Hello Taichiliberal,
Quote Originally Posted by Taichiliberal View Post
Here's the thing, P.T.;
For all the years I've been on these discussion threads, I've stated that if gun purchases and ownership were treated that same as we do with cars, you would have far less mass shootings and a better law enforcement control of organize criminal use of them.
Gunners reject such an easy, simple solution for the usual paranoia/conspiracy laden mantras. And as long as you have gun lobbyist greasing palms in Congress, things are not going to change with any significance any time soon. The real question in my mind is how many of these gunners bleat the same mantras if the victims are one of their own.
I do take issue with your suggestion of gun owners paying into a victims fund. You can't hold someone personally responsible for a strangers violent actions, especially if the stranger's actions are mentally imbalanced and irrational. However, you can hold manufacturers and retailers responsible to some degree with regards to selling aspects that abet such actions (I believe Remington suffered such a fate).
Also, your suggestions of psyche evaluations for gun owners is neither legal, practical or in some cases moral. You have nasty, hateful and aggressive people in all faucets of society....the vast majority that own weapons don't go on shooting sprees, but they may take out their aggressions and such through their varies business/job opportunities. Also, such evaluations are no guarantee that you have a responsible and sane gun owner....our law enforcement agencies all have evaluation requirements, yet we have history of episodes of bias law officers, agents or heinous policies that are against the will of the American people with regards to justice. Background checks for a criminal record coupled with license and registry of weapons purchase can easily alert law enforcement of questionable numerous purchases. Bringing back the 1994 AWB won't solve the problem, but will help tone down the frequency of what we are witnessing.
Microchipping guns requires an entire secondary tech industry.....unnecessary when you can just have a simple registry at the point of sales entered into a database and make it available to all law enforcement agencies. That tech is already available and adaptable....it has yet to be nationally implemented.
Good thoughts although favoring the do-little approach.
I don't know what it will take to get control of our violence but whatever it is we need to continue searching for it until it is achieved.
If the light approach don't get it, we cannot accept that and end our efforts.
This is getting ridiculous. We had the hate-fueled shooter in Buffalo, and then a week later it's kids in a school. This is unacceptable.
Other countries do not have this problem.
This is a solvable problem.
We can never accept this as OK.