America - Why all the guns ?

[RailwayRowdy]

With yet another mass shooting in the USA, this time aimed at innocent students in Florida, my question is what is their fascination with firearms ?

 

A recent report showed that a whopping 25% of ALL Americans own a firearm and that per capita there are 100 guns for every 100 people, meaning that the ones who do own a gun in fact have several of them.

 

Why is there a resistance among U.S. citizens with regards gun control ?

[valeite]

Simple

 

The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution says "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

 

And they are willing to sacrifice their kids to defend that right.

[Regal Beagle]

It's crazy and something that I don't think I'll ever understand.

 

How they can say with such authority that gun restrictions would have no impact on mass shootings is beyond me.

[George]

Simple

 

The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution says "the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

 

And they are willing to sacrifice their kids to defend that right.

 

It’s an amendment, meaning it was not in the original constitution.

 

Simple. Change it again.

 

When it was written the guns available were single fire. There is absolutely no reason a civilian should own a semi-automatic assault rifle. No reason at all.

[Santa]

As JK Galbraith might have said, the modern gun lobbyist is engaged in a search for a superior moral justification for not having his toys taken off him.

[Paul6754]

Utter stupidity, been reported that the majority of Americans want major changes to thee gun laws but nothing happens due to the power of the nra, a truly myopic, illogical and heinous organization.

 

When Sandy hook didn’t produce any change it’s unlikely anything will, words fail me.

[fuzzyvalefan]

America- the country where you cant buy a Kinder Egg in a supermarket because they are too dangerous, but you can buy a gun.

[Davebrad]

As JK Galbraith might have said, the modern gun lobbyist is engaged in a search for a superior moral justification for not having his toys taken off him.[/quote

 

I think the NRA (gun lobby) simply say you need to be able to defend yourself if a armed person attempts to rob you or your property... Has as been said a revolver/automatic pistol should be suffiecent, unless you need to cut the robber in half with a AK-47 Assult rifle... I see from a news report that it was no random act, smoke grenades into the school, hit the fire alarm then wait till everyone came to him...

[RailwayRowdy]

As a footnote to my OP, my daughter lives in Lakeland Fl, a city about the size of Stoke roughly half way between Orlando & Tampa.

 

On a recent trip there we went to an outdoor market, whose stalls sold the same tat as over here.

 

Some stalls sold the usual T shirts with various printed material on them. But what surprised me, was the amount of shirts for sale which glorified the ownership of guns and, more worryingly, the results of their use. Distasteful to say the least. This, unfortunately, shows the strength of feeling over there even in a fairly affluent city like Lakeland.

[For Us All]

This shocking incident is the 18th school shooting in the USA this year.

If they won't do anything after Sandy Hook,they'll never do anything?

[Jacko51]

It’s an amendment, meaning it was not in the original constitution.

 

Simple. Change it again.

 

When it was written the guns available were single fire. There is absolutely no reason a civilian should own a semi-automatic assault rifle. No reason at all.

 

Exactly, George. The text of the amendment reads "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." It was added in 1791 when the new United States still feared attacks from the British. At the time, the only guns available were muskets which fired once and then took a while to reload. It would have taken more than half an hour to have killed and injured the number of people who were killed and injured yesterday. With the sort of weapon used yesterday it took seconds.

[Doha]

[Andyregs]

Guns aren’t the problem apparently because cars kill people too and shouldn’t be banned. The right inthe USA are bonkers. Many are suggesting the answer is to give teachers guns. When you suggest teachers have to arm themselves and you can’t see that there is a problem then you’re ******* into the wind suggesting they have a gun problem. But this is a nation where the evangelicals and family values supporters support a serial adulterer and misogynist president. And the poor and most vulnerable in society are convinced that a tax break for billionaires and an attack on their health care is best for them.

 

 

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[Fosse69]

But you have to be 21 to buy alcohol? Maybe just as well.

[The_godfather]

One thing that always baffles me is the rampant militarism that is mainstream in American culture - not just a celebration, but a glorification of it. The rhetoric that the country needs to pour ever more billions into the military because 'we need it now more than ever' is just waved by as if it is self-evidently true, without stopping to understand why, if it IS required, that would be the case.