Texas is just becoming no fun.

[gcode]

When I was in Colorado in the late 60's/early 70's there was a rifle rack carrying a deer rifle  in the back window of every pickup truck you saw.
If you rolled around with something like that today, you'd get wacked by a SWAT team.
I spent 6 months in a high school in suburban Denver in '72 and they offered rifle marksmanship courses
for both boys and girls.
Times sure have changed.

[JakeL]

"city" newspaper

Those things still exist? Learn something new everyday   

[neurosis]

Wait.... WHERE IS THIS HAPPENING?

I've been around for a minute and I've NEVER seen firearms being "handed out". Firearms are NOT easier to obtain than a "library card". If they are and you are right neuro, that's illegal AF. So.... where are they doing this?

As long as you can pass a background check, you can purchase a firearm. Being able to pass a background check doesn't make you a responsible adult.  For a lot, some of us included, it just means that we've never been caught. 

Guns aren't the problem, they are symptom of a broken society and tattered social fabric...as I stated above, make them go away, all of them, nothing would change except there'd be no firearms. 

I agree with this. Guns are the symptom. When you have 7000 people dying in 6 months you'd think the Country is at war. 

Again, I'm glad that I don't go out at night anymore.  I'd hate to become a statistic just because I wanted to go grocery shopping at 10pm.  That sounds a little "sky is falling", but my girlfriend got caught in the middle of two people pulling guns on each other at a local Safeway after dark. This wasn't long after she moved in with me. 

[JParis]

As long as you can pass a background check, you can purchase a firearm. Being able to pass a background check doesn't make you a responsible adult.  For a lot, some of us included, it just means that we've never been caught.

This kind of process just puts someone in the position of deciding what someone "might" do....how does anyone adjudicate that fairly?

I've got a LONGTIME friend....he did a lot of crap as kid and got caught....I'll never put a firearm in his hands because I know how that could negatively affect ME...knowing all of that, he has had firearms for years now....he's not supposed to...I didn't ask him how, I frankly don't want to know...he is though not that same person he was all those years ago. He swears a part of him died one night when he rolled his car and barely survived it....he was so messed up, the cop that found a bag of weed in his car, looked at him and said, "it looks you've got enough problems" and proceeded to flush it down the toilet.

[beej]

As long as you can pass a background check, you can purchase a firearm. Being able to pass a background check doesn't make you a responsible adult.  For a lot, some of us included, it just means that we've never been caught.

that's true with all kinds of things, though. There are irresponsible people walking around with a Penis, they could rape someone, but we let them keep them anyway, don't we?

All that is required to buy whiskey is a 21 year old birth certificate, How do we know if the person buying it is responsible or not? they could still drink and drive, and maybe they already have and just never been caught. 

In a free society people get certain rights. when they abuse those rights, those rights get taken away. Now, maybe in a dictatorship, you could go ahead and start pre-emptively start taking those rights away just to make sure they don't do something to abuse them, but who really wants that? is that what you prefer?

[JParis]

In a free society people get certain rights.

In a free society people are born with certain inalienable rights.
Let's remember they are not gifts from .gov 

[neurosis]

This kind of process just puts someone in the position of deciding what someone "might" do....how does anyone adjudicate that fairly?

That's why this is a near impossible conversation to have in that you would have to admit that you're willing to infringe on someone's rights to prevent a potential future problem. Who gets to make that decision.


When I was in my late teens I was just a shit head. I could have easily purchased a firearm and my 50 year old self wouldn't want my 18 year old self having access to one. Now that I'm older and have experienced some things   I would be fine. I've also taken firearm safety classes at a local firing range, which in my opinion, should be a requirement. 

[neurosis]

There are irresponsible people walking around with a Penis

Let me know when 7000 people are killed in 6 months by a Penis     Incog?    

[mowens]

I would argue that these things are already being done in rural areas. Here in my county, cops get involved with little league baseball, and organizations like 4H, and they host DARE dances which helps them build relationships with middle school children. Our judges have no problem throwing the book at criminals, although, most of the criminals are white so there is no racist element to it. And there are a lot of community pride events, like 4th of July shows, Night of a 1000 stars at Christmas, community easter egg hunts, and if a kid isn't showing up at school, the principal will talk to his parents at church on Sunday about it.

Let me guess; you live in Evergreen, Vermont (maybe Connecticut) and it's Christmas all year round. Your widowed dad runs an Inn and you occasionally have royalty stay with you when they get snowed in. And the largest employer is a company called "Hallmark".
 

[beej]

Let me know when 7000 people are killed in 6 months by a Penis     Incog?   

I could easily make that case, but the discussion would be way off topic for this thread.

[JParis]

That's why this is a near impossible conversation to have in that you would have to admit that you're willing to infringe on someone's rights to prevent a potential future problem. Who gets to make that decision.

and that's why before you ever get to the point of infringing you toss the perps in the clink and toss the key if you have to...

We either prosecute these to the FULL extent of current law or the next part of the discussion can never really take place....when do we finally start treating the criminals like they act, like criminals?

I agree any person who wants a firearm and doesn't have some kind of training, be it a father teaching a child, a friend teaching proper technique, they should avail themselves of some kind of training...I'm loathe to "require" it.

[mowens]

How about the death penalty for the perpetrators of crimes involving firearms that result in death?

And I'm generally against the death penalty.

[beej]

Let me guess; you live in Evergreen, Vermont and it's Christmas all year round. Your widowed dad runs an Inn and you occasionally have royalty stay with you when they get snowed in. And the largest employer is a company called "Hallmark".
 

Hallmark is in Kansas City, I'm on the other side of the state. but Mayberry would be a better comparison. LOL

[beej]

I would be fine. I've also taken firearm safety classes at a local firing range, which in my opinion, should be a requirement. 

did you take driver ed in school? Did it keep you from breaking the law with an automobile?

[JParis]

How about the death penalty for crimes involving firearms that result in death?

Though I would be remiss in not pointing out that the death penalty isn't any kind of deterrent but in certain cases, I could see that being the outcome...if you want to behave like an animal, well, we'll treat you like a rabid animal and put you down.

It won't really solve the problem but it will remove a person so blase about another's life that they will never again get the chance to take another.