Dante said:
i had typed an american history lesson for duke but deleted it, and now i wish i hadn't. in a nutshell, america gained its independence by the use of force against a few european countries. the right to bear arms was inserted into the constitution such that the common man has control of their cohesive destiny. in america there can be no tyrannical or authoritarian rule by those in power because at the most fundamental level, the people have arms and the power to rebel. this notion of checks and balances is what america was built upon and the reason for our status as a world leader (despite our short history relative to europe).
Don't bother, I know the theoretical reason behind the right to bear arms. What those revolvers are going to do against your own military is a different matter entirely. Surely, if the right to bear arms is some form of failsafe design to make sure the country doesn't fall to opressors, it's quite outdated.
Dante said:
blaming guns and calling for their abolishment is naive and frankly foolish. they're here now, and if a law was passed tomorrow outlawing them, they'd be here tomorrow too. prohibition was an abismal failure because the people did not want it. likewise, such laws encourage criminal activities. if weapons were to be banned, consider who feels the impact... the law abiding citizen. the criminal element will always have access. additionally, would all guns be unilaterally banned? of course one would say yes to handguns, but what of shotguns? .22 target shooters? how about a bow and arrow? all three can be just as lethal as the next when used for malice.
It's not about banning something full stop. That's not possible. It's about making such weapons readily available to the general public.
Dante said:
puff is exactly on the money. the problem is that the high pace, ultra competitive standards set in place in modern american society cultivates feelings of insecurities and frusteration in those who fall behind the pace. elementary psychology dictates that frusteration leads to aggression.
So you're saying that there is a fundamental problem in American society that makes school shootings more prevelant there?
Dante said:
the simple fact of the matter is that acts of extreme violence take place globally every day... the world media focuses on atypical acts like this recent one because it is interesting. meanwhile, a jihadist in iraq who kills 20 people gets 5 seconds of news.
We expect a militant extremist to perform acts of violence. We don't expect it from children. That's why it's "more" news than any other random act of violence.
Dante said:
the simple fact is that it's not guns, it's the lack of recognition and addressing of people's problems that kills people. until the social stigma of mental health and corresponding therapy is removed, violence will continue to erupt.
Sounds very fancy, but in the end you're saying that we need to solve the problems of humankind and then violence will go away. Great analytical job, Dr X. Any more obvious truths you'd like to share?
In the end it's a two sided story. Fucked up individuals are practically everywhere. America has no patent on twisted kids. It's when you add twisted kids and easy access to firearms up, then you get problems. Sure, you can kill someone with a knife. Or a car. Or a flower pot. But that's hard. We don't see school massacres done by 14 year olds bashing 10 people to death with a computer monitor. When 14 year old Billy, who is small and fat and gets bullied every day, finally snaps, it makes a huge difference whether Billy has access to that Glock in dad's bedroom drawer or that he must make do with a kitchen knife.
The "emotional threshold" of killing with firearms is low. It's easier to pull a trigger than stab someone to bits up close and personal. And while this is only a small part of the matter, it all adds up. In America, we have problem children, with relative (compared to other parts of the Western world) easy access to firearms, which are an easy tool to kill someone. Much easier than other "lethal tools" (which can be anything).
Also, my question still hasn't been answered. If America's gun legislation isn't "too soft" and America isn't a sandbowl of psychoes waiting to explode, why did so many of the violent incidents at schools with firearms happen in the United States?
Still, those laws are there BECAUSE those states have high crime rates. Not the other way around.
