Originally Posted By mawnck >>The number of gun owners in the U.S. is estimated at 70 to 80 million.<< Darn ... now I have to reset my countdown. 79,999,998 and count- oops, make that 79,999,993: <a href="http://tdn.com/news/state-and-regional/oregon/clatsop-county-man-accused-of-shooting-mother/article_438b621f-6732-54f6-ba8b-f6d488a884d1.html" target="_blank">http://tdn.com/news/state-and-...4d1.html</a> <a href="http://fox59.com/2013/02/07/police-investigate-deadly-shooting-on-the-near-northeast-side/#axzz2KFKbfxpz" target="_blank">http://fox59.com/2013/02/07/po...KFKbfxpz</a> <a href="http://www2.counton2.com/news/2013/feb/07/3/woman-arrested-ashley-hall-attempted-shooting-indi-ar-5546180/" target="_blank">http://www2.counton2.com/news/...5546180/</a> <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/wilmington-police-investigate-fatal-shooting-of-53-year-old-man-police-seeking-2-men/2013/02/07/5948e2b0-7111-11e2-b3f3-b263d708ca37_story.html" target="_blank">http://www.washingtonpost.com/...ory.html</a> <a href="http://www.wvnstv.com/story/21072143/police-caputure-alleged-shooter-after-foot-chase" target="_blank">http://www.wvnstv.com/story/21...ot-chase</a>
Originally Posted By ecdc Keep revising: <a href="http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=24005127" target="_blank">http://www.ksl.com/index.php?n...24005127</a> Yet another story where, most likely, take the gun out of the equation and two people would still be alive. Guns don't kill people. People with guns kill people.
Originally Posted By WilliamK99 My new country - Australia - ranking second to last where a record begins! And that might be because we don't have loose laws about gun ownership! A lesson America should learn!<< Yeah but Australia has one of the highest rates for home invasions.... But who cares about that right, let people steal your stuff because you can't defend yourself.. <a href="http://www.nationmaster.com/compare/Australia/United-States/Crime" target="_blank">http://www.nationmaster.com/co...es/Crime</a> The 30% crime rate compared to 21% for U.S. is very alarming....
Originally Posted By WilliamK99 I am actually for some sort of gun control but I am sick and tired of ocdean touting Australia's laws as the way U.S. should follow... Australia is not a safe place to live, even the suicide rate is higher...and they don't have guns to kill themselves with.
Originally Posted By tashajilek "<a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/02/06/bc-vancouver-stabbings-bonneric.html" target="_blank">http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...ric.html</a>" This has been a really big story for the last week in Vancouver. This guy had mental health problems and i believe if he had a gun he would have used it. Luckily everyone is alive. I dont believe either that if someone wants a gun they will get it by any means and kill. Im sure some people with a mental illness just snap and look for any weapon they can get their hands on at that moment.
Originally Posted By oc_dean Very Interesting William. Maybe if you read the statistics you provided properly it may help you to understand why it isn’t a good idea for everybody to be able to buy guns when ever they feel like it. Gun violence > Homicides > % Homicides with firearms: Australia - 16.3435 America - 39.5604 Gun Violence > Homicides > Overall homicide rate > per 100.000 population Australia – 1.8802 America – 9.1 Murders with firearms (report from 2002): Australia 59 (ranked 21st) America 9,369 (ranked 1st – 158 more times than Australia) Secondly ... where are these “home invasion” statistics you mention? And it’s supposed to prove what, anyway? That a gun solves everything????? Thirdly ... as you run your cursor over certain stats ... they show a date from ELEVEN years ago. Since then, America’s gun incidents have gone crazy! While Australia’s tighter gun regulations keep that statistic low. It is a shame that people like you like to try to prove a point, without really reading the information. So, thank you for proving my point, mate! >> even the suicide rate is higher...and they don't have guns to kill themselves with.<< If people are committing suicide at a greater rate in Australia than America, then how would that impact on somebody elses safety? And how dare you bring up the suicide rate to back up your argument. You want to say Australia is more violent than America? Look in your own backyard! From Columbine, to Virginia Tech, to Aurora CO, to Sandy Hook and sadly .... so much, much more ... and shootings/KILLINGS in the news EVERY day I think the constant, never-ending shootings in America will answer the question - Which country is more violent and deadly. I've lived in both - I think I can answer that .. going into my 4th year here. Have you ever been to any country outside of the USA? In fact have you ever left the state you live in, because your comments really seem to come from somebody who's rather xenophobic! I use Australia as my bench mark against American Gun Laws since I've lived in both. So I have something to compare America against. I don’t think you have ever done that, now have you?! Maybe you should get out a bit more and get away from your computer screen, as I have ....Just Say'n (O:
Originally Posted By SingleParkPassholder oc dean- you are aware William is in the military, right? He's been to quite a few places.
Originally Posted By oc_dean ^^^ ... and defend the right to guns to no limit - sure. If he wants to complain about Violent Australia .. then he should live here for 4 years ..and when he's done ... then lets see if his perceptions of Australia change at all. (I bet you, they would.)
Originally Posted By WilliamK99 I use Australia as my bench mark against American Gun Laws since I've lived in both. So I have something to compare America against. I don’t think you have ever done that, now have you?!<< I've lived in many places and I agree America does need some gun laws in place, but you are preaching for an extreme solution when IMO moderation is the key. You can make many steps towards positive gun control in our nation without removing guns from everyone as in U.K. and Australia where this is the case, they have crime rates higher than the U.S. I brought up suicide since many suicide attempts involve a gun...
Originally Posted By oc_dean I understand your point on moderation William. From my point of view ... the only ones who should carry a gun, is the military, the police, farmers out in the middle of nowhere, and civilians who have gone through ALL the proper "hoops" to declare their full and absolute 'sound of mind' to have just one gun. I don't believe in shooting range places ... where guns could be locked up later. There was just an incident, as you may recall, where one of the best military snipers in the world was just killed by someone .. at one of those shooting ranges. At the rate of gun violence at the moment .. it's bound to happen at any time, again.
