can't be trusted because more than 29,000 times someone used a knife as a weapon. In half of ONE year, the UK knife crime statistics is half of the US firearms murders over a FOUR YEAR PERIOD. And the US has a far larger population than the UK.

If you could magically flip a switch and disappear all guns from the planet, the US would have a massive spike in knife and other weapon use for crimes. People WILL kill people.

It's largely part that when horrible tragedies happen, the media jumps all over it and puts it in your face as long as they can.

Seriously, look at the statistics of gun crimes in the US vs gun ownership in the US.