Biden, Assault Rifle Ban

RE the gun lobby, recent school shootings, assault weapons issues…

I believe the only other thing to wake up Washington is if people turn out in massive, and I mean MASSIVE protests.

The country is already simmering. It may only be a matter of time.

Apparently the NRA got very upset with a group of Emergency Room doctors who talked about stricter gun laws. I’m afraid I don’t have a link.

Bearing in mind that most people with guns probably only every fire them on a firing range in their entire life.

Probably with handguns not with rifles, if you have a rifle you are going hunting, for small vermin an assault rifle is the weapon of choice and they are pretty crazy

effalump

I suppose out of a population of over 300 million there is a tiny percentage who are, tragically, victims of an even smaller percentage of people with major mental health problems who obviously never get the real help they need. Should the majority be denied the freedom to bear arms to protect themselves because of those that, even if guns were banned, would still manage to get hold of some? Surely, rather than employ 87,000 IRS people with guns. Bearing in mind that most people with guns probably only every fire them on a firing range in their entire life.

Should the majority be denied the freedom to bear arms to protect themselves

What are they protecting themselves from, effalump? It isn't from being shot, is it? Because if it is those protective guns aren't doing a very good job, are they?

The 'freedom to bear arms', as explained by another poster earlier, was about arming a volunteer militia as the newly independent US didn't have a standing army. The idea was to be able to shoot invading enemies, not classes of schoolchildren.

MaizieD

effalump

I suppose out of a population of over 300 million there is a tiny percentage who are, tragically, victims of an even smaller percentage of people with major mental health problems who obviously never get the real help they need. Should the majority be denied the freedom to bear arms to protect themselves because of those that, even if guns were banned, would still manage to get hold of some? Surely, rather than employ 87,000 IRS people with guns. Bearing in mind that most people with guns probably only every fire them on a firing range in their entire life.

Should the majority be denied the freedom to bear arms to protect themselves

What are they protecting themselves from, effalump? It isn't from being shot, is it? Because if it is those protective guns aren't doing a very good job, are they?

The 'freedom to bear arms', as explained by another poster earlier, was about arming a volunteer militia as the newly independent US didn't have a standing army. The idea was to be able to shoot invading enemies, not classes of schoolchildren.

When I answered yes, it was in answer to the same question MaizieD quotes from effalump's post, not to eff's complete posting! In other words yes to banning guns.

Having spent time in the Bible Belt of the USA, there is an obsession with guns and churches! Reading their signs in shops/billboards it seems they confuse the Bible with the US Constitution. Pretty unbelievable the interchange between them when they talk about guns (and a few other things). Scary.

StoneofDestiny

Having spent time in the Bible Belt of the USA, there is an obsession with guns and churches! Reading their signs in shops/billboards it seems they confuse the Bible with the US Constitution. Pretty unbelievable the interchange between them when they talk about guns (and a few other things). Scary.

Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition...

Should cops have guns? If so should policemen have to be au fait with human rights and the ethics of policing? How might a police force be a servant of the public, as opposed to serving the establishment?

Gundy

RE the gun lobby, recent school shootings, assault weapons issues…

I believe the only other thing to wake up Washington is if people turn out in massive, and I mean MASSIVE protests.

The country is already simmering. It may only be a matter of time.

I agree with you.
Since you are in the US you know best in any case.

Caleo

Should cops have guns? If so should policemen have to be au fait with human rights and the ethics of policing? How might a police force be a servant of the public, as opposed to serving the establishment?

That depends if you see criminals or the establishment as the enemy.

I vote for the establishment, probably a better bet than chaos and criminals

What about policewomen, Caleo, any thoughts on them?

I suppose we’ll be having this discussion all over again in a few months time when the next school shooting happens.
Nothing will ever change in America because the gun lobby is too powerful.

Jeez! - that Christmas card is beyond anything. No wonder Biden is struggling to get any gun control through.

And yes effalump, the majority should be denied the freedom to "bear arms" (what an expression - like something out of the middle ages!) as they have absolutely no need of them - except to protect themselves from other protesting their right to do just that.

Plain to see in Putin's Russia it's the establishment that's the enemy.

Before we brought in tougher gun laws ( as a result of the 1996 Port Arthur massacre) a lot said that the criminals wouldn’t hand their weapons in and we would still have mass shootings. They were wrong. We still have the occasional shooting but usually, as they expected, criminal against criminal. Our police are armed but it is very carefully controlled and there is always a massive investigation ant time one of them actually has to use a gun.

nanna8

Before we brought in tougher gun laws ( as a result of the 1996 Port Arthur massacre) a lot said that the criminals wouldn’t hand their weapons in and we would still have mass shootings. They were wrong. We still have the occasional shooting but usually, as they expected, criminal against criminal. Our police are armed but it is very carefully controlled and there is always a massive investigation ant time one of them actually has to use a gun.

That's good to hear nanna8; a real life experience is really valuable. I hope the US is taking the results of the Australian change in gun laws into account.

That is good news, Nanna8.