Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 1:21 PM GMTEuropeans and Canadians are well-represented in the list of the worst school massacres in history.
http://listverse.com/miscellaneous/top-10-worst-school-massacres/
Yes, it's a very bad thing.
Obviously I don't live in the US so I'm speaking from an alien point of view, but why exactly do you need to have a gun? I just can't imagine going to bed at night worrying about the lack of firearms in the house. It really is bizarre to me.
Quote: chipolata @ January 27 2009, 1:22 PM GMTOf course, we have school massacres in Europe. However the percentage of school massacres is far higher in the united states than anywhere else in the world.
Have any figures to back that up?
Quote: Paul W @ January 27 2009, 1:24 PM GMTYeah it's terrible when you can't kill someone with a gun, you'll have to start using knives like us brits.
Or Belgians.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/UKNews1/idUKTRE50Q26520090127
Quote: Lee Henman @ January 27 2009, 1:24 PM GMTObviously I don't live in the US so I'm speaking from an alien point of view, but why exactly do you need to have a gun? I just can't imagine going to bed at night worrying about the lack of firearms in the house. It really is bizarre to me.
Who said anything about worrying? I own no firearms and perhaps I never will, but the right for law-abiding citizens to possess firearms is an important one.
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 1:31 PM GMTHave any figures to back that up?
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 1:31 PM GMTWho said anything about worrying? I own no firearms and perhaps I never will, but the right for law-abiding citizens to possess firearms is an important one.
No it's not.
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 1:31 PM GMTWho said anything about worrying? I own no firearms and perhaps I never will, but the right for law-abiding citizens to possess firearms is an important one.
Why?
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 1:31 PM GMTWho said anything about worrying? I own no firearms and perhaps I never will, but the right for law-abiding citizens to possess firearms is an important one.
You're going to meet a lot of resistence DaButt - but we all have a point why should someone have the right to own a deadly weapon?
Quote: Paul W @ January 27 2009, 1:38 PM GMTYou're going to meet a lot of resistence DaButt - but we all have a point why should someone have the right to own a deadly weapon?
The should not, that is the point.
Here's a lovely tale of disaster, race paranoia, and of course...guns, guns, guns. http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090105/thompson/single
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 1:31 PM GMTHave any figures to back that up?
To be fair the term 'going postal' did originate from your neck of the woods.
..and 'friendly fire'. Which I suppose is a legitimate argument for accidentally shooting someone dead on your premises. "I didn't mean to kill him, your honour, it was supposed to be a warning shot. How was I to know my kid would walk in just as I pulled the trigger?"
Quote: Paul W @ January 27 2009, 1:38 PM GMTwe all have a point why should someone have the right to own a deadly weapon?
Why should you have the right to own a carving knife? A pair of scissors? A can of gasoline? Rat poison? An automobile? A bucket of water?
You can kill someone with all of those, but should the government have the right to keep you from possessing them? We have laws that deal with murder and assault for those who choose to murder and assault. But what about law-abiding citizens? Should they be treated as potential criminals, or trusted to do the right thing and follow the law? You can't legislate morality, but you can disarm law-abiding citizens and ensure that only criminals possess guns. F**k that.
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 2:06 PM GMTWhy should you have the right to own a carving knife? A pair of scissors? A can of gasoline? Rat poison? An automobile? A bucket of water?
You can kill someone with all of those, but should the government have the right to keep you from possessing them?
But you can't kill nearly as many people in one foul swoop. I'd much rather somebody came at me with a bucket of water than an AK47.
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 2:06 PM GMTWhy should you have the right to own a carving knife? A pair of scissors? A can of gasoline? Rat poison? An automobile? A bucket of water?
You can kill someone with all of those, but should the government have the right to keep you from possessing them? We have laws that deal with murder and assault for those who choose to murder and assault. But what about law-abiding citizens? Should they be treated as potential criminals, or trusted to do the right thing and follow the law? You can't legislate morality, but you can disarm law-abiding citizens and ensure that only criminals possess guns. F**k that.
Yes but a gun doesn't really provide you with a needed 'cooling off' period, does it? Where would we be if we all walked around with guns? And I'm hardly worried about someone walking around with rat poison in their holster. As for a bucket of water? I'd say it's the best solution for hot heads.
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 2:06 PM GMTWhy should you have the right to own a carving knife? A pair of scissors? A can of gasoline? Rat poison? An automobile? A bucket of water?
You can kill someone with all of those, but should the government have the right to keep you from possessing them? We have laws that deal with murder and assault for those who choose to murder and assault. But what about law-abiding citizens? Should they be treated as potential criminals, or trusted to do the right thing and follow the law? You can't legislate morality, but you can disarm law-abiding citizens and ensure that only criminals possess guns. F**k that.
But this is the whole point isn't it? People CAN'T be trusted with guns. If they could, there wouldn't be an issue. Time and time again we see horrors from the US filling our TV screens - some Emo kid with a grudge mowing down his schoolmates, snipers picking off innocent people in the street - and still Americans insist on the right to bear arms. I think the whole idea of having the "right" to kill in defence is so deeply-entrenched in the American psyche that it's futile to argue. But the point that guns are the same as knives is a ridiculous one. How far would the Columbine murderers have got armed with knives before they were stopped?
Put freely-available guns into any society and innocents will always suffer.
The other thing that astounds me are these American Christians and God-fearin' folk who go to church on a Sunday and always say grace before a meal, but have a shotgun in the cupboard "just in case". Hello? Thou Shalt Not Kill?
Quote: Paul W @ January 27 2009, 12:26 PM GMTIt's true and stimulating the economy like this is better than sitting on your hands.
*snigger*
Stimulating.
Seriously though, don't buy into the propaganda, Paul. It's a waste of money which will make not a dent in the market, and ultimately be nothing but a draining waste of our taxes.
Quote: chipolata @ January 27 2009, 1:32 PM GMTNo it's not.
Quite. If it wasn't already a "right", no one would worry about it. No sane person anyway.
(I'll add that I am neither in favour nor particularly against gun ownership. It's just not important.)
Quote: DaButt @ January 27 2009, 2:06 PM GMTYou can't legislate morality, but you can disarm law-abiding citizens and ensure that only criminals possess guns. F**k that.
Sounds fair. The less guns around, the less chance of them falling into the 'wrong hands'.
I don't understand how anyone can say Obama sucks in comparison to the atrocious 8 years Bush had.
Conservatives can spread all the fear propaganda they want about having their precious guns taken away but in reality they even know its not happening. So go ahead, I'm waiting, it's only a matter of time before I get my Conspiracy theory emails from the few looney Con friends I have. They had your day for 8 years, screwed up an entire country and now your out.
Face it, Obama is Conservative, he's just not white and insane like Bush.
Quote: Curt @ January 27 2009, 2:34 PM GMTI don't understand how anyone can say Obama sucks in comparison to the atrocious 8 years Bush had.
Conservatives can spread all the fear propaganda they want about having their precious guns taken away but in reality they even know its not happening. So go ahead, I'm waiting, it's only a matter of time before I get my Conspiracy theory emails from the few looney Con friends I have. They had your day for 8 years, screwed up an entire country and now your out.
Face it, Obama is Conservative, he's just not white and insane like Bush.
