NRA -are they Serious?!?

[Fehler 118]

Evil does not exist. Evil is a myth, a myth created by so-called "good" people, to explain away the problems of the world. An artificial wall, erected to separate us from events of our own doing. Because the people doing these things, like it or not, are us.

 

What exists is sickness. An illness. A chemical instability. A delusion, a paranoia, a madness. Someone suffers, and the suffering spreads. Can we cure the sickness? Not always. Not yet. Can we find treatments? Usually. But it's difficult. Identify and eradicate. Costly. Unpleasant and imperfect.

 

What also exists is indifference. Not caring. Separation. Placing blame on others, on objects, or on myths, and not on ourselves. Build more walls, fences, borders between people and nations, customers and clerks, students and society. Build the walls with steel, glass, and lead. Create divisions of color, creed, and culture. Defend them with guns, laws, and labels. And when someone on your side of the wall falls to the sickness, you can help them, or cast them to the other side.

 

[ADCinNC 16]

evil [ee-vuh l]

 

adjective

1. morally wrong or bad; immoral; wicked: evil deeds; an evil life.

2. harmful; injurious: evil laws.

3. characterized or accompanied by misfortune or suffering; unfortunate; disastrous: to be fallen on evil days.

4. due to actual or imputed bad conduct or character: an evil reputation.

5. marked by anger, irritability, irascibility, etc.: He is known for his evil disposition.

 

noun

6. that which is evil; evil quality, intention, or conduct: to choose the lesser of two evils.

7. the force in nature that governs and gives rise to wickedness and sin.

8. the wicked or immoral part of someone or something: The evil in his nature has destroyed the good.

9. harm; mischief; misfortune: to wish one evil.

10. anything causing injury or harm: Tobacco is considered by some to be an evil.

 

adverb

13. in an evil manner; badly; ill: It went evil with him.

 

Idioms

14. the evil one, the devil; Satan.

 

I guess it depends on which part of the definition you do not believe in, but for me I see "evil" all over both the Newtown and Webster tragedies.

[SR540Beaver 116]

Fehler,

 

You are fortunate in that you have never seen or experienced evil. How, I do not know. I have. It exists.

[FScouter 24]

"There is the unrealistic expectation that we disarm everyone and remove guns from society."

 

Only the gun folks talk about this. Why is that?

[WasE61 23]

There was an armed Police officer at Columbine HS at the time of the attack there. He engaged one of the attackers, firing 4 times, from 60 yards. He did not hit the attacker who returned fire. Outgunned, the Police officer retreated to inside the school. The attackers completed their massacre and then committed suicide.

 

So, it would appear that all an armed guard at school does is make the NRA and naive parents feel better.

 

In Arizona, the Attorney General (a nitwit) proposes training and arming one member of the school staff, keeping the weapon in a secured location...another dumb idea.

[moosetracker 132]

 

"There is the unrealistic expectation that we disarm everyone and remove guns from society."

 

Only the gun folks talk about this. Why is that?

 

 

FScouter I know this is aimed at the comment SR540Beaver wrote.. But I will play Arnold Horshack and answer it..

 

"OHHH.. OHHH.. OHHH.. OHHH.."

 

Perhaps only the "gun folks" are talking about it, because it is a false fear tactic created by the NRA in order to get you guys all atwitter about reasonable limitations on automatic weapons. Reasonable people are not buying into this nonsense created by the NRA.

 

No one is talking about removing guns that are reasonable for hunting and protection. Also reasonable rules used to track who is the owner of the guns is not unreasonable rules either.

[vol_scouter 365]

Moose,

 

Automatic weapons use and ownership have been strictly controlled for decades. Semi-automatic weapons is what is being discussed. A semi-automatic firearm is one that fires one round every time the trigger is pulled, which includes all current handguns, all but bolt action rifle, and many shotguns. So whenever there is discussion about limiting access to semi-automatic firearms, people realize that their Second Amendment rights could easily be trampled. They understand that the courts will determine how far the law goes. Gun control has not been shown to prevent violent crimes, homicide, and suicide. We need to address the abhorrent status of mental health in this country and not alter the Bill of Rights.

[Tampa Turtle 1011]

I cannot take the NRA leadership very seriously. I am open to a reasonable discussion on limiting some types of weapons and allowing others.

 

I am rather surprised by how quick folks are to embrace a "mentally ill" registry (and any consequent legal problems with that) and be so opposed to ANY discussion of limiting some weapons. I am sure if Obamacare had offered a medical registry of any kind he would have been beaten about the head with it.

 

It is a complicated discussion with gun control, security, social, spritual, and mental health facets, But if the NRA cannot realistically engage in the discussion than they will be imposed upon then a participant.

[moosetracker 132]

Sorry too early, I wanted to type assault weapon; don't know why I put automatic.

 

"JUST" fixing mentally ill will not fix the problem either. Many of these acts may be considered insane acts, but not everyone who enacts them have been diagnosed as dangerously mentally ill. They have been considered normal until they carry out the act, then they are looked as as having to have some mental problems.. Also many people may have had something needing some treatment, but is not dangerously ill.

 

I am sure there are attempts with not so good results, but there are countries that have passed laws and have had good results. It's a matter of finding the right balance. It will not eliminate "ALL" nothing will eliminate "ALL" it is a matter of seeing gun violence drop. So even after you enact laws, you will always have you example here and there of something that happened even with the laws in effect. The proof will be in seeing if the rate of gun deaths start to decrease..

 

Example: Australia still have 10% of their population owning guns, but after a violent tragic shooting that killed 35 and wounded 25 they enacted gun controls, 6 years later they were still not happy and made a few more changes, but now they show a decrease. I am sure looking you can still find gun deaths in Australia; the point is they show a decrease.

 

Also Switzerland has recently cut their gun deaths in half recently through gun control. But I think their new laws are stricter then what we would want to do in the USA. Still it is and example that gun controls work. It though does prove someone has achieved good success with tighter controls. Which gun advocates argue would make things worse because only bad guys will have guns.

 

England & Canada gun control success is debatable; some say good, some say not yet working. If it is not yet working, that some can argue it doesn't work so kill it, but others of us can just argue that like Australia they may need to tweak or tighten them a little more.

 

Anyway, although we don't have good proof in the USA on gun control, since anything we try to enact immediately gets whittled away at until it is useless; there is proof of success in other countries.

[Fehler 118]

And why do we have a "Terrorist Watchlist" if people on this list are still allowed to purchase guns?

[Eagledad 2778]

>>Sorry too early, I wanted to type assault weapon; don't know why I put automatic.

[perdidochas 658]

The UK had lower murder rates than the U.S. before they passed gun control. Our murder rate has gone down by close to half since the early 1990s. (from 9.8 murders per 100,000 population in 1991 to 4.7 murders per 100,000 population in 2011).

[OldGreyEagle 5]

Eagle 732 did a good job of that on 12/17/2012 4:08:53 in the pesky assault rifle thread but it does raise a question, is a semi-automatic shotgun an assault weapon? My Browning semi-automatic (made in Belgium) has a 5 shot magazine, although I have a wood plug that makes it 3 shot and it will fire those 3 shots as fast as the trigger may be pulled.

 

Now, the 22 pistol I have is a revolver so its not an assault weapon, is it? and then the 3 muzzle loaders are not and that completes my arsenal,,, ahhh, collection....

[moosetracker 132]

Could be either a semi-automatic or automatic weapon. Military style weapons that are ridiculous for your hunting expidition and basic defense. Not made for citizen use.

[OldGreyEagle 5]

Define "citizen use" or "basic defense" ?

 

Reminds me of a quote from Jesus Christ Superstar when Pilate was talking to Jesus

 

"and what is truth, is truth unchanging law? We both have truth, is mine the same as yours?"

 

From gun control to falling off the fiscal cliff, we appear to all have different truths(This message has been edited by OldGreyEagle)