General Political Thread

[Tweedling]

Let's talk guns. Anyone interested in what new laws may be generated while going soft on the current laws we have in place?

Anyone recently bought a gun?

[Mr. Heartbreak]

I can't believe Glenn Beck and I agree on something: Alex Jones is a freaking madman.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/09/piers-morgan-alex-jones-gun-control_n_2438963.html

Best argument for background checks I've ever seen. Hell, maybe mental health testing.

[Hixter]

Anyone recently bought a gun?

On the day of the Aurora shootings I told myself that I would buy the AR15 that I'd been procrastinating about if I heard the president even mention reinstating the 1994 ban. Didn't take long and at last count, 7 of my neighbors had done the same thing. Now the shotgun that I've been eyeing for several months is out of stock all over the country. 

 

 Hopefully the panic buying will subside soon as it's not easy to find .223/5.56 ammo at the moment.

[lost highway]

Guns are unnecessary.

[uncool2pillow]

Oh good, not enough gun debates on the web.

[ih8music]

Oh good, not enough gun debates on the web.

But WE can solve it here, I assure you!

[lost highway]

Person on internet forum investigates political thread and dismisses unoriginal polemic that will not change the world.

[Mr. Heartbreak]

Person on internet forum investigates political thread and dismisses unoriginal polemic that will not change the world.

I actually like that as a headline better than "Guns are unnecessary."

[Tweedling]

On the day of the Aurora shootings I told myself that I would buy the AR15 that I'd been procrastinating about if I heard the president even mention reinstating the 1994 ban. Didn't take long and at last count, 7 of my neighbors had done the same thing. Now the shotgun that I've been eyeing for several months is out of stock all over the country. 

 

 Hopefully the panic buying will subside soon as it's not easy to find .223/5.56 ammo at the moment.

The panic is crazy. I should have been investing in guns and ammo years ago.

Say what you will about the topic or it's mention on this board but the fact is it's a big deal.

[KevinG]

On the day of the Aurora shootings I told myself that I would buy the AR15 that I'd been procrastinating about if I heard the president even mention reinstating the 1994 ban. Didn't take long and at last count, 7 of my neighbors had done the same thing. Now the shotgun that I've been eyeing for several months is out of stock all over the country. 

 

 Hopefully the panic buying will subside soon as it's not easy to find .223/5.56 ammo at the moment.

 

Can you tell me the reasoning on why you need such a gun?

[JUDE]

The panic is crazy. I should have been investing in guns and ammo years ago.

Say what you will about the topic or it's mention on this board but the fact is it's a big deal.

 

You should have been investing, great return.

 

I own multiple guns, including two dreaded Bushmaster AR-15 carbines. I shoot regularly at the local range and have been active in our local concealed carry training courses, including training sessions with the Minneapolis Special Response Team (SWAT) at our local range. I don't know if firearms are necessary but as long as I have the right to own them I will.

 

As of last night, New York state should be the safest state in the union.

[Hixter]

Can you tell me the reasoning on why you need such a gun?

There are very few things that a person needs, but there are many things that he might want. 

 

Why I wanted it:

 

1) I spent several years in the Army and the M16-type platform is what I'm most familiar with. It feels comfortable and familiar.

 

2) I wanted something to hunt deer, hogs and varmints with.

 

3) It's a very accurate rifle that's fun to shoot at the range.

 

A few additional, salient points:

 

1) I have no criminal record and I'm not a fan of the government's actions that restrict and criminalize the actions of law-abiding citizens like me while ignoring the fact that real criminals commit the majority of gun crimes while paying no attention to existing or future gun laws.

 

2) The same government officials who want to ban semi-auto handguns, "assault" rifles and "high-capacity" magazines are protected around the clock by agents armed with fully automatic weapons that outclass the weapons available to the average citizen. Then there are the media mouthpieces who decry the NRA's suggestion that there be armed guards in schools while sending their own children to schools with armed guards. That they write and record their anti-gun tirades in office buildings that are protected by armed guards is the epitome of hypocrisy.

 

3) So-called "assault" rifles are not much more than your grandfather's hunting rifle with some cosmetic work. 

 

4) Rifle murders are rare and spree killings even more so. More than twice as many murders are committed by bare hands, feet and fists than by rifles of all kinds.

[LouieB]

I suppose the old adage of guns don't kill people, people kill people still applies so one should be able to buy all the guns they want, but clearly when you need to kill someone either because you are crazy, angry or by accident, a gun does one hell of a good job.  Keep them locked up people!!!

 

LouieB

[Hixter]

Keep them locked up people!!!

For what it's worth, I decided that I didn't want guns in the house while children were present. I didn't purchase a firearm until my kids were well into their twenties and old enough to buy guns of their own.

[LouieB]

The shooter in the Newtown killings was an adult too, and I am sure his mother thought she was doing the right thing with her guns as well. 

 

Edit-Amazingly there is a totally open market in this country for guns, but marijuana and gay marriage (and lots of other fairly inoccuous things) are still illegal lots of places and not the "law of the land".  Crazy.

 

LouieB

[Hixter]

The shooter in the Newtown killings was an adult too, and I am sure his mother thought she was doing the right thing with her guns as well.

My kids were not mentally ill and they'd already left home.

 

The Newtown shooter was already banned from possessing firearms because of his mental illness, "assault" rifles were already illegal in CT and existing laws forbade him from entering the school with a firearm and murdering his mother and the people at the school but, hey, more laws will keep things like this from happening in the future. Just look at a city like Chicago if you want to see how useless gun laws are when it comes to keeping bad people from shooting other people.

[Tweedling]

Did you hear the story of the man in San Antonio who walked into a restaurant to break up with his girlfriend. After he fired shots in the restaurant people ran out and next door to a movie theater, trying to hide from the gunman. The gunman follows the people into the theater and before he could injure more people he was shot four times by a woman with a semi-automatic gun......

This was 2 days after the CT shootings.

What? You didn't hear about that? Weird.

[ih8music]

So let's all be carrying guns so we can shoot each other if someone acts up -- training be damned!  That's exactly the country I want to live in!  woo hoo! USA USA USA!

 

I have no problem with any of you owning firearms, but it should be as "inconvenient" as getting a driver's license.  Let the rest of us (i.e., the scary, evil government) know what you have, test you to ensure that you know how to safely use and store it... and oh yeah, make sure you're not a mental patient or convicted felon.  You agree to all that -- and take personal liability if your firearm is used in a crime -- and you're allowed to own whatever makes you happy.  

 

Oh wait, I guess we'll draw the line at RPGs, tanks & missles... but military assault rifles designed to kill dozens of people in an instant are perfectly a-ok.  [sigh]

[Tweedling]

The government does not need to know what I have.....speaking of needs. They know more than they need to already.

My point above was if the media is going to put the picture of the crazy guy who killed a bunch of innocent children on the news for more than a week then a person who saves innocent lives should be mentioned as well. Frankly, I believe they spoke entirely too much about the criminal in CT. Remembering the victims and their heroic acts is the right thing to do in these cases.

You ever see these people with their mug shots or personal photos? Its like they know that after they do a horrific shooting they their pic will be plastered on the cable news channels. I want to see the pictures of heros. Sorry, kinda ranting now.

[JUDE]

"Military Assault Rifles" have been banned since the NFA  of 1934 and have been for all intents and purposes unavailable to the general public since that time.

 

But go ahead and classify any weapon that bears any cosmetic similarity to a military weapon as an "Assault Rifle". 

[LouieB]

Well long ago it became clear to me that reducing the number of guns in this country was dead in the water.  So you can have all your guns if you want, but I would prefer the government not regulate what women (or men) do with their own bodies, regulate what they choose to ingest, (within reason), and keep people from marrying whom they want to. 

 

LouieB

[Jcamp]

Well long ago it became clear to me that reducing the number of guns in this country was dead in the water.  So you can have all your guns if you want, but I would prefer the government not regulate what women (or men) do with their own bodies, regulate what they choose to ingest, (within reason), and keep people from marrying whom they want to. 

 

LouieB

Well said , Louie B.

[Tweedling]

Well long ago it became clear to me that reducing the number of guns in this country was dead in the water.  So you can have all your guns if you want, but I would prefer the government not regulate what women (or men) do with their own bodies, regulate what they choose to ingest, (within reason), and keep people from marrying whom they want to. 

 

LouieB

Hahaha within reason? Whose reason? the government has a funny way with some of its reason.

[LouieB]

Hahaha within reason? Whose reason? the government has a funny way with some of its reason.

The same way you get to have arms, within reason.

 

LouieB

[Hixter]

 

Did you hear the story of the man in San Antonio ...

What? You didn't hear about that? Weird.

I've heard a lot about it because I live in San Antonio. This morning's news also had a piece about a guy in a nice neighborhood a mile away from me who shot 2 guys who were breaking into his car. As far as I'm concerned, they knew the risks and got what was coming to them.

 

I have no problem with any of you owning firearms, but it should be as "inconvenient" as getting a driver's license.  Let the rest of us (i.e., the scary, evil government) know what you have, test you to ensure that you know how to safely use and store it... and oh yeah, make sure you're not a mental patient or convicted felon.  You agree to all that -- and take personal liability if your firearm is used in a crime -- and you're allowed to own whatever makes you happy.  

With the exception of registering my firearms with the government, I'm fine with that, as it's already the law.

 

So you can have all your guns if you want, but I would prefer the government not regulate what women (or men) do with their own bodies, regulate what they choose to ingest, (within reason), and keep people from marrying whom they want to. 

Not sure why those subjects were mentioned in a discussion about gun control, but I agree with you. So imagine you're a happily married gay man in Denver who likes to do a few bong hits in his own home. News flash: Psychotic Drag Queen Murders Kids with Scissors while Smoking Blunt -- then your elected officials decide that even more laws against gay marriage, marijuana and scissors should be enacted. The next thing you know you've become a criminal and you have no way to trim your dank buds.