Tuesday, October 03, 2017
The blood in the streets
In the wake of the horrific Las Vegas shooting last night, the most true headline might have come from the most fake newspaper, the Onion: Americans Hopeful This Will Be Last Mass Shooting Before They Stop On Their Own For No Reason.
There are no easy answers, because it is a complex problem. Gun laws could (and should) change, but that may have little effect, as there are already so many guns floating around in this country already. I continue to think that part of the problem is culture. We glorify shooting in our entertainment. If on a Friday night I flip around on the TV between channels, over and over I see people with guns. Try it. Once you start noticing it is deeply unsettling. In movies and on TV, people firing guns at other people is just... pretty normal. You add that to a society where even a few people are mentally ill, deeply angry, or obsessively committed to some belief or ideology, and you have a recipe for... well, exactly what happened.
I know that some people will say that most people can distinguish between a movie and reality, and that is true. But "most people" don't include the killers. And when one man can kill 59 people and wound 500 more, that truism is little consolation.
There are no easy answers, because it is a complex problem. Gun laws could (and should) change, but that may have little effect, as there are already so many guns floating around in this country already. I continue to think that part of the problem is culture. We glorify shooting in our entertainment. If on a Friday night I flip around on the TV between channels, over and over I see people with guns. Try it. Once you start noticing it is deeply unsettling. In movies and on TV, people firing guns at other people is just... pretty normal. You add that to a society where even a few people are mentally ill, deeply angry, or obsessively committed to some belief or ideology, and you have a recipe for... well, exactly what happened.
I know that some people will say that most people can distinguish between a movie and reality, and that is true. But "most people" don't include the killers. And when one man can kill 59 people and wound 500 more, that truism is little consolation.
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Rachel Maddow tonight was framing the issue as one of technology: In the US we decided, in the 1970's, that we wanted to end plane crashes to the fullest extent possible, and basically we did. Airline travel in the US is, on the whole, safe. Airplanes rarely kill mass numbers of people anymore in the US.
So why can't we treat guns with the same attitude, at least the semi-automatic or the altered version this guy had, and make it harder for this technology to kill and injure large numbers of people every couple of weeks? It'll never end one hundred percent (like plane crashes), but we could try.
As for the guns on TV, that's probably a lost cause. Very troubling when you notice it, for sure.
So why can't we treat guns with the same attitude, at least the semi-automatic or the altered version this guy had, and make it harder for this technology to kill and injure large numbers of people every couple of weeks? It'll never end one hundred percent (like plane crashes), but we could try.
As for the guns on TV, that's probably a lost cause. Very troubling when you notice it, for sure.
# posted by 
: 2:43 AM
: 2:43 AM
The difference in weaponry from the 1780s and 90s, versus today, is dramatic and contributes greatly to mass shooting events. One person (or even several) using muzzle loading weapons could only shoot at one person every minute or so, as opposed to dozens. The weaponry has changed, as has the understanding of the Second Amendment and its purpose, and the result in death and destruction.
# posted by : 7:49 AM
: 7:49 AM
And now the House is starting debate on a bill that would legalize silencers on guns. Perhaps in light of Las Vegas someone will be smart enough to pull the bill. An idea even dumber than the one that allowed someone to buy a $50 converter for their semi-automatic weapon so it behaves live an outlawed machine gun.
I would love to treat guns the way we treat cars. Different levels of licensing for types of guns and also requiring liability insurance but that will never happen. Instead there will be a rush to gun stores today to purchase semi-automatic weapons because people fear that Congress will outlaw the weapon.
I would love to treat guns the way we treat cars. Different levels of licensing for types of guns and also requiring liability insurance but that will never happen. Instead there will be a rush to gun stores today to purchase semi-automatic weapons because people fear that Congress will outlaw the weapon.
We as a nation have repeatedly weighed the value of the profitable sale of military weapons to the public against the loss of lives.These would include assault rifles like the ones used in the latest mass killing. We have chosen to continue to support the gun industry and not the victims and their families. This is the power that money has in our elections.
Allowing weapons of war whose only purpose is mass killing to potentially get into the hands of someone with a grudge is pure idiocy, whether it is the President of the United States or a gambler in Las Vegas.
Of course if we set as our goal the elimination of these weapons from our society, hunters would lose their ability to kill 59 deer and wound hundreds more at a time.
We will once again be told that this is an assault on their freedom. We will be told that he next thing you know only the bad guys can shoot people and the average guy will lose his right to do the same... and on and on the insane sales of guns will continue.
Allowing weapons of war whose only purpose is mass killing to potentially get into the hands of someone with a grudge is pure idiocy, whether it is the President of the United States or a gambler in Las Vegas.
Of course if we set as our goal the elimination of these weapons from our society, hunters would lose their ability to kill 59 deer and wound hundreds more at a time.
We will once again be told that this is an assault on their freedom. We will be told that he next thing you know only the bad guys can shoot people and the average guy will lose his right to do the same... and on and on the insane sales of guns will continue.
Not to long ago stopping the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction was universally thought to be a good idea. The threat of nuclear annihilation motivated us. We brought in and destroyed many of these weapons. We are now back in the business.
Perhaps, having an unstable Donald Trump having sole responsibility for use of our nuclear arsenal will bring us to our senses. We will always have unstable leaders and citizens. What weapons that they we put in their hands is up to us.
To accomplish this we will have to return to citizen control over our military.
Perhaps, having an unstable Donald Trump having sole responsibility for use of our nuclear arsenal will bring us to our senses. We will always have unstable leaders and citizens. What weapons that they we put in their hands is up to us.
To accomplish this we will have to return to citizen control over our military.
One other truism we are living [in denial] with is the bad state of mental hygiene in the United States…Yeah remember that word?!? at one point it meant something in this country, it was carefully considered and minded for. I highly doubt the opioid epidemic is due to out of control neuropathies or other forms of chronic pain. Why so many people in need of numbing reality? Why so many people obsessed with guns? Why so paranoid about defending against…wait, against what?
If nothing changed in gun control after 20 children were executed at Sandy Hook Elementary School, nothing will change now and nothing will change until Americans “stop on their own for no reason”...take that for another crazy related term truism. After all, look what divorce from reality elected as President of The United States of America.
If nothing changed in gun control after 20 children were executed at Sandy Hook Elementary School, nothing will change now and nothing will change until Americans “stop on their own for no reason”...take that for another crazy related term truism. After all, look what divorce from reality elected as President of The United States of America.
I've always been pro gun control, despite supporting plenty of candidates that were not. But over the last several years, I have given up on most Republicans due to their positions on guns, abortion, science, etc.
Even so, I "get" some of the anti-gun control arguments, just like I "get" other libertarian arguments in favor of personal liberty. But the public good has to come into play.
On the other hand, I found this opinion piece by someone who actually did the research to be fascinating:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/i-used-to-think-gun-control-was-the-answer-my-research-told-me-otherwise/2017/10/03/d33edca6-a851-11e7-92d1-58c702d2d975_story.html?tid=pm_pop&utm_term=.56b64b5eab18
--Basically, gun control would not stop the vast majority of gun deaths. The argument that many people make about Australia seizing guns is a red herring. Gun violence was never a huge problem there. Yes, some spectacular incidents, but nothing like the U.S.
I'm still in favor of gun control, but what's really needed is more mental health screening and counseling and intervention.
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Even so, I "get" some of the anti-gun control arguments, just like I "get" other libertarian arguments in favor of personal liberty. But the public good has to come into play.
On the other hand, I found this opinion piece by someone who actually did the research to be fascinating:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/i-used-to-think-gun-control-was-the-answer-my-research-told-me-otherwise/2017/10/03/d33edca6-a851-11e7-92d1-58c702d2d975_story.html?tid=pm_pop&utm_term=.56b64b5eab18
--Basically, gun control would not stop the vast majority of gun deaths. The argument that many people make about Australia seizing guns is a red herring. Gun violence was never a huge problem there. Yes, some spectacular incidents, but nothing like the U.S.
I'm still in favor of gun control, but what's really needed is more mental health screening and counseling and intervention.
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