Another Gun Thread

[Brian37]

Lately I've been thinking about how societies deal with inevitability. By "inevitability," I mean something that people will continue to do in that society no matter how hard they regulate it. I think about drug use, something that humans love to do and won't stop just because it's illegal.

Instead of pushing for intense gun control, we launch an aggressive public information campaign, like we did with cigarettes. We have graphic advertisements about what happens when you are careless with your firearms, and what horrors occur when firearms get in the wrong hands. Most of all, this campaign makes the assumption that gun-owners are responsible, and that they're not inherently bad for owning them. We eliminate that lifestyle divide by having these people's distrust of government and love for guns as an inevitability. "You're not a real American if you don't lock your guns," or some crap like that.

I still think some gun control measures should be passed, but only in tandem with efforts like that.

law abiding gun owners do not need to betold. the burden of gun ownership weighs heavily on people's minds when ever they leave their homes or have company over or even worse kids. there is no peace for a lawful gun owner if their guns are not secured. and those are the people a propaganda campaign would most directly influence. It is the monsters who do not care or seek guns to do ill that make it unsafe for everyone else. most of them have guns illegally now, so what are more laws going to do? what will a propaganda campaign do?

Holy crap. I am so sick of this bullshit argument. My dad who got drunk and shot his 38 with me in the room, in a tiny townhouse, had no criminal record and legally purchased his firearms. Having no record at the time of buy does not prevent the buyer from doing stupid shit, hurting themselves or others, after a legal buy.

The Virginia Tech shooter had no criminal record when he legally purchased his firearms, but he was mentally ill, and never should have been allowed to buy them.

VETTING at time of sale is not a gun grab, it is simply insuring that the person who legally buys it isn't going to get violent after that legal buy. Prevention is not oppression, anymore than requiring a pilot to get licence before they fly a passenger jet.

It is bullshit to say "Only criminals will get them". Most firearm deaths start out with a legally purchased firearm.