RE: Should the United States Ban Guns?
I don't think banning anything really has the desired effect. Creates a black market (aka more crime), those who intend violence still get it.
Plus observation seems to indicate people really get fascinated by things that are concealed from them.
Not sure why people think guns would be any different. The fact of the matter is that what happens in that video could still happen whether guns are banned or not. The guns are NOT the reason that happened. Guns were a tool they chose to use. Once they were at that stage acquiring them illegally would likely not be anything to stop them. They'd likely be fine with it. Where there is a will there is a way. Knives, home made weapons, bombs, poison, are all things they can use as well. Banning stops nothing.
To stop this... critical thinking... tolerance... change education... look at all factors... don't look for a quick scapegoat that fits another agenda.
EDIT: As to the Mass Knifings... they are happening... NOW
http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/25/world/japan-knife-attack-deaths/
There was one in Texas as well...
Then there was the guy that used a vehicle to kill people...
We need to do something but BANNING doesn't actually stop things. I can't find any proof that anything we've banned has really stopped anything. Though I am still open to finding examples...
Interesting points. Have you watched the video? It is very even handed and not very long. Well worth watching.
Agreed
Yes. It is one of the most sensible and non-hysterical dissections I have seen. Further it breaks the main issues down and summarises them very well. It is beautifully put together.
That guy, is incredible calm and well tempered. Im following him in youtube and twitter now. Would love to follow him in steemit though
Yes me too. I started following as soon as I saw the video. He would be a great addition to Steemit:)
beanz has beat me to it to put a comment about this post in the youtube vid.
Yep I watched it... I had my post written. Was almost all the way through the video when I posted it. I edited and added some more when I completed the video. Overall, good video.
Fantastic. I'm not sure either way but I love the way he has summarised the main points. It would be great if we could get him on there.
On the topic of knife attacks. Just google "Sweden knife attack", or grenade, or gun and you'll find even more examples of what you mention.
(I live there, so I know these things take place)
I've trained with some people that were absolutely amazing with a knife. If any of them went unstable it'd be a pretty terrifying thing. Yet it isn't like a KNIFE and a GUN are a Ouija board and a demon is jumping from them and possessing people. There are other factors. Getting rid of the tool they choose to use doesn't seem to address the actual factors at all.
Or a crossbow or even a modified air gun could do some serious damage. Or for that matter you could get a car and kill a hundred people in a few seconds if you wanted to.
Terrifying. I'd much rather worry about a guy running down the street with a gun.
Wow. That is scary but it doesn't look like it was anywhere near as bad as it could have been. The carnage created by cars on a daily basis is something we rarely hear about. I think it kills many more people. I'm not pro banning cars either though.
Yep. Banning is also rarely actually intended to solve the problem it claims to be. It creates a lucrative black market, and it is not unusual for the politicians pushing the bills to end up making a profit from it, or people lobbying them. It is much like INSIDER TRADING.
Or the drugs issue. Certain organisations may use that as a means of funding covert operations.
We have a lot of knife crime in the UK too not to mention gun crime. We also have bans on certain types of knives. It doesn't stop it.
Well just look at knife crime in the UK I'm sure I heard it was going up AND we also have gun crime, except over here the criminals get the guns and we as civilians have no chance!
Yep... If you already plan on committing a crime (violence, death, etc) then getting a tool that is banned and illegal is a non-issue. Why do you care if something is illegal if you already plan on committing a crime?
Exactly my point but people here don't get that.
Excellent point. You need only look at the years of prohibition to find evidence that your statement is solid. It's the same with marijuana, which at least 40% of the people I know smoke, in spite of its illegality.
In regards to guns, I feel that legalised gun ownership is the most powerful deterrent to gun crime. Many who argue for tougher gun control laws will speak of the high gun-related deaths in the States as ammunition for their argument. What they tend to conveniently leave out however, is that the overwhelming majority of instances where someone is killed or injured by a firearm are concentrated in the areas where gun control is at its peak.
It's understandable too. If you are an armed robber by trade, going from place to place and holding up stores or other places of business, then it benefits you greatly if you know that you and your accomplices are the only ones who are armed in the venue. You would be a lot less likely to attempt to commit an armed robbery if you knew that any one of the civilians in there with you could potentially be holding a concealed weapon. Your chances of success are greatly reduced in those circumstances, and your safety would be at serious risk. Sure, you may get the types who are in it for the thrill and not the money, and so would be willing to test those waters--but they are far rarer than the movies would lead you to think.
Criminals gain their power by being the only one in the room with the gun. Give everyone a weapon, and my guess is the crime rate would drop considerably. Yes, it's depressing that we live in a world where it seems you need to be armed in order to dissuade your fellow man from exploiting you, but alas that is how things are--for now.
You gave me an interesting but scary thought....
I earlier in another post referred to the world as currently being Backwards World.
An example I gave is that whistle blowers reporting a crime are now considered a criminal, and you can be an actual criminal and run for the highest office in the land.
So the actual Criminals can RULE. Apply that thought in connection with what I quoted to you above and things get a bit more clear, and a bit more scary.
A backwards world indeed. Right down to the very essence of survival. We are conditioned from birth to believe that success is measured in zeros. Darwinism brainwashes us into thinking that it is survival of the fittest--every man for himself, and that to get ahead you have to step on other people's dreams. This is backwards as fuck.
Success should be measured by the positive impact you are able to have on the people that you cross paths with in life, and to get ahead at the expense of other people's well-being should be considered inhumane. We all ought to help each other do better, together.
I am going to give your article a read in a moment because I have to agree with you. Just about everything is the exact opposite to how it should be--how it was intended to be.
I raised my children telling them that creating a thing is far more impressive than destroying a thing. One takes skill and effort, the other often does not.
Unfortunately, our enemies have gotten rather efficient at creating devices for the purpose of destroying everything that we hold dear.
Oh and while I'm at it... that article I linked you is where I referenced Backwards World earlier today. I did however, write an article that was directly inspired by this @thecryptofiend blog we are talking on here. It was basically me expanding upon what I said here. So the backwards world part of my blog on the word TRUTHER you might find interesting, but if you want a specific direct reference to this article it is this post: Mass violence... have instability and will then there is a way...
Agree. Even simple things like book that is banned, people want to read it even more because it is banned.
I've been kind of in this train of thought this week. This post I wrote a few days ago talks a great deal about what you just said.
Good point!