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Why can’t America ban automatic weapons?

905 replies

MaryPoppinsPenguins · 14/02/2018 22:42

I don’t get it. I honestly don’t. After Sandy Hook that should have been enough... statistics speak for themselves.

Why? What don’t I get?

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FrancisCrawford · 15/02/2018 12:54

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Julie8008 · 15/02/2018 13:16

Its quite ironic that Americans are in favour of having unlimited weapons of mass killing, even if the owner is 'a psycho'.

Yet dont have the same opinion when it comes to other countries having weapons of mass killing destruction, even if they are ruled by 'psychos'.

The magnitude is different but then so is the magnitude between a knife attack and a military grade automatic weapon attack. But the principles are the same. Why can Americans not see that.

Exiguous · 15/02/2018 14:14

But at the end of the day it is people who vote. Gun control in the USA is how it is because the majority of the population is OK with things the way they are. PP are correct - that's all there is to it at the end of the day.

It's not quite 'all there is'. There is that whole issue of the Second Amendment and the Supreme Court.

DGRossetti · 15/02/2018 14:18

Do you know why there's a second amendment ? In case the government forgets the first.

The US was borne of revolution. The very first thing the British did after the Boston Tea Party was ban the import and possession of guns and gunpowder. A disarmed population is one that can be oppressed (is the pro-gun narrative). Hence the reverence for the second amendment (first thing Hitler and Mussolini did was ban private gun ownership).

The UK stance on guns is almost the reverse. Not generally being oppressed, we're fairly comfortable that having given up our "right" to bear arms, we are protected by the state (police). I'm pretty libertarian and not a massive fan of the ban-brigade. However in the case of private gun ownership, I think the UK is as good as it gets. Bottom line is I have no need of a gun.

A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

I never understood why the US Supreme Court hasn't tried to use the phrase "A well regulated militia" in the wording to mean that if you want to own a gun, you need to join up ... ? Although I have a memory that generally the USA is a bit down on judicial activism ?

If nothing else, I think it's fair to say that since the 2nd amendment was penned, while guns have advanced (when it was written we were still talking about 1-shot-a-minute-if-you're-lucky muskets) the law hasn't ?

But if it was a real problem, I'm sure a solution could be found. After al, despite the first amendment being even older than the second, in the days of the internet, Facebook can ban breastfeeding pictures ...

CaveMum · 15/02/2018 14:23

.

Why can’t America ban automatic weapons?
ivykaty44 · 15/02/2018 14:28

Cave mum interesting those shorting are all in the last 45 days?

I read somewhere else that there has been a school shooting in the US every 60 hours so far this year

This is incredible destruction of human life

Exiguous · 15/02/2018 14:39

I do find the whole Second Amendment argument odd. Pro-gun people read it to say that no rights to own weapons may be infringed.

Yet our rights to own weapons are constantly infringed. I don't have the right to own a grenade launcher. I don't have the right to own a nuclear weapon. We prevent felons from owning weapons. We prevent under-18s from owning weapons.

Personally I'd like to see a great deal more infringement of Second Amendment rights.

Husk · 15/02/2018 14:42

lets ban kitchen knives and transit vans, because bans work.

Exiguous · 15/02/2018 14:48

lets ban kitchen knives and transit vans, because bans work.

If you keep going like this I'm going to fill my Pro Gun Bingo card far too easily.

Why can’t America ban automatic weapons?
Backenette · 15/02/2018 14:52

lets ban kitchen knives and transit vans, because bans work.

Transit vans and kitchen knives have other functions, transporting stuff and in prepping food. An AR-15 has only one function, which is to get as many bullets as possible I to an object at high speed.

Your argument is a classic example of poor logical thinking. No civilian needs an assault rifle.

ivykaty44 · 15/02/2018 14:57

Cause of world deaths 2016

To be fair the white motorised vehicle is far ahead of gun deaths.....

Why can’t America ban automatic weapons?
wherewithal · 15/02/2018 15:03

“people just want to take the easy route rather then tackle the real problem.” As if banning guns in the US would be the easy route…

Husk · 15/02/2018 15:04

Backanette "No civilian needs an assault rifle."

If they had one yesterday fewer lives may have been lost.

Exiguous · 15/02/2018 15:04

I'd like to see guns regulated the same way that motorised vehicles are. Training, test, registration, fines for misuse, loss of license, requirement for insurance, laws regarding use while intoxicated, etc.

Seems odd we can't even manage that.

Exiguous · 15/02/2018 15:04

If they had one yesterday fewer lives may have been lost.

Lovely - another one for my bingo card.

You're making this too easy.

CaveMum · 15/02/2018 15:05

@ivykaty44 yes all of those shootings since 1st January. The website the stats come from update figures daily and they have an archive of previous years too: www.gunviolencearchive.org

2017 total gun related deaths 15,590
2017 mass shootings: 346
2017 deaths/injuries in children under the age of 11: 732

2016 total gun related deaths 15,094
2016 mass shootings: 383
2016 deaths/injuries in children under the age of 11: 673

They’ve kept stats since 2014 and every year the number of deaths goes up.

BitterLittlePoster · 15/02/2018 15:10

If they had one yesterday fewer lives may have been lost.

You think so? Please describe how.

Julie8008 · 15/02/2018 15:11

Americans should regulate guns and bullets the way they regulate chocolate and toys. You can have both but its illegal to have one inside the other because... you know its dangerous and a young child might get hurt. Shock

GrannyGrissle · 15/02/2018 15:13

I'm more interested to know what provisions they have in the US for mental health, in this instance for teens/young people? Them guns don't shoot themselves.

Exiguous · 15/02/2018 15:16

I'm more interested to know what provisions they have in the US for mental health, in this instance for teens/young people? Them guns don't shoot themselves.

Another one for the bingo card!

IME the provision in the US is similar to or better than in the UK.

DGRossetti · 15/02/2018 15:18

Americans should regulate guns and bullets the way they regulate chocolate and toys.

Was it Dave Chapelle that did a routine that guns should be legal, but bullets heavily taxed ....

I'd pop a cap in yo' ass ... if I could afford it ?

Husk · 15/02/2018 15:23

Exigious As your so interested in Bingo why waste your time with discussions on here.

Here's another for your card

Heres Exigious number 8

noeffingidea · 15/02/2018 15:25

If they had one yesterday fewer lives would have been lost
You've got that the wrong way round. If the shooter hadn't had access to guns fewer or no lives would have been lost, because he wouldn't have been able to shoot anyone. Guns don't cancel each other out.
On a related note, don't they have security in American schools? All the schools my kids have been to have been locked since Dunblane. He wouldn't have been able to get into the building, though he could have shot through the windows, of course.

Husk · 15/02/2018 15:25

BLP

Obviously the could have taken down the shooter.

Exiguous · 15/02/2018 15:28

Exigious As your so interested in Bingo why waste your time with discussions on here.

I have three children in American schools.

I'm going to carry on discussing gun control here and many other places.

I'm also going to continue to contribute to pro-gun control organisations, lobby my legislators, and actively take part in law-making in my community.

Meanwhile people like you will continue to ensure that people like Nikolas Cruz have access to guns. You must be so proud.