Hardest Ride EVER!!

[rb608]

Originally Posted by harpomatic

Some solutions are very low-tech: allow a concealed carry by a legal gun owner, as 2nd amendment intended, and the culture of violence can start changing.

While not dismissing the idea out of hand, simply allowing concealed carry is worse than not doing it. Carrying, and even knowing how to use and aim a weapon is not enough. Anyone who is going to respond appropriately in a crisis situation needs substantial training before they will be able to be an asset instead of a liability. Without it, they're just going to harm themselves or someone else if they even manage to pull out the weapon at all. Multiply that incompetence by the number of CC holders in the room, and I can't even imagine the chaos.

If we're going to start handing out CC permits, I don't want anybody getting one who hasn't passed a course on knowing how to respond to a crisis. Just wanting one and knowing how to shoot at stationary paper targets shouldn't be enough IMO.

Here's a very interesting segment done by ABC News on that subject. 'If I Only Had a Gun': Click Here for 20/20 Special | Video - ABC News (Sorry, but there's a 30-second ad in front of it.)

[1996shadow]

Originally Posted by MikeB

There is only one thing in this country that matters, and that is the almighty dollar. It trumps morality, decency, and common sense every time. So the route to ending the lucrative and totally amoral (I did not say immoral) trade in assault weapons is to make it financially disadvantageous by allowing liability lawsuits against manufacturers and sellers. A bunch of multi-million $$ settlements will have the gun lobby running for the hills, and I would imagine that a jury determining damages in this CT case would barely be able to find enough zeros to put into their judgement against both the company that made the Bushmaster and the gunshop that sold it. 100 million for each kid sounds too little for me.

I can assure you that, fortunately no one in my family was involved in that situation, because there would be a lawsuit for sure. I am not one that thinks lawsuits are the answer to many things, but I would make an exception in this case. I can also assure you that $100M would not be the limit either. If they are going to keep selling these instruments of death, then like the cigarette manufacturers, they should be held responsible. The manufacturers, just like the cigarette manufacturers, know that they will kill people, because that's what they are designed for. If the cigarette manufacturers can be sued, so can the gun manufacturers. When was the last mass shooting when the shooter used a revolver?

[harpomatic]

Of course, training should be required. Same as for driver license - you can't just get it, need to demonstrate competence(at least in theory). But then, once you do - we trust you can operate one. Cars are a good analogy - can be used as a weapon, a weapon of mass destruction...But we still drive, and try to control those who cannot. Not every adult needs to carry, but if enough qualified "normal" adults would - I would not mind, even if I do not carry myself. I'd have no problem trusting all those veterans, retired soldiers of all kinds, ex-cops, firemen, and any qualified, trained and tested men and women to carry a weapon. I am less afraid of these people than of some lunatic who can singlehandedly cause mass destruction, given the modern state of technology. If that school had a number of armed adults, if that was our assumption about every public place - we'd see less of this kind of violence. Maybe it was not the case 100, or 50, or 25 years ago but today we apparently live in a different world.

PS. Keep in mind the kind of crime we are talking about: these perpetrators are all cowards, without exception. Their assumption is that they walk into a totally unguarded situation. They would not be so bold, if the assumption was they'll encounter well trained, armed adults. True, this does not stop all evil, but significantly limits it. It's a very bold idea to let the 2nd amendment stand, very unique. Love it or hate it - we just have to deal with consequences of having it in our constitution. Deal with it like adults, the problem is we do not...

[harpomatic]

here is another low tech idea:
the last legal owner of a firearm with which the crime was committed is treated at least as an accomplice to the crime. This would stop kids laying hands on papa's toys & firecrackers real fast. Would put a dent on black market - each gun first belonged to somebody or something(down to a manufacturer).

[Spiritman]

Sorry but this thread has taken a very large off topic turn and is no longer about motorcycles, as such it's being locked, there is already discussions like this happening in the off topic section