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Why doesn't the US do something about mass shootings?

Captain_Swoop said:
You live your life like that?
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"Why do you walk crouched down all the time dad. It is a bit embarrassing"

"It is because I need my body to be a coiled spring 24/7 son. You never know when you will be attacked. See that old woman with the walker over there?

Does she look suspicious to you?"
 
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zorro99 said:
Everyone needs to be cognizant of their surroundings whenever they go out in public. .... Be prepared. React, don't freeze.
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Captain_Swoop said:
You live your life like that?
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Yes I do, but not because of shootings. Ten years stationed on submarines taught me that. Be proactive; know how to react to a problem. Ever been in an earthquake, fire, flooding, wind storms, lightening, vehicle incidents, water currents or other hazardous situations? It pays to be aware of your surroundings no matter who or where you are.
 
Ranb said:
Yes I do, but not because of shootings. Ten years stationed on submarines taught me that. Be proactive; know how to react to a problem. Ever been in an earthquake, fire, flooding, wind storms, lightening, vehicle incidents, water currents or other hazardous situations? It pays to be aware of your surroundings no matter who or where you are.
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I have to agree. I don't live my life in fear, but I do remain aware of what is going on around me, and I regularly spot interesting things that the people around me haven't spotted. When you are an amateur photographer, you need to be aware of everything, because that's how you get good shots. When you're playing a mock-combat game, you need to be aware because otherwise some bastard is going to whack you with an axe while you're not looking. In fact my group does a game/training exercise that trains exactly this kind of situational awareness.

It has nothing whatsoever to do with expecting - or even being prepared for - the presence of an active shooter. I like living this way, because I do see a lot of interesting things. And I don't unexpectedly get hit with axes.
 
Ranb said:
Yes I do, but not because of shootings. Ten years stationed on submarines taught me that. Be proactive; know how to react to a problem. Ever been in an earthquake, fire, flooding, wind storms, lightening, vehicle incidents, water currents or other hazardous situations? It pays to be aware of your surroundings no matter who or where you are.
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I've been in all those, depending on what you mean by hazardous situations
 
Ranb said:
This is the guy who wrote "On Killing" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Grossman_(author)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_Killing
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Ranb,

Here's one of the saddest videos I have ever seen. In the Video, a Teacher gets sucker-punched by a student in an alley. At any other time, that Teacher's spidey-sense should have been on full alert as that group was approaching, but it wasn't this time. Why? It was probably because it happened near the end/beginning of a school day and the Teacher was inured to seeing public displays of rudeness to the point that he casually accepted such rudeness as the norm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZbTRqPzC6E

Nevertheless, people often state that violence "Comes out of Nowhere"...and I disagree. There's always the "Interview" and "Positioning" before the attack and here you can see it happen (and of course the Teacher accepts it as Normal).

Of course, all this is out the window for the poor people who get held up working convenience stores - it's almost impossible to detect the "Interview" and "Positioning" beforehand in such circumstances. And this pretty much goes for Mass Shootings, too.


Last time I passed a group of Black Men it was on the street at night. I was walking on the right-hand side and they were on the same side walking in the opposite direction (and these guys were freakin' huge!). Anyways...long before they got to me they all shifted over about 2 body-widths, and then I knew everything was cool, for I knew they were not interviewing me - but just more interested about talking on their smartphones and discussing the latest football game (at least this is what I gathered as they passed).
 
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Jules Galen said:
Ranb,

Here's one of the saddest videos I have ever seen. In the Video, a Teacher gets sucker-punched by a student in an alley. At any other time, that Teacher's spidey-sense should have been on full alert as that group was approaching, but it wasn't this time. Why? It was probably because it happened near the end/beginning of a school day and the Teacher was inured to seeing public displays of rudeness to the point that he casually accepted such rudeness as the norm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZbTRqPzC6E

Nevertheless, people often state that violence "Comes out of Nowhere"...and I disagree. There's always the "Interview" and "Positioning" before the attack and here you can see it happen (and of course the Teacher accepts it as Normal).

Of course, all this is out the window for the poor people who get held up working convenience stores - it's almost impossible to detect the "Interview" and "Positioning" beforehand in such circumstances. And this pretty much goes for Mass Shootings, too.


Last time I passed a group of Black Men it was on the street at night. I was walking on the right-hand side and they were on the same side walking in the opposite direction (and these guys were freakin' huge!). Anyways...long before they got to me they all shifted over about 2 body-widths, and then I knew everything was cool, for I knew they were not interviewing me - but just more interested about talking on their smartphones and discussing the latest football game (at least this is what I gathered as they passed).
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Here in NZ and AUS they tend to just walk up behind you and king hit you in the back or side of the head
 
HenryLee said:
What you do you propose that will ensure that children will never ever be killed again? I'd like to see it.
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Never?

Impossible goal.

Greatly lessened?

Same thing every First World country other than US have done:

1. Abolish the useless and harmful Second Amendment*.

2. Make gun ownership a privilege instead of a right.

3. Make the punishment for illegal ownership of firearms so draconian, that for any given outlaw** the danger of owning a gun far outweighs any potential benefit.

* Since no other country ever had "right to bear arms" enshrined in its constitution, point 1 is not really something other First World countries had to do. But in US' case it is a necessary first step.

** "When guns are outlawed, only outlaws have guns". Most outlaws in Western Europe choose not to have guns, which is a rational choice on their part, given the legal situation.
 
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Captain_Swoop said:
A thread on gun control because we haven't had one for a day or two.
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Well, we haven't had a major mass shooting in a while. We're continually told that we shouldn't talk about gun control in the emotional wake of a mass shooting. Is the extended time between mass shootings off-limits for gun control discussions now, too?
 
Ranb said:
As far as I know semi-auto rifles with fixed magazines holding 7 or fewer rounds are class A firearms in NZ and anyone who can own a gun can possess them. Am I correct? A good example would be an SKS with the internal magazine blocked to hold 7 or fewer rounds. Stripper clips allow for rapid reloading.
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First, for starters, you need to have a firearms licence. In order to get one, you need to pass the firearms safety exams, and pass the "fit and proper person test". If you have ever been subject to a protection order, broken any firearms laws, committed any criminal offence, or any offence involving drugs or violence, or are connected with a criminal gang or any members of a criminal gang, or committed any act of domestic violence, then you will fail the fit and proper person test.

Now the gun. In NZ, a "type A licence is for "sporting configuration" firearms. A sporting configuration firearm is a rifle or shotgun that does not meet the legal definition of, or have any of the attributes of, a Military-Style Semi-Automatic (MSSA), "Restricted Weapon" or "pistol". NOTE: An MSSA is any firearm that has one or more of the following attributes or features.

1. a magazine that holds, or is detachable and looks like it will hold, more than 15 cartridges (for .22 rimfire)
2. a magazine that holds more than 7 cartridges, or is detachable and looks like it will hold, more than 10 cartridges (other than for .22 rimfire)
3. a folding or telescopic butt
4. a bayonet lug
5. a pistol grip
6. a flash suppressor

Basically, anything that looks or acts like an assault weapon is out, so AR15, M16, L1A1 all out.
 
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smartcooky said:
First, for starters, you need to have a firearms licence. In order to get one, you need to pass the firearms safety exams, and pass the "fit and proper person test". If you have ever been subject to a protection order, broken any firearms laws, committed any criminal offence, or any offence involving drugs or violence, or are connected with a criminal gang or any members of a criminal gang, or committed any act of domestic violence, then you will fail the fit and proper person test.

Now the gun. In NZ, a "type A licence is for "sporting configuration" firearms. A sporting configuration firearm is a rifle or shotgun that does not meet the legal definition of any of the attributes of a Military-Style Semi-Automatic (MSSA), "Restricted Weapon" or "pistol". NOTE: An MSSA is any firearm that has one or more of the following attributes or features.

1. a magazine that holds, or is detachable and looks like it will hold, more than 15 cartridges (for .22 rimfire)
2. a magazine that holds more than 7 cartridges, or is detachable and looks like it will hold, more than 10 cartridges (other than for .22 rimfire)
3. a folding or telescopic butt
4. a bayonet lug
5. a pistol grip
6. a flash suppressor

Basically, anything that looks or acts like an assault weapon is out.
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Once again, the Hello Kitty AR passes the "doesn't look scary test!" Huzzah!
 
For a gun licence

You also need references that must include a close family member.

And the police visit to inspect where you will store it.
 
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zorro99 said:
Everyone needs to be cognizant of their surroundings whenever they go out in public. If one goes to a restaurant, theatre, store, where've, note where the exits are. Note where the hardened structures are. Have a plan for one's spouse or kids. In one's place if business, encourage management to conduct emergency drills. If necessary, fight. It would only take two to three individuals, even if unarmed, to overpower one guy with a gun. Be prepared. React, don't freeze.
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I don't have exactly the same list but it is nice to compare notes.

It takes so little time, just glances, to raise your awareness into a life-saving status. It is the same thing martial artists learn, self-defense arts: being aware is what avoids the need to fight in in the first place.

It is interesting to hear the complaints - that these mere moments generating awareness are some bizarre fear or great burden.

No, the wise man spends zero effort protecting himself, they would have us believe. He should just be completely unaware of himself and walk out into a bus on the street because he is so smart.

Oh, wait - you actually look both ways before you cross the street? You mean you live your life like that? lol.

I see you have military training, so you got past "buck fever" by training that way. Hunters get it. Athletes in combat sports get it. A person with no training, the first time they are confronted with a full-tilt-boogie situation freeze up.

I realize you tried to convey that but until you show them, until they live it themselves and train out of it - they won't get it.
 
AlaskaBushPilot said:
It takes so little time, just glances, to raise your awareness into a life-saving status. It is the same thing martial artists learn, self-defense arts: being aware is what avoids the need to fight in in the first place.

It is interesting to hear the complaints - that these mere moments generating awareness are some bizarre fear or great burden.
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Precisely, it's just situational awareness and small but critical actions which greatly reduce risk. How many, I wonder, take the time to use a little Purell after shaking hands? Or bother sanitizing work surfaces with alcohol-based wipes?

I don't blame them, they haven't been trained. They don't grasp the risks. Sure, they might think it odd that I wear a surgical mask in public, or double check the temperature of the food I am served at a restaurant, but when they lose an arm to a flesh-eating bacterial infection, I expect they'll come to see things a bit differently.

And don't tell me I worry too much. I take precautions - I'm not worried, I'm prepared. That's what they don't get. Nice looking prosthetic by the way.
 
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