ClumsyMonkey.net

dream in japanese wrote:
so yes...make it easier for more people to own guns and then solve that issue by arming more police officers with more guns. more guns is his solution to violence

more guns is a good solution.

mosaik wrote:The weapons are not the issue, it is the mindset of the people holding the weapons that needs to change.

Yes, and that is obviously not something for which there is an easy solution. Until then I would feel much safer if these people didn't have guns.

mosaik wrote:

Rusty wrote:

magicseamonkey wrote:don't need automatic weapons either...

yet, they're allowed some places.

I'm against automatic weapons as well, save them for the military.

mosaik wrote:

Rusty wrote:I don't think the general public should have access to handguns. They have no use whatsoever. Rifles, shotguns, ok. They are used for hunting, it's not my sport but some enjoy it. Handguns however have no purpose for hunting and are thus useless, except for police officers. However, it is their job to enforce the law and it's a dangerous one at that sometimes, so they may need a firearm at times to protect themselves. However, the general population does not need handguns. I've said it before and I'm saying it again now.

i'll happily debate you on that.

Well I didn't say all that for my health. If I only lived with my opinion the world would be a pretty boring place. As long as we keep the debate civil, by all means please let us debate.

I just don't see how you can say that people do not have the right to every available opportunity to protect themselves from any and every threat they percieve.

Somtimes you even need a weapon to protect yourself FROM the police. The best check, in fact the only real check, on the power of the state is the number of the population that are armed.

I see a lot of posts in this thread that say something to the effect of "destroy all guns"

But of course you realize that even without guns, people have always found ways to kill eachother. A better dream would be to eliminate that desire in others to have or conquer our neighbors possesions.

The weapons are not the issue, it is the mindset of the people holding the weapons that needs to change.

I'll agree that we should all feel safe in our country. However, if the average person didn't have guns we'd all be a lot safer. How many harmless people are there out there who just have that one day when they finally snap. If this person snaps and has easy access to a gun then they can do a lot more damage than if they didn't.

Also, guns spread fear. Why is it that people have this feeling that they need a gun to protect themselves? Are you afraid of someone else pulling a gun on you so you feel the need to have one yourself? (That is a universal you not you personally.) Owning a gun is dangerous, then the minute someone feels afraid they will reach for their gun. This causes the "shoot before shot" thought, and often results in injury.

I'll concede that yes people will always have ways to kill each other, but guns make it a hell of a lot easier. With a gun, it's just a shot, if you're a good shot you don't even need to be close. In fact as Matt pointed out earlier, hand guns make killing a challenge. What is a more dangerous foe than another human being? We have concsious thought, that makes hunting people so much more difficult. Killing is a hard thing to do, in fact in order to kill someone you must break through a mental barrier. That is what they do in the army, they actually break that mental block in soldiers so that they don't freeze on the battlefield. If someone had to rely on a knife or their own hands, then it's so much more personal. You're in close contact with that person, and the mental block forms. It is true that people kill people, but guns make the job a lot easier.