Originally Posted By DDMAN26 Just pointing out parts of Chicago is pretty much a war zone right now. I'm guessing from gang activity.
Originally Posted By mawnck >>Just pointing out parts of Chicago is pretty much a war zone right now.<< No you aren't "just pointing out" squat. What is your POINT?
Originally Posted By DDMAN26 So I see you've become the moral arbiter of these boards. Right now Chicago is a very violent place due to a slew of gun violence. Am I clear
Originally Posted By SingleParkPassholder DDMAN, quit being a jerk. What he's saying is all you're doing is supporting the position that gun control is not an issue to be handled by the states. It is something that needs federal controls.
Originally Posted By TomSawyer It's incremental. It isn't meant to be a complete solution to the problem, just part of a larger public health program to reduce deaths and injuries caused by guns.
Originally Posted By skinnerbox The attitudes being expressed against any gun control measures just boggle my mind. Would anyone with half a brain not expect to see incremental change in their lives as being anything but positive? "Gee, I'd love to lose 20 pounds. But if I can't do it in one week, why bother?" "That trip to WDW would be alot of fun. But I don't have enough money. I'll just buy a new TV instead." We accept incremental change in many aspects of our lives. We slowly change our eating habits to gradually lose weight. We squirrel away our discretionary income dollars a few at a time to save up for vacations. So why do so many of us expect instantaneous results overnight regarding cultural change? Unreal.
Originally Posted By TomSawyer They don't expect instantaneous change, skinner. They just use the fact that making one change won't solve the problem to misdirect people enough to think that making the change is pointless.
Originally Posted By ecdc >>Well even federal control is not going to make a difference.<< We don't need car lanes, criminals won't use them anyway. All they do is punish law-abiding drivers. We don't need DUI laws, criminals will just ignore them. All they do is restrict responsible drinkers.
Originally Posted By ecdc I recall many on these boards insisting Obamacare wouldn't work, it would make things worse, it wouldn't make any difference. Here we are just a few years later, and it's already had a huge, positive impact in the lives of millions of Americans who are now covered for pre-existing conditions and who can insure their children until they're 25. And while healthcare costs are still rising, it's slowed them considerably. So forgive me if I don't trust those who insist anything the federal govt does won't do any good.
Originally Posted By DDMAN26 And you can have all the laws, background and regulation checks you want. There is no way in hell it's going to prevent someone from walking into another school, place of worship, mall, etc and shooting up the place. They'll find a way.
Originally Posted By TomSawyer Some will find a way, but not everyone will. Not everyone would have access to black market weapons, and those that do would be paying a premium price for them. And they would have a much higher chance of being intercepted when buying the weapon through criminal channels instead of when its too late. Will it prevent all of the Newtown and Aurora and Virginia Tech massacres yet to come? No, of course not. But it will prevent some of them. We require driver's licenses to demonstrate that we know how to operate a vehicle safely. We should require the same for guns.
Originally Posted By Tikiduck By stopping the manufacture and sale of new assault weapons, you have eliminated the source. That alone would have a positively huge impact with regards to the future. As far as the existing weapons, and more laws having any impact on future crimes, perhaps not in the short term, but eventually it would. There just isn't any way of knowing how many non-events occur, only those that do. I still think all gun owners should be strictly licensed, and any who do not comply should have to forfeit the privilege to own.
Originally Posted By Dabob2 "But it will prevent some of them." Hell, it would've prevented Newtown. She bought that gun in 2010, after the assault weapons ban was rescinded. If it had remained in place, she wouldn't have been able to buy that gun at her local store. And thus her son wouldn't have been able to get his hands on it.
Originally Posted By DDMAN26 I don't have direct access to weed or harsher drugs, but I know a few people that could get the ball rolling if I ever wanted to partake. If someone wanted a gun it wouldn't be that difficult to obtain. Hey if people want to believe this dog and pony show going on in DC right now about how to "fix" this problem go right ahead. And I include the jags from NRA in this discussion too.
Originally Posted By Tikiduck There is no big magical fix, but perhaps some lives can be saved, even if we never will be aware of it. Who knows, one of those lives could be your own, or someone you love.
Originally Posted By DDMAN26 But we're being told if we get stricter background checks, and outlaw certain guns, oh and let's not forget telling people to stop watching violent movies or playing violent video games, this is all going to go away.
Originally Posted By ecdc >>How's the drug war going these days? Immigration?<< 1) You're deflecting the issue. You said, by way of example, that Obamacare wouldn't solve anything. It did solve several things and reduced costs, which you also said wouldn't happen. You were wrong. 2) That the government screws up some things doesn't mean it screws up everything. By way of your examples, the war on drugs is going horribly and should end. As for immigration, a bi-partisan bill is emerging that has broad support. So it's going better than it ever has before. But I guess by your logic, we shouldn't do anything at all. 3) Do you believe that since criminals don't obey laws, we shouldn't have laws at all? Because that's essentially what you're saying.
