Itinerant Air-Cooled

in a Georgia school, The Ronald E McNair Discovery Learning Academy . . .

Shots were fired, but this time no one was injured.
This time, violence was met with . . . . compassion, and it was a beautiful thing to hear on the 911 tapes.
My heroine, school clerk Antonia Tuff, who apparently effortlessly reached this disturbed young man's heart and common sense with eveness and humility.
"We're not going to hate you, baby."
"It's going to be all right, sweetheart."
"You're giving yourself up."
. . . and he did.
Colin
(so why are insurers hiking up premiums or cancelling policies outright at those schools in seven states which are now allowing teachers to pack heat?)

Guns don't kill people, people with guns and no hope kill people. A little compassion goes a long way.

I've never felt the need to own a gun. I've never had a desire to own a gun. Toy guns. Pellets and BBs. But even then, ehhhh.


neal

ruckman101 wrote:I've never felt the need to own a gun. I've never had a desire to own a gun. Toy guns. Pellets and BBs. But even then, ehhhh.


neal

Guns can be fun. I enjoy shooting (with ear protection) when it is a target competition, cans and whatnot. Our culture has made guns a testosterone-soaked proof of manhood, and that is annoying. They also happen to be a tool for the seriously disturbed to create mayhem.
Colin

When compassion doesn't work, the only way to stop bad guys with guns, is with good guys with guns.
You never hear of a citizen with a concealed carry permit going on a shooting rampage. The media only reports bad news.... They never report the thousands of cases of people defending themselves and saving lives with guns.
A firearm is the ultimate equalizer..... An armed 95 pound female can protect herself from a 300 pound attacker with a firearm.
I own many guns, and have ccw permits valid in many states. I would never camp without a firearm in my bus.
It is an unalienable right to not be a victim to anyone. I sleep well at night knowing I have firearms to protect my family and myself.
And, yeah.... Guns are fun to shoot.... Safely and in the proper places, of course....
Gun ownership is part of the privilege of being a law abiding American citizen.

stealthcamper wrote: The media only reports bad news.... They never report the thousands of cases of people defending themselves and saving lives with guns.

Then, pray tell, how did you become aware of the thousands of cases of people defending themselves and saving lives with guns?
Got cites?
I got cites that say over 19,000 US citizens have died by gun violence since the Sandy Hook shootings.
Does anybody agree with me that that is nothing less than utterly insane?

stealthcamper wrote: Gun ownership is part of the privilege of being a law abiding American citizen.

Car ownership is part of the privilege of being a law-abiding American citizen, and we have to register them, insure them, and submit proof of licensing if asked by an officer. I ask that we do the same with guns, and look at the push-back!

So while you may be sensible, the NRA is busily proving to me that they are in the thrall of something exceptionally disturbing.
Colin

Page 10 of every National Rifleman magazine is one source... I was referring to the generic t.v. media that most people watch daily.
I agree that gun violence is completely nuts... All violence is... It is the law breakers of society that perpetrate this violence... Not law abiders like you and me. A gun is just a tool that can do nothing on it's own.
Have you tried buying a gun lately? There are tons of rules, waiting periods, DOJ background checks, etc... You must have a ccw permit to conceal a gun. It is a felony to not abide by gun laws... These laws only apply to law abiding people.... Law breakers ignore the law... People steal cars, falsify insurance, use vehicles as weapons etc... Should we ban cars?
Sadly, we don't live in a perfect world. I'm not willing to give up my freedoms just because some people abuse their freedoms.
We need to put our efforts toward the real problems with America. Mental health, enforcing current laws, etc...
Morality cannot be legislated.... I think taking firearms from law abiding citizens is a big mistake. Everyone has the right to self defense.
An armed citizen with a ccw in the right place at the right time could have prevented, or minimized Sandy Hook and other tragedies.
Peace....

stealthcamper wrote: Law breakers ignore the law... People steal cars, falsify insurance, use vehicles as weapons etc... Should we ban cars?

Nobody here is talking about banning guns. That is a reflexive and moronic argument that the NRA drills into their membership's heads, and I am sick of it.

We can't even get a sensible gun control law through Congress with that sort of pushback.

Limit magazines, register firearms, tax bullets, no gun show loophole.
That is all. And we can't manage to do it . . .

So let me throw the above argument back at you in the following way:
Seeing as people steal cars, falsify insurance, use vehicles as weapons, should we just give up on vehicle laws?
Colin

Let's put the gun laws aside for a moment. What is disturbing to me is the dramatic shift of thought in this country. When I was in high school, in the early 60's, we had a school rifle team. I was on it, and routinely brought my 22 rifle to school, into the school, and into my locker where I retrieved it for the after school shooting practice. Other boys brought shotguns into the school during hunting season. It was not unusual to see someone in the hall showing a person their firearm at their locker. It was quite unremarkable, and I don't think the school even had a policy about it (Caldwell, NJ-1961 through 1964 at least). The 1966 Austin Texas tower shootings by Charles Whitman was the first media covered shooting in this country in my lifetime other than the President Kennedy shooting. It really surprised and shocked the entire nation. The shift has occurred over the past 50 years, and it is a profound moral change of thought in the society. Before the Austin mass killing, the idea of a sniper doing this was simply unthinkable. Really, no one even considered that such a thing was possible. When someone on TV or in the movies was shot, they just fell down-no blood, gore or bullet wound was ever seen. Now, we see the victim's head explode in big screen brilliance. That right there is part of the shift. We are jaded by this stuff. Mass shooting are no longer surprising, and may even be expected. They hold our attention for a couple of hours-a rapid flurry of tweets and Facebook tributes, and then on to twerking or whatever drivel is circulating. Gun control is just one aspect of a much larger problem that exists here. It's so encompassing that I can't even describe it completely. Like the guy said of pornography, "I don't know quite how to define it, but i know it when I see it." I sure can't fix it, so back to work on my bus seat belts.

Jivermo wrote: Gun control is just one aspect of a much larger problem that exists here.

The more crowded an organization/population, the more stress. We have more than doubled the population on Planet Earth since you were in school. AS A RESULT, we must synchronize more fully > more streets, more stop lights. Duh. More guns > more checks. Duh.

And yes, the gratuitous depictions of violence, now available on HD near you! can only de-sensitize and disenfranchise sensitive children.
Colin