h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

To KB (King Bomba?) ... no one died, but a mass attack by knife, gun or garlic ...

Does it take a coffin to make something fully wrong?

with Baron Grim.

Question: Do you live in Texas?

Yeah, I ed over several posts, it's a busy convo.

Do I live in Texas? How'd you guess?

Oh, just a sort of intuition, based on the arsenal list...

"But also "time for knife control" in all countries ... (the other horror news story of the day, other side of the world)"

...and nobody was killed in the attack in China had the man had a gun most of the children would have died

Arsenal? Hardly. Some of my friends have 20+ guns, including what would be considered as assault weapons. My uncle in West (bygod) Virginia had more than 45 hunting rifles and shotguns on wall racks in his house when I was a kid. He also had many rifles and shotguns loaned out to friends. I'd not be surprised if the full total of guns he owns if over 100. And he's not some doomsday prepper or militia member. Just a guy that likes hunting and likes collecting guns.

West Virginia. I can see that...

You see what we're up against, folks?

In related news, this last week, somebody up in New England turned in a useless old gun she found in her late dad's closet during a police buy-back. She was hoping to get a $50 Walmart card out of turning it in to be melted down.

Fortunately for the family (who needed the money), the policeman at the buy-back was an expert. Talk about antiques road show: that gun was a prototype assault weapon, German-made, that her dad had brought back as a souvenir from WWII. Worth: at least $10,000.

And the goal was accomplished: the weapon did not end up in the hands of a child.

"many rifles and shotguns loaned out to friends"

That comment is frightening to me. Who vets the friends and their friends and family? In my work kit I have a razor sharp Inuit skinning knife that I would never lend to fellow workers. They can have the moderately sharp Leatherman knife because I don't trust them with such a sharp implement. If i owned a gun it would be safely locked up and available to me only.

That's the cultural difference. No one here thinks twice about someone loaning shotguns and hunting rifles to friends. And these friends that are being loaned the guns already have guns of their own which they use for the same reasons, hunting deer and turkey.

That's problematic. You can have all the permits, ID checks, and background checks at the point of sale that you want. It's all a bit pointless if people are swapping firearms round like X-box games...

There are no permits required for such guns in W.Va. nor in Texas. At most a background check. Handguns may require a waiting period.

I know there's a lot of variation. But any security measures at all are rendered slightly futile.

Well, I'm saying the whole thing is futile. Even with such tragic events. Even with the recent spate of similar cases of mass murder. Right now conservatives are blaming the lack of bibles in schools while also saying that such things shouldn't be politicized or that it's too soon to have such discussions out of respect for the victims. Also, these folks have convinced their selves that despite an entire term in office with gun rights only being expanded, Obama wants to take their guns away and any inroads for gun control will bring out a fervent screaming outrage and will justify their paranoid delusions.

I don't think I disagree. That's why I'm so sceptical that anything will change.

In the meantime, this summer, a woman in our building was out front waving a handgun around because she saw a (dead) copperhead. And then somebody tried to break into one of the other buildings one night, and got shot...

Yes, the culture needs to change. But so do the laws permitting all these suburban savages to run around armed.

Either that, or I'm going to find a nice primitive tribe to go live with. One that only uses spears.

Here's the actual numbers to help inform the discussion - http://www.pollingreport.com/guns.htm

Key (for me) is -


"Do you favor or oppose stricter gun control laws in this country?"


Favor 51%
Oppose 47%
Unsure 2%

That was before the latest killing spree

Unfortunately, it's not voters that control this country, but money and there is a LOT of money in the status quo. The arms business is huge and very powerful. I may be cynical, but I'm not wrong.

You might find this article from last year, in the Atlantic, of interest. It's called 'The Secret History of Guns'. It was written by Adam Winkler, a professor of constitutional law at UCLA law school.

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/09/the-secret-history-of-guns/308608/

An interesting quote:

'Yet we’ve also always had gun control. The Founding Fathers instituted gun laws so intrusive that, were they running for office today, the NRA would not endorse them. '

Baron Grim

I don't think you are wrong,nothing is going to change anytime soon but what do you think your options are?
To accept things as they are?

that sounded more 'questiony' than I intended