Washington Shooting

[DavidinSouthampton]

If he cannot work out a solution to this problem then he needs to go back to kindergarten.

I'm sure Obama could easily work out a solution to this problem. It is other mindless idiots who would not let it happen. From what they were saying on the radio 4 news this morning, this man was a former military man who had been in trouble while still in the military over gun related stuff and had been dismissed for it. I would hazard a guess that in this country:
1. He would not have been granted a gun licence..... and
2. He would not have received security clearance to work on one of the most sensitive military establishments in the whole of the country.

But maybe I naively have too much faith in our own systems, too.

 

[narly101]

Until such time as America changes it's gun laws, these atrocities will continue. To me it's no longer a surprise.

One thing that is interesting, is that the fact that it's an ex-naval servicemen who was involved means that the media hype seems to have been far more measured, than had it been a Muslim.

 

[The Antikythera Mechanism]

A Buddist convert?? They have a radical wing?

Primarily for killing Muslims in Burma

 

[portslade seagull]

The madness of not banning guns or making it harder to purchase them, they are there own worse enemies i'm afraid and it will keep on happening

 

[daveinprague]

Primarily for killing Muslims in Burma

correct...

 

[Westdene Seagull]

I would hazard a guess that in this country:
1. He would not have been granted a gun licence..... and

It's worryingly easy to get a gun licence in this country I'm afraid.

 

[LargeHadronZugzwang]

With such a violent culture these things are bound to continue. The zeitgeist has it that such terms like 'humanitarian intervention' whilst advocating bombs are to be dropped can be bandied about without people batting an eyelid. The hubris of 'exceptionalism' has been given a wake up call lately, it is surely time for Uncle Sam to look in the mirror and start banning guns.

 

[Tricky Dicky]

I'm sure it's been said before, but I think gun laws aren't that different in Canada, but generally Canadians don't seem to engage in so many mass shootings for some reason.

Don't know about Canada, but sound about right - in Switzerland they have something like 96% gun ownership and virtually zero issues, I do believe

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Its down to Amerika to work out for itself somewhere down the line the no-brainer solution to all these everyday gun rampages. Obviously.

 

[Lyndhurst 14]

It will always be difficult to change things at a national level because of the lobbying power of groups like the NRA and the partisan nature of US politics.

But there is nothing to stop individual States enacting tougher gun laws. New York State has some of the toughest gun control laws in the US, one of the reasons being that Michael Bloomberg has made gun control a central issue whilst he has been mayor. Maybe that is the way forward.

 

[looney]

It will always be difficult to change things at a national level because of the lobbying power of groups like the NRA and the partisan nature of US politics.

But there is nothing to stop individual States enacting tougher gun laws. New York State has some of the toughest gun control laws in the US, one of the reasons being that Michael Bloomberg has made gun control a central issue whilst he has been mayor. Maybe that is the way forward.

You are so out of touch its laughable. Democrats these days are pro-gun if they want to be elected. The gun grabbers are on the run for one simple reason. They have lost the argument.

With Gun liberalisation, carry and conceal, stand your ground laws etc what has resulted is a reduction in overall gun crime due to the deterrence effect.

Yes America has a gun culture, but by any measure gun ownership reduces crime. I know a lot of people are in denial about this but the gun issue has gone of the radar for this reason, and the fact any gun controll would impact legally held guns. No Politician wants to take the blame for unarmed citizens being gunned down in their own homes.

 

[Buzzer]

Perhaps it's a sign of waning interest in American culture. A year or two ago some people complained that American mass killings were front page news but others in developing countries weren't.

Nah - in my opinion it's that mass shootings in America are now getting too commonplace to have that shock factor. And that's very sad.

 

[Buzzer]

No Politician wants to take the blame for unarmed citizens being gunned down in their own homes.

I don't know enough about American culture or the gun laws to say whether what you say is right or wrong but weren't unarmed citizens were gunned down here - albeit at work?

 

[vegster]

You are so out of touch its laughable. Democrats these days are pro-gun if they want to be elected. The gun grabbers are on the run for one simple reason. They have lost the argument.

With Gun liberalisation, carry and conceal, stand your ground laws etc what has resulted is a reduction in overall gun crime due to the deterrence effect.

Yes America has a gun culture, but by any measure gun ownership reduces crime. I know a lot of people are in denial about this but the gun issue has gone of the radar for this reason, and the fact any gun controll would impact legally held guns. No Politician wants to take the blame for unarmed citizens being gunned down in their own homes.

Yet somehow I have a minuscule chance of being shot while living in the U K ? I'm so glad I'm not living in America.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

The Americans need to look at their gun ownership laws and the mental health within the land of the free.

The NRA may well be right in suggesting that people kill people, but it is a damn sight easier if you have a gun or three in the sock drawer

 

[looney]

Yet somehow I have a minuscule chance of being shot while living in the U K ? I'm so glad I'm not living in America.

The UK does have higher figures for violent crime I beleive.

Maybe we can curb obesity levels by banning dessert spoons?

 

[vegster]

The Americans need to look at their gun ownership laws and the mental health within the land of the free.

The NRA may well be right in suggesting that people kill people, but it is a damn sight easier if you have a gun or three in the sock drawer

That is the point entirely,if you are hearing voices and have had a bad day, its much nicer for the rest of society if you can only find a Melon baller in your sock drawer.

 

[vegster]

The UK does have higher figures for violent crime I beleive.

Maybe we can curb obesity levels by banning dessert spoons?

You could save lots of American's lives by banning dessert spoons ! Aside from the well known obesity problems, skinnier citizens are harder to hit on semi automatic plus they can run faster.

 

[Buzzer]

Maybe we can curb obesity levels by banning dessert spoons?

Eh? That analogy doesn't work at all. Innocent bystanders getting killed in a drive by pudding incident, schoolchildren spooned down in their classrooms by some kid on a sugar rush. Nope, doesn't work at all.

 

[Sergei's Celebration]

The UK does have higher figures for violent crime I beleive.

Maybe we can curb obesity levels by banning dessert spoons?

The ban gun argument is missing a trick. Ban bullets. Thats the deadly element otherwise guns are just paperweights. Its like reducing fat content in food. Do what you like with the spoon its the food that creates obesity.