A small boy shoots his teacher in US

Never mind not find it easy, gsm, I find it impossible to understand the mindset of people amassing arsenals of weaponary a day taking pleasure in using it. Presumably to hunt shoot and kill defenceless animals.
We speak a similar language but I’m much more similar to other European cultures

Me too, Iam. It’s beyond my understanding. My husband shoots game, which I don’t understand and he knows better than to bring it home. Clay pigeons are my limit.

I think in the USA their mindset is different to ours. They are always quoting the amendments some of which were written when they got their independence from us and need to be modernised.
When my DD saw a gun in her friend's glove box she asked her why?Likewise the gun under the bed which was loaded by the way. The answer was to defend myself.She then asked from who and the answer was anyone who threatens me or my family.
I think we have a bit more "faith" in our police keeping the peace than Americans do.They are ever alert for attack.
The children did practise sitting under tables or in cupboards in case a gunman went into the school.
He would know what his gun would do even if it was an armed threat to start with.

Chilling that such an advanced country in some ways think guns acceptable.

Gsm my lovely butcher shoots game. If we are lucky, it’s for sale. He’s a lovely, gentle man who works his lab. He’s training his daughter’s spaniel and Is bemused at the difference in the dogs.

Im with Yammy, the us mindset is so far from ours

I have a very hypocritical mindset Iam. I will happily buy game, plucked and dressed, from the butcher! There’s a lot of game shooting round here.

I too am with Yammy. I think if you haven’t been brought up with the US gun culture, or lived with it for many years - which I haven’t - it’s impossible to understand.

Fleurpepper (*GSM*, thank you for your support and welcome back) I accept that what I wrote was not clear.

I was not saying Americans do not care individually when their own children or they themselves are shot, but rather that they are indifferent, as a society, to the deaths of other Americans of any age,

As for the majority being in favour of gun reform. As far as I know the gun reform most people support is not the wholesale reduction of gun ownership that we would consider necessary. It is minor measures, not owning machine guns, tighter controls of juveniles etc.

Here is a link to very reputable survey company in the States reviewing guns and gun policy in the US. Go well down the report and you will see the gun restrictions people actually want, none of them will have much effect on the shootings in that country and there are deep divisions about which tighter rules should be brought in. www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/09/13/key-facts-about-americans-and-guns/

My son in law was in the US Navy and it was through shooting that we originally met him. He has lived over here for nearly 30 years and, although he loves shooting, he thinks the US gun laws (or lack of) are insane. This means he is hardly on speaking terms with some of his family who now see him as a degenerate leftie and probably a secret communist.

See I even find that statement unpleasant he loves shooting
I even think it s hideous to shoot animals and birds for pleasure or sport Especially when they are bred just to be killed by the hunting, shooting brigade.
That makes me shudder

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Bluebelle Leisure shooters, shoot for the table, either for themselves, or more often the game is sold on to butchers and hospitality venues, or to cull overpopulations of animals.

If they did not do it professional huntsmen/women would do it, and because of the demand they birds etc would still be bred to be shot.

Game is a cheap, nutritious healthy foodstuff.

Just because someone loves shooting doesn't necessarily mean they are shooting game. They could be target shooting, clay pigeon shooting etc.

M0nica

Bluebelle Leisure shooters, shoot for the table, either for themselves, or more often the game is sold on to butchers and hospitality venues, or to cull overpopulations of animals.

If they did not do it professional huntsmen/women would do it, and because of the demand they birds etc would still be bred to be shot.

Game is a cheap, nutritious healthy foodstuff.

We have a very exclusive private club here and one of the activities is pheasant shooting. After the shoot they get the diggers out and bury the shot birds.

I shoot but at paper only. Here in Scotland you are not allowed to forget to renew your licence. Mine is due for renewal in about 4 months so soon I will get my application emailed to me with a request for the fee, then the local policeman will ring to make an appt. I have to use my rifles or I will not get a renewal, that means proving I have been to the range and have bought ammo. I would find it very difficult to shoot someone at home, the rifle is in one safe, the bolt in another and the ammo in a third safe. By the time I had assembled everything a burglar would have been long gone 🙄

tizliz I am surprised to hear that, perhaps only in Scotland? Around here it all goes into the food trade (retail, wholesale and catering). I think some, I do not know how much, goes into pet food.

To bury the birds which have been shot is disgraceful.

Germanshepherdsmum

To bury the birds which have been shot is disgraceful.

Truly disturbing in so many ways.

Germanshepherdsmum

To bury the birds which have been shot is disgraceful.

More than- truly disgusting. I had no idea.

Monica 'I was not saying Americans do not care individually when their own children or they themselves are shot, but rather that they are indifferent, as a society, to the deaths of other Americans of any age,'

thanks. I did know exactly what you meant, and I still disagree. Yes, a vast number, whether the majority or not, as polls can be misleading, do want gun reforms, and not necessarily the abolition of the right to bear arms. And those people do care, and more than that, they are seriously worried, as parents, grand-parents, teachers, social workers, and so many more.

BTW I lost a cousin from the USA last year. He always had loaded guns in the house, in the garage, the kitchen and their bedroom. For the 2 years before he died, he suffered increasingly with Alzheimers, becoming increasingly violent- but no-one took his guns away. It is a miracle no-one was hurt or killed.

BlueBelle

See I even find that statement unpleasant he loves shooting
I even think it s hideous to shoot animals and birds for pleasure or sport Especially when they are bred just to be killed by the hunting, shooting brigade.
That makes me shudder

I feel exactly the same. Well said.

Bluebelle I didn't say anything about shooting animals and birds. I was talking about target shooting, which I have to admit is one of the most mind numbingly boring sports in the world if you are with real enthusiasts. A more worrying fact might be that my son in law was on aircraft carriers where his skills included arming nuclear missiles and making napalm. Not skills that he has brought into civilian life.

Not surprised that there are many more licences issued in Scotland due to the countryside pursuits which are big business but they are very much controlled as described by tizliz. Gun laws here in Scotland were seriously reviewed after the Dunblane school massacre tragedy.

Don't kid yourself. There are plenty of Democrats who vote against gun control in one way or another. Also, you have to understand that laws that get passed in our country are very often snuck in overnight, with little discussion, or even the chance to read the content of the bill, and with perhaps a really egregious amount of pork attached. In other words, we will limit this so-and-so, and, by the way, Americans can no longer buy a certain kind of wood for guitar making. I'm not kidding. It's ridiculous. The main problem we have with gun violence is in the inner cities. There are certain citizens, and, believe me, they're not usually Republicans or conservatives or typical gun owners who belong to the NRA, who value life so little that they go around shooting people at funerals. Sometimes, it's like some sort of Mafia nightmare, only it isn't the Mafia, from the 1930s. Recently, it has become law in many major cities that many criminals are not charged after they're arrested. They're not even charged bail, but are just let go. This is not for minor crimes, either. If you've seen any of the videos of Chicago or New York City or San Francisco, then you know what's going on. People are showing up en masse, thanks to social media, and virtually attacking a store and shoppers and employees. They have a law in many places, particularly in California, where a theft of under $1,000 is not even prosecuted. It used to be that a $50 theft was a felony. That's inflation for you! These criminals go in with numbers which overwhelm anyone in the store, they take what they want, load it into their car, and come back for more. Someone Google the mayor of Chicago dancing for Instagram. This is about enough to drive any law-abiding citizen over the edge, but a lot of these people are nothing like law-abiding. Of course, this is not all of the problem, but it is a vast majority of the problem. These people usually do not buy guns legally. For crying out loud, you can make a gun with a 3D printer now. I'm sorry, but you cannot blame most Americans for wanting to protect themselves and their families.

'I'm sorry, but you cannot blame most Americans for wanting to protect themselves and their families.'

are you from the USA? Do you live there?

I can't think anyone in the UK would say the above.

M0nica

tizliz I am surprised to hear that, perhaps only in Scotland? Around here it all goes into the food trade (retail, wholesale and catering). I think some, I do not know how much, goes into pet food.

When I lived in the Scottish Borders, there would several times in the autumn be shoots on the farms/estates of one or other of the local landowners. The pheasants shot would be given to friends and neighbours if there were too many for the shooters and their familes to eat.. We benefitted from this to the tune of a few pheasant dinners a year. Very pleasant to eat, though plucking and drawing them wasn't much fun.
I don't think any were buried. They went to butchers, who paid about 50p each and sold them for a lot more than that, so contributing to the local economy.