Gun Control

[Nick]

He never said that. He said they should be the ones with the right to have a gun. There are TONS of ways to protect yourself that don't involve a gun.

Well then I completely misread that. D:
And if that's the case, then I completely agree with him.

 

[Sora_8920]

Yes, I believe in it. But I don't think guns are relevant. Just use a alarm like aforementioned.

 

[Maria Santos]

I have mixed feelings about this...

I am all for owning a gun but I agree there must be some regulation on it, but not some total ban. I am more towards pro gun because twice has the situation has come up in my life in which it was needed and both times they served me well.

just my opinion.

 

[BeachBoy]

Tough topic. I'm leaning with Disintegration, yet on the other hand agree with Eon-Rider and some others. ;/

You can make guns and their ability to obtain such harder and much more strict, but someone will find a way to beat "the system", no matter what.

Could ban guns or create the illusion of "controlling" them. Although you can still bet there's a heck of great chance they'll still be able to get their hands on a firearm. That's just how I see it, you can up strict laws, whatever, it's really just creating the illusion of safety, while there are still many many people, some violent, having the ability to obtain a firearm. (And you can't "control" the firearms that people already illegally own, can you?)

The simple glance of a gun deters many people, criminals even. Yet it is a powerful weapon that can take a life away. I don't know. I've heard of too many times where an NFL player was killed by a gun, yet if he had one, could have had the chance to save his life in some way. The "protection" a glance of a gun can provide is enormous. No matter how many other ways there are to defend yourself, guns are easily the most effective weapon at a glance to deter someone or something from happening. I just don't know. =/

The state of Maryland claims to have the toughest gun control law in the nation, yet it ranks highest in robberies and fourth in violent crime and murder; gun control just doesn't work. Even New Zealand had to repeal their gun registration law in the 1980s because the police found it worthless. It's not the gun availability that causes crimes.

Great point.

 

[Ravecat]

I'm going to register and buy a .22 rifle as soon as I turn eighteen (and can afford it).

The Remington 7615 Tactical. What a beauty.

 

[txteclipse]

I don't think an overall ban of guns (including from the military and stuff) is ever going to happen. Armies use the newest and most effective technology: right now that happens to be guns.

Think of it this way: all countries would ban guns, and then one would say "hey, they can't defend themselves if we start manufacturing guns again!" So they re-equip their military with guns, get in a few free kills while everyone else starts using guns again, and then we're back at square one.

EDIT: Am I really the only "not sure?" XD

 

[Trap-Eds]

I'm going to register and buy a .22 rifle as soon as I turn eighteen (and can afford it).
The Remington 7615 Tactical. What a beauty.

So I'm guessing you don't believe in gun control?

 

[Cherrim]

I don't think an overall ban of guns (including from the military and stuff) is ever going to happen. Armies use the newest and most effective technology: right now that happens to be guns.

I don't think anyone is naive enough to think that would ever be a viable option. We're talking about banning guns from the general populous, or at least restricting their purchase. o.o

 

[txteclipse]

I don't think anyone is naive enough to think that would ever be a viable option. We're talking about banning guns from the general populous, or at least restricting their purchase. o.o

Wait...I think I misread someone's post somewhere. I for some reason thought someone said that guns shouldn't be made at all. My bad. -_-'

 

[Cherrim]

I think one or two people did mention it, but only as opinion. For example, I feel guns shouldn't ever have been invented but that's not gonna do me much good right now.

Um, another note I'm kind of curious about: is anyone in a country that is NOT the United States and does that country support guns? I mean, I mentioned in a previous post what Canada's stance on guns is for now. It's a rather strict gun registry and the general population seems to disapprove of guns in general. What's it like in other countries? Are the majority of "regular" people for or against guns? What's the government's stance? I'm curious. :x

 

[Maria Santos]

another note I'm kind of curious about: is anyone in a country that is NOT the United States and does that country support guns? I mean, I mentioned in a previous post what Canada's stance on guns is for now. It's a rather strict gun registry and the general population seems to disapprove of guns in general. What's it like in other countries? Are the majority of "regular" people for or against guns? What's the government's stance? I'm curious. :x

Well from what I see it, many colombians i know can even stand the sight of a gun. then again i knew plenty that were toting em around. for example my uncles there. they got guns in multiple in every practical place they can hide one. Most reason why is because of sicarios that target people all the time for any amount of money they can get their hands on. happened to my uncle more than 4 times. 2 times jumped after he left the bank, and twice when they tried to invade his home. We are not including the Jamundi incident >_>

Lots of folks down in colombia disapprove of it yet many approve. its the way it is. The gun registry is not so tight but to make up for it they stop people on buses and other areas all the time just to make sure they arent packing heat without the guns ID and the owners ID. Seriously we have gotten pulled over more than 6 times in one week. So you could say the government there is pretty tight with it. but alas, the system aint perfect. =/

 

[Master Electrician]

I grew up with firearms, I started learning to shoot when I was six with a .22 air rifle and have continued since. It seems that the general assumption is that in the U.S., an individual can simply go out and purchase a .45 pistol. Uh-uh. Mandatory pistol safety and marksmanship classes, registry and ID, background check, and then a much more intensive course if you want a concealed carry permit. Fact is, there are parts of my hometown I don't want to go anywhere near without at least a knife, preferably something more substantial.

Yes, illegal firearms are a problem. But you outlaw guns, people are still going to purchase them, and now almost all of them will be off the radar. Furthermore, in rural areas, farmers often need rifles, shotguns, etc. as a matter of expediency. A single herd of deer can ruin an entire crop.

So, if you speak of gun control as outlawing firearms, I oppose it. If you speak of it as regulating firearms, then I support it. Your question is inappropriately vague.

 

[Gunn]

Scenario B: a family that lives in a bad part of town keeps a gun in the house for protection. The dad keeps it in his nightstand drawer, so he will be able to reach it quickly if someone enters the house. One day, their young child finds the gun and accidentally shoots and kills himself while playing with it.

I can tell you how likely that will not happen. Only fewer than 2% of all unintentional deaths for children in the US are caused by firearms while 51% are caused by motor vehicle accidents according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Your children are more like to die in a car than from a firearm. Cars are not the only common causes of deaths for children neither. In 2001, there were only 72 accidental firearm deaths for children under the age of 15. During that same year, there were over 2,100 children who died drowning; that is 29 times more drowning deaths than firearm deaths. Other common accidental deaths (followed by drowning) are from fire, suffocation, pedestrians, other land transportation, falling, and poisoning. Even these are relatively low in percentages but not as low as firearm deaths, while automobile accidents remain the highest (51%). Even the United States non-gun homicide for children is twice as high in other western countries. I can completely see where you are coming from though. I know no one parents wants their children to be apart of any percentage, no matter how low it is.

That's why I believe in a strict gun registry. Canada has one and I believe that when you buy a gun here there's a lot to be done.

Yeah, but it's not doing the job. More than 20,000 Canadian gun owners have refused to their firearms and some provinces aren't even prosecuting those who fail to register. A bill to abolish the registry has been introduced (eliminating the registry) in the parliament.

 

[Jack O'Neill]

I believe in gun control for the simple fact that I hate anything that isn't natural. I believe humankind was not meant to own tools such as guns. If someone breaks into your house, solve it some other way. The fittest survive right? So go fight the proper way. Owning a gun is a cowards way to win a fight imo.

Yes, my post sounds completely idiotic. =O

Yes, completely and utterly idiotic. How do you think the homeowner's going to retaliate against an invasion of his property, using harsh language? He'll get his skull bashed in with a tire iron or get shot with a 9mm if he mouths off. Now, give the homeowner a 9mm of his own, and he's just leveled the playing field.

Prudence and cowardice are two very different things. Know that.

 

[suicidesal]

Guns are silly and can turn against you, if you really want to protect yourself from a home invader- learn martial arts/self defense.

 

[Motsuko Live]

What if you purchased a gun, and an alarm? Anyway, I do agree with you. I live in Canada, and I'm pretty sure we have some kind of gun control over here; you need to have a license, and you're not allowed to carry it around (I think). Though either way, it's not that hard to buy a gun illegally... if you know where.

 

[Lusankya]

Well, if you want to reduce deadly crimes, then no-guns is the way to go! The victim having a gun won't reduce his chances of being hurt any if the criminal also has a gun, which he probably will. And since the criminal, being the aggressor, is more likely to have a gun than the victim, the victim is most likely going to be the one hurt by the gun. So, saying we should have guns to defend ourselves from criminals isn't actually a logical argument.

Anyways, there's no practical reason why civilians should be able to get guns so easily. The only benefits are psychological, purely in your mind. Want to go hunting? Then go buy a crossbow. It takes more skill.

 

[txteclipse]

Anyways, there's no practical reason why civilians should be able to get guns so easily. The only benefits are psychological, purely in your mind. Want to go hunting? Then go buy a crossbow. It takes more skill.

But the psychological benefit is also in the aggressor's mind, if you see what I mean...they usually won't mess with you if you have a weapon. That's kind of the idea.

The problem I have is that if people can't buy guns legally, then the only people getting them will be getting them illegally, which means that they already have a predisposition for crime. So if you have a bunch of criminals still getting guns, and a bunch of citizens not able to buy guns to defend themselves, said criminals would instantly have the upper hand.

And crossbows could still present a problem. They're quiet, first of all, and I don't think they need to be registered, but don't quote me on that. They are inherently bigger than handguns, however, and would thus be harder to conceal.

 

[Nick]

Wait...I think I misread someone's post somewhere. I for some reason thought someone said that guns shouldn't be made at all. My bad. -_-'

No, you didn't misread that. I said that. Not meaning that they should stop making them but they shouldn't have been made in the first place. (Which if you thought that, then you misread it)

Meaning: The word gun = never said because it doesn't exist.

 

[txteclipse]

No, you didn't misread that. I said that. Not meaning that they should stop making them but they shouldn't have been made in the first place.

Meaning: The word gun = never said because it doesn't exist.

Ah. I see what you mean.

The thing is that weaponry and armor progress in an endless cycle, and new technologies are adapted into weaponry and/or armor if possible. For instance: enemy throws rocks, we wear padded clothing. Enemy creates knives, we wear armor made of bone and wood. Enemy invents swords, we create metal armor, and so on and so forth. In effect, guns may have been inevitable from the beginning. We would have eventually discovered pyrotechnics and gunpowder, and someone would have noticed its destructive potential.

The debate over whether to use that potential or not is a moot point...wars are pretty much inevitable, unfortunately. Someone's going to want that power, therefore, and despite the creator's intentions, as long as some palms are being greased, weapons will be made.

Violence is much quicker and more effective than talking...the loser is shut up forever, instantly in the case of a gun fight. It's why so many choose to go this route.