DocAndersen
I do not often post political posts. The reason? There is no easy verification of the information. The minute gun control became a political issue I stopped posting about it. Why? There is no verification. The framers of the US Constitution were in a time of war. From 1776 through the next ten years, the US lived under what was called the articles of confederation. The Constitution was written in a time of war. It was also written more than 240 years ago. The percentage of people in the US that had to HUNT FOR FOOD was greater then than now. By a whole significant amount as in more than 1000 to 1 more than hunting for food than hunting now as the only source of food for a family.
The right to bear arms was critical. Additionally, at that time, the US was at war with anation (England) that had a far superior Navy, Army, and infrastructure. Having armed citizens was a good thing. The other side of what the framers were thinking, was at that time you wouldn’t have a military weapon in your home. Cannons were big, heavy, and didn’t sit in people’s living rooms. Some people collect them now, but seriously not many people have Cannon collections. The difference between a military weapon and a hunting weapon was zero. Plus they were single-shot weapons that a really good shooter could fire three times a minute. They fired rounds that were not rifled, but round muskets and frankly were not accurate.
Thirty-two people died on Saturday of last week in two separate shootings.
Why does it matter? The pro-gun groups are screaming; guns don’t kill people. The anti-gun people are screaming; we need to get rid of guns. I suspect we were to argue the 2nd amendment the way it was written. Then all guns made since around 1860 would be removed. I realize that isn’t true by the way, just pointing out that if you take a historical document and do not apply modern filters to it, you’ll end up with a different answer than you have today. Here the thing that scares me, guns don’t kill people. I learned at a very early age how dangerous guns were. I was taught by two people who had seen guns in operation for years, one hunted and one was in the military. What I know about guns is that they don’t kill people (often). There are cleaning and other accidents that is a gun killing a person. They are very, very rare. But I also know that the 2nd Amendment of the US Constitution isn’t applicable anymore. The time has come to modify that amendment to correctly reflect modern weapon.
In the time of Washington, Adams, Monore, and Jefferson, a wealthy person, might own ten guns. A recent arrest of a private Citizen in LA resulted in the police seizing 4000 weapons. Armories in that time had 1000 or so weapons, some larger had more. US military and non-US military armories have more weapons than that often. But I want to remind people, a private citizen was arrested, and more than 4000 guns were seized. The problem we have today is that both sides use disinformation. Both sides present facts that are not facts. 32 people died in two incidents last weekend. They were not killed by debris falling from Wallmart shelves. They were not killed by cleaning fluids. They died because a bullet entered their bodies.
It is time for an open and honest conversation around Gun Control.
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Question of
Have you seen a muzzle loader from 1776>
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Yes
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No
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Question of
Have you ever fired one?
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Yes
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No
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Question of
Did you hit what you were aiming at?
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Yes
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No
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Question of
Many countries outside the US have gun control right>?
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Yes
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No
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I am absolutely against firearms. I suppose people will come to arms by legal or illegal means. This is very difficult to prevent.
I don’t want to prevent, just delay the purchase of specific types of weapons overall.
Although our gun laws are strict in South Africa a great percentage of the violent crimes involve firearms. Crime is just a symptom of uncontrolled corruption
be ever wary of sweeping generalizations. Crime is a symptom of a lot of different things.
What bothers me is the republican argument that gun doesn’t kill. The gun isn’t the issue but the one owner of the gun. If that person didn’t have a gun, he wouldn’t have shot people. It’s as easy as that but it doesn’t appear that easy.
They can’t say as Donald is accustomed to that the killers were having mental issues – suffering from mental instability. The last case consisted of a young person who had a hatred for immigrants. He felt they had come to invade their country. That is not mental illness or instability. The killer wouldn’t even be diagnosed as being mental unstable.
I don’t like the government’s stand on gun control. But I won’t be surprised the National Riffle Association is the major supporter of republican politicians or a republic government. As with the democrats who their large financier were the gay society.
In Kenya, there was a time when gun issues were a problem. A certain group of a particular tribe would invade another tribe and walk away with their cattle. The government offered a grace period for people to hand their riffles. Some did. The General Service Unit (GSU) was sent to the region to ensure no one had a handgun. The invading of one tribe by another ceased.
I’m not against owning of a gun but it should be limited to those who have the evidence their lives is in danger or among the older people (somehow).
Now you are presenting the other side lives in danger.
I do not agree. There are many people (some commented here) that use their weapons for hunting. I do not have a problem with that in any form. I support the right of those who hunt to do so. I support the right of those who want to own guns to do so.
My concern is the weapons that can change between semi-automatic and automatic in how they are used.
In fairness which is critical here.
1. Except for accidental deaths when a firearm discharged during cleaning non-shooting situations there has never been a case of a gun killing a person. Other than that, it is always a person with a gun, that killed the person.
2. The NRA is not the largest funder for the Republican party in the US, nor is the LGBTQ community the largest funder for the democrats.
Now, I understand your concern relating to ownership of automatic and semi-automatic guns. They kill at a quick rate than an AK-47 riffle.
Those who own a gun for hunting is a different story. I agree they don’t present the mass shooting incidents witnessed in the country.
seeking the middle ground here. not gonna happen but I am going to try!
You make a clear and compelling argument, Scott.
Thanks, Norman. Not sure the argument was clear, but you can clearly see both sides in the comments!
Yeah , Gun control is a serious matter in US
i think it is a big problem throughout the world.
the US absolutely needs to rethink gun laws, but keep in mind that smuggling at the huge southern and northern borders would compromise any restrictions that were placed. which will most likely never happen anyway…
is that acceptance or fatalism?
pessimism or pragmatism. the NRA really knows how to heat up an already hot issue and when I think about the US border, smuggling has always been an issue
I could honestly fix the smuggling issue in 6 months by doing two simple things.
the DEA and ATF would like to know your secret…
They already know the secret. It is just very hard to make work without direct support.
so, not gonna tell me?
i cannot at this time. It is not something that should be in the wild right now.
I can respect that. I know a thing or two about network security that I won’t discuss with folks outside of the field…
in this case it is more who might be reading. Rather than the information itself.
I hadn’t considered that possibility…
based on what I do, i have to think about that all the time.
the internet is forever-ish
I agree that we need gun control not only in the US but all over the world.
Yeah I suspect you’ve upon the larger problem.
I agree with Ghostwriter and Carol DM. We already have strict gun control laws in this country. If someone wants a gun badly enough, there is always a way to obtain one, laws or not.
I am personally in the middle here. But the other side was presented, so I made sure a fact-based version of this side was presented.
It is already difficult for us to buy a gun, let alone a machine … they are very strict laws, dear friend such a massacre can hardly happen in our country
i know. You have more control at the state level around guns today,.
And it’s very difficult to get a weapons license …
it is not, currently in the US.
I agree in a way with Ghoswriter who uses his gun only for hunting. But I also agree with you Doc that all guns, that is pistols, semi-automatic etc used mostly in warfare should be outlawed in a private citizen’s house or possession. Guns were first produced for hunting and warfare. They should remain in that domain only and not invade private lives and public places… But also, maybe all the stores should have metal detectors at their entrances just like some schools and most airports and governements buildings do… I do not know what else to say… This subject is still very delicate and sensitive to a lot of people…
actually, the position is it’s ok to have guns. I don’t think they are bad. I just want to make sure that weapons built for the military aren’t walking around on the streets.
The only thing I will say is there already is gun control. It is impossible to legislate evil. I also agree with Ghostwriter’s comment above.
There has to be a middle ground somewhere here.
We are about to have a disagreement of ideals. I will not give up my guns. They are a part of my heritage, my greatest family memories, and my values. None of mine are semi automatic, and I feed my family with mostly wild meat. (Odd because of the ranch, but hunting is family time and it means everything.) Grand-dad’s rifle is one of my most cherished possessions.
The city that has the most strict gun laws has the most shootings – check it out.
Hopping off my soap box and going away. Have a great day.
I don’t want to take away anyone’s guns. I disagree with that completely. I just think we need to stop and figure this out.
ps the countries with tighter (not reduction or removal) laws around guns do have significantly lower mortality rates.