Why can’t America ban automatic weapons?

[MaryPoppinsPenguins]

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?

Guns in schools so the teachers can shoot the children. Then we will need the children to bring guns as well so they can protect themselves from the teachers. Possibly guests will have to be issued guns on the way in to protect themselves from both the teachers and the children. The NRA better start making more guns, a bonanza is coming.

I go back to my suggestion of having wall mounted remotely operated weapon systems. Like sprinklers but with bullets instead of water.

Will be good for Hollywood as well. Instead of 'Gunfight at the O.K. Corral' we can have 'Gunfight at the U.S. High School'. Instead of 'Breakfast Club' we can have 'Weapons Club'... and such like.

There are Democrats who take funding from the NRA. Not as many as Republicans but they do exist.

Cross-party support is needed for anything to change. Framing this as Democrats good and Republicans bad leaves everyone exactly where they were before and allows mass shootings to continue. We were able to make change in the UK because we saw gun law as a cross-party issue.

This absolutely IS a Republican problem
It's an American problem.

I heard the teacher gun solution on the radio this morning. Had to triple check it wasn't 1 April.

He "listened" to parents whose children were slaughtered, and that was his response? Fucking arrogant stupid out of touch spoilt never had to be in touch with reality sack of stinky orange shit.

It's an American problem precisely because of Republicans.

Of course cross-party support is required. I wonder what's going to be the thorn in the side of that ideal...

But apparently some of the parents at the meeting with Trump were supportive of the idea of arming teachers. What seems absolutely crazy to us doesn't seem so to parents who have lost children.
That's the problem in America.
You need to bring both those sides together to have any kind of sustainable change in the gun laws.

Between trump's suggestion and the number of teachers who are having to plan classroom tactics to hide their kids/face up to a shooter to protect the kids, how long before America doesn't have anyone who wants to be a teacher any more?

Apart from the sort of nut who thinks guns in the classroom are a great idea, and who wants their kids being taught by someone like that??!

I think the fundamental problem is that the gun industry in America doesn’t just want to sell guns to responsible people who know what they are doing.

They want the stupid, irresponsible, dangerous, clueless market too. You can probably make more money out of them.

To be completely fair this isn’t that far removed from Nike’s strategy - imagine if you had to prove that you were going to run a marathon before you could buy running shoes? However, it’s difficult to kill people with trainers.

To quote Jed Bartlet: “We already tamed the frontier.”

I’m hoping there is a shift in attitudes coming from the next generation. Unfortunately the NRA will do everything in their power to descredit those speaking out: the words “crisis actor” have already been used by some —nut jobs—.

One of my friends on Facebook has a friend from Arizona on his Facebook who is adamant all citizens should carry. He is PROUD that he trained his kids to shoot at age 4.

There's no chance :(

Fucking arrogant stupid out of touch spoilt never had to be in touch with reality sack of stinky orange shit
You are being way too kind to him

It's all about profits for the gun industry so the more people who have guns the better
Slaughtered teenagers are just cannon Fodder in the fight for power and money

But apparently some of the parents at the meeting with Trump were supportive of the idea of arming teachers. What seems absolutely crazy to us doesn't seem so to parents who have lost children

I assume the people present in the Trump meeting were carefully selected to represent both sides of the argument, the Rubio meeting was far more lively.

Julie I have just written something similar on the the other's thread, back to the wild West and gun fight at the ok coral. This has really shown up what a primitive country the US is.

Toffee yy that's probably true. Plus I think the Rubio meeting was more focused on Florida and Trump had parents from other school shootings too.

My observations (not belief).....A number of my friends believe that teachers should conceal carry (one of which is a teacher) she says she has a duty of care for the children she teaches.

The argument for more guns is that the potential victims are less likely to be targets if they can fight back.

My niece and nephew are 4 and 5, they visit us on holidays and they have also shot a gun (heavily supervised obviously)

Do people think that they're living in a Steven Seagal movie or something, where you can take shelter behind a car or something while hundreds of bullets are fired, then emerge unscathed? Thats what it sounds like.

The fighting back is a scary thought, just imagine a shoot out between teacher and attacker with the students in between. As noeffing says this is not a movie where innocent bystanders emerge unscathed.

ToffeeUp

Right, not everyone will emerge unscathed but fewer will die if a teacher intervened.

I believe the stat is an average of 3 people are killed by a shooter when no one intervened, that drops to 1 person where a arms citizen intervened.

So the solution to guns is more guns?

While the rest of the world looks on in disbelief....

American police are routinely armed, but they still get shot at daily.
I don't believe the threat of them being able to fire back is having much effect.

Of course I appreciate the argument, I just don't believe it actually works, and the statistics don't suggest it works either.
If a crazed child overcomes a single teacher, they now have a gun in their hands.

America's gun mentality has to change. When the solution to a gun problem is 'more guns', then there is little to no hope.

I also understand the argument that guns don't kill, people do. But I would argue that guns facilitate people killing. They facilitate death or maiming with such effectiveness, they are on a par with a bomb.

Regardless, it's no use us Brits lecturing to Americans. We have different outlooks, and simply don't have the love affair with guns that so many Americans have. If dead schoolchildren cannot sway them, no words will.

*Right, not everyone will emerge unscathed but fewer will die if a teacher intervened.

I believe the stat is an average of 3 people are killed by a shooter when no one intervened, that drops to 1 person where a arms citizen intervened.*

Alternatively, people then know you only have to shoot the teacher first, or overcome them to get a weapon.

So many of the pro-gun lobby see themselves as "the good guy with a gun".

Totally missing the point that if you change society's thinking on guns to reduce the amount of guns dramatically (will never happen in our lifetime, I suspect), you don't need a gun.

and secondly assuming that they'd react immediately and shoot instantly and accurately. The reality is far more likely to become a confused bloodbath.

The solution to guns is more guns
The solution to killing is more killing
An endless escalation of attack and counter attack

I believe teachers being armed would lead to more teacher suicides.

I'm surprised nobody's suggested compulsory bulletproof vests for American kids yet.

With hoods, obviously.