America’s unique, enduring gun problem, explained
America’s unique, enduring gun problem, explained
www.vox.com
America’s unique, enduring gun problem, explained
24 comments
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The “culture” stuff really escalated in my lifetime. I’m 41 and when I was taught about guns (around age 12 or 13), it wasn’t anywhere close to this political. The NRA existed and had power but it wasn’t a corrupt wing of the Republican Party like it is now. There wasn’t a centrally-driven campaign for unlimited concealed carry or automatic weapons.
My memory is that things changed after Columbine. Democrats tried to pass gun control bills and it sort of split the party. Those votes were used against rural Democrats in subsequent elections and the party decided the issue was radioactive. When Sandy Hook happened, it was clear national Democrats had no intention of going against the arms lobby.
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52 here and I'm right with you on every point. These kids growing up in a post-Columbine world don't get what it was like. SO much was different.
centrally-driven campaign for unlimited concealed carry or automatic weapons
Nope. Gun rights people act like every tiny thing is a slippery slope. And they're right in many ways! But FFS, our rights are hardly moving backwards regarding conceal carry. (GIF takes a moment to start.)
The AR-15 thing is funny to me. Never wanted one until libs started screaming "BAN!" after Uvalde. Fine. I'll get mine and get grandfathered. Turns out, they're a blast to shoot and far more horrifying than non-shooters know. Anyhow, my fellow libs literally sold me a gun. Good show?
By "automatic weapons" I assume you mean AR-15s and the like? Yeah, we've basically always had those. By that I mean, the US population has always had better rifles than standard military issue. (I've been told the presenter is right-wing, so take the video as you will. None the less, it's factual and eye opening.)
In any case, I foresee fascism coming to America soon, very soon. Any student of pre-WWII Europe can see this. I've oft argued that it's already here, they're just not knocking doors ATM. POC, LGBT+ and women are the largest gun purchasing demographic, because they see the writing on the wall.
I vote D, all the way down to dog catcher, but simply refuse to be disarmed.
(LOL, that's either a "manifesto" or "TED Talk", not sure which.)
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Nah, man, I feel you. You’re getting downvoted but I have friends that got into shooting and they never glorified it or thought it meant anything political. They hunt with bows half the time and are way more proud of those kills. Guns aren’t their identity.
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If it gets to the death squad stage where they are knocking on doors, I have no idea what an arsenal will do, though? It's not like they won't have tanks and a whole array of weapons. Also, all the magoos will likely be let loose to do their worse, too - it's not like that arsenal will be used to fight off an actual tyrannical government. Sure, those at risk might be able to fight off the randos looking to carry out some violence against them, but against an organized fascist government?
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This is the best summary I could come up with:
State and local law enforcement asked residents of Lewiston and the surrounding area to shelter in place as officials worked to find the shooter.
The US’s expansive view of civilian gun ownership has been so ingrained in politics, in culture, and in the law since the nation’s founding that there’s no telling how many more people will die before federal lawmakers take further action.
If it were possible to cure all schizophrenia, bipolar, and depressive disorders, violent crime in the US would fall by only 4 percent, according to a study from Duke University professor Jeffrey Swanson, who examines policies to reduce gun violence.
In high-income countries lacking that culture, mass shootings have historically galvanized public support behind gun control measures that would seem extreme by US standards.
In 2019, less than a month after the Christchurch massacre, New Zealand lawmakers passed a gun buyback scheme, as well as restrictions on AR-15s and other semiautomatic weapons, and they later established a firearms registry.
While the majority of Americans support more gun control restrictions, including universal background checks, a vocal Republican minority unequivocally opposes such laws — and is willing to put pressure on GOP lawmakers to do the same.
The original article contains 2,445 words, the summary contains 199 words. Saved 92%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!
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At first I read that headline as "endearing".
Anyway, is this article going to try to tell me it's not due to liberalism, feminism, not enough GAWD, and too much 'bortion?
/s
24 comments
Saved you a click: too many fucking guns
I would add, radicalized ideas around gun ownership
That's the usual, facile, explanation. I have 40+ guns. Am I 40x the danger to society? The nut with a .22 pistol is 1,000x as dangerous as me, because you just about can't make me shoot you.
We had plenty of fucking guns back in the day, and this shit didn't happen. (Hint: This boolshit really kicked off with Columbine.)
Not sure what you mean, but I'd bet you're pointing in the right direction.
Look folks, I'm a LiberalGunNut™ and I've been looking at this for years. Bullshit like "fewer guns", "mag cap bans" and the like are not useful or practical arguments. Here's the nasty part; I don't have any good ideas.
The 2A exists and the courts uphold it as an individual right. Those are facts, not open for argument. So WTF we do now?
I'm open to listen and debate. Unfortunately for most debaters, I can argue both sides because I know the issues well. I keep hoping to get more and better ideas.
I'll throw one out; Red flag laws that allow the police to take your guns, temporarily, if you act nutty.
Sounds like a no-brainer? OTOH, we constantly see police abuse their power and murder people. "Shalafi71 has a shotgun and is talking some crazy shit!" Now the cops show up, shoot my pet pig, shoot me, shoot my wife, the usual. Stuns me that fellow libs distrust the cops on every single issue but this one.
Here's another idea; Educate children on the realities of firearms. Bring home the seriousness (and horror) of pulling that trigger on another human being. At the worst, they'll be able to identify unsafe people to run from. Liberals: "FUCK all that indoctrination!"
IDK, anyone got serviceable ideas for us?
Did you read the article? Yes!
I must ask, do you need 40 guns? Presumably you can defend yourself and /or engage in recreational hunting with just 1 or 2.
Curbing gun ownership, particularly of assault weapons, is the only solution
There's no middle ground here. There is nothing special about America other than the absurd amount of guns here. More guns, more deaths. Get rid of them. Sorry if that hurts your feelings. Better your hurt feelings than 18 dead Americans
The best answer we have for gun violence is the same as the best answer we have for most other societal issues. Establish a reasonable minimum acceptable quality of life and work to see that as many people as possible have or exceed it. It means giving more power to workers and unions, making healthcare and social services accessible, strengthening the social safety net, reforming the criminal justice system to seek the least punitive effective intervention, to interact equitably with all members of society, and to focus on rehabilitation. That list isn't exhaustive but is already well beyond what there is the political will to achieve.
I think "too many guns" is the slogan-y way of saying there are too many guns that are easy to get and too many people trying to get those easy guns. While inherently someone with an arsenal is more dangerous because they have more firepower, they aren't more risky simply because of the extra firepower. Issues come from people who have some issue and easy access to a firearm making them more risky. Also, people's risk changes given health, circumstances, etc. To illustrate with the absurd, take two people: one is highly stable and rational and the other is enraged. The first has a nuclear warhead, and the second has a dagger. The first is definitely more dangerous, but the second is more risky.
I can get behind this. Like you said, guns are a fact of life in this country (not that that's a great thing, but it is what it is), so I do think some level of education on what shooting means, as well as some level of firearms training with air or paintball guns is helpful. I think this would help stop some of the weird gun fetishization on the right.
I appreciate the honesty, but I don't think there are any simple ideas to fully fix the problem (save for repealing the 2nd Amendment and taking all guns out of people's hands). There's huge support for universal background checks, and there's the Assault Weapons Ban. Unfortunately, this gets back to the cultural issue. Weird gun fetishists will try to sink anything that even remotely makes purchasing a weapon even a hair more inconvenient.
At the end of the day, I think there's the root and proximate causes for what we're seeing. The root cause is a cultural problem with gun fetishes and individualism above all others. The proximate cause is...there are too many guns.
The 2nd amendment exists and the court upheld it so nothing we can do now is absurd.
You know the Supreme Court also upheld slavery and racial segregation as well.
Really how does it feel to be on the wrong side of history clutching your guns?