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Author
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Topic: Freeway Shooter Caught
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Leo Enticknap
Film God
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Posts: 7474
From: Loma Linda, CA
Registered: Jul 2000
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posted 03-19-2004 01:13 PM
Knives and cars can be used as lethal weapons, but they also have a whole range of legitimate and constructive uses. With a few exceptions (e.g. a farmer using one for pest control), the vast majority of guns do not. They are designed for the one and only task of killing people, quickly, easily and with minimal skill needed by the operator.
quote: The movie "Bowling for Columbine" actually makes the point that banning guns may not be the answer.
Are you thinking about the Wisconsin farmer scene, when he put a gun to his head in order to demonstrate that as long as he didn't pull the trigger, the gun wasn't in any way dangerous? If so I'd say it kind of makes my point for me. That farmer is a sane individual who would never shoot himself or anyone else who wasn't endangering his safety, but not everyone is rational. And when the irrational people can easily get hold of guns too, you've got a problem.
quote: Concerning gun control, when someone really wants to kill another person, he'll find some way to do it.
It's not really those people I'm worried about (well of course I am, but not in the context of gun control). It's those who don't really want to kill another person, but find themselves in a stressful situation and with the means to do so.
I suppose a meaningful firearms ban would be more difficult to implement in the US than here because we've never allowed private individuals to own firearms as a matter of right. As a result, the only people who have them are professional criminals. But with so many firearms already in legitimate ownership in the US, I'd guess that bringing in any serious firearm control measures now would risk creating a massive black market - a similar situation the massive taxes on alcohol and tobacco here encouraging vast quantities of the stuff to be smuggled in from Europe, mainly by private individuals.
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Bobby Henderson
"Ask me about Trajan."
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Posts: 10973
From: Lawton, OK, USA
Registered: Apr 2001
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posted 03-19-2004 05:09 PM
quote: Are you thinking about the Wisconsin farmer scene, when he put a gun to his head in order to demonstrate that as long as he didn't pull the trigger, the gun wasn't in any way dangerous? If so I'd say it kind of makes my point for me.
No, I'm thinking about that guy at all. Michael Moore made a very interesting point that Canadians have just as many guns as Americans, but not anywhere near the homicide rate. We have our media and culture to blame for that. Want to cut down on the rate of homocide in America? Deal with what's in the heads of Americans instead of what they can get in their hands.
To consider the Wisconsin idiot guy, lots of people do stupid things with anything featuring a potential for dangerous use. Banning one kind of tool (guns) won't solve this problem.
When I was in 10th grade I watched my shop teacher demonstrate "safe use" of a band saw and cut off two of his fingers right in front of us. We were dumbfounded by a cliche playing out in front of us. We didn't know whether to laugh or be horrified.
I guess my view on this is similar to that of George Carlin. Life should be hard and very dangerous for stupid people. It might just be a good way to thin out the herd!
Unfortunately, there are too many lawyers in this world suing the crap out of everyone and trying to "idiot proof" everything.
Take diving boards for instance. I really detest it to an extreme how diving boards have disappeared from nearly all commercial swimming pools. None of the hotels have them anymore. They're gone from most country clubs. Forget seeing one at a public swimming pool. And they're even disappearing from most residential pools as well (since that makes your home owner's insurance go up). A pool without a diving board is just a big, boring, bathtub. Pools without diving boards suck ass. If someone pulls some hair-brained stunt on a diving board and cracks open his head, it is his own damned fault. He did it. Not the person who owns the pool.
The same thing applies to gun safety. The very first thing anyone learns when being taught the proper handling of guns is that all guns must be treated as if they are loaded. Never point them at anyone and never, ever point them at yourself.
The best argument one can make against guns is the heat of the moment type of murder. Still, to attack that problem correctly you have to attack the problem of how many Americans don't put a high value on human life. There are people in this country killing each other with their bare fists. The emphasis on individuality and personal gain/glory helps America be innovative. But it is also our Achillies Heel too. Things like violence and selfish greed are big problems and I think our culture characterizes those things as virtues instead of vice.
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Randy Stankey
Film God
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Posts: 6539
From: Erie, Pennsylvania
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 03-19-2004 08:21 PM
quote:
Bobby Henderson: ... The very first thing anyone learns when being taught the proper handling of guns is that all guns must be treated as if they are loaded. Never point them at anyone and never, ever point them at yourself. ...
Agreed!
When I was a kid, there were guns in my house as early as I can remember. There was an explicit rule: Misuse of a gun or even touching one without permission = Instant punishment with no appeal. (Usually, this meant a belt across the ass.)
I can only remember getting punished once when my father handed me a shotgun and I didn't rack it open to be sure the chamber was clear. That cost me a boot in the ass! Will I ever forget to check a gun that's handed to me again? No!
How about this quote from www.nfpa.org
quote:
There were 38,300 reported home electrical fires in 1998, resulting in 284 deaths, 1,184 injuries and $668.8 million in direct property damage.
AND
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Electrical distribution equipment (i.e., wiring, switches, outlets, cords and plugs, fuse and circuit breaker boxes, lighting fixtures and lamps) was the third leading cause of home fires and the second leading cause of fire deaths in the United States between 1994 and 1998.
<sarcasm> Wow! Look at all the death and destruction caused by electricity! Electricity is DANGEROUS! You should never have electricity in your home! We should outlaw electricity! </sarcasm>
Why are those statements so obviously ludirous? Because virtually everybody in the civilized world has grown up being taught how dangerous electricity is and they are taught how to use it with reasonable safety. Everybody knows the risks and they have weighed the benefits.
When it comes to things like wiring a house, most people leave it to a professional electrician but virtually everybody in the civilized world handles an electrical appliance every day of their life. Kids don't normally go around putting their fingers in light sockets because we teach them not to. Those who are stupid enough to try it will:
A) Learn not to do it again. B) Get punished by their adults. C) Die.
In any case, all of us would agree that the kid who sticks his finger in a socket or the adult who doesn't teach their kids not to stick their fingers in sockets get what they deserve. No?
Electricity is a dangerous thing which, if handled carefully, can be a great tool. What's the difference between electricity and guns? For some reason, people don't seem to be getting taught how to use guns safely anymore.
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