If you don't blame guns...what do you blame?

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It's a favored tactic of anti-gun people, it lets them point to weapon specific stats rather than absolute stats when arguing, which allows them to be misleading without technically lying.

I'd consider those studies horribly flawed.

OMG! There's a difference between rich and poor people who commit acts of violence!

Well, maybe poor people have more to be upset about or maybe the social values among the poor are that bad that violence is not just tolerated but condoned or even encouraged.

Americans had to deal with abject poverty for many, many years, and we didn't have a bloodbath on our hands among the poor. Being poor isn't enough. I'm sure a lot use it as an EXCUSE, but that doesn't make it the cause of the problem.

It makes me think of the death of MLK, Katrina, or pretty much anything that can trigger social unrest. There are those who will break windows and grab as many TVs as they can haul off and there are those who will lock their front door and let the incident pass. It's an inherent flaw of CHARACTER that makes a person join with the looters rather than keep to themselves and respect the property of others.

Wow. You just assume the worst of me don't you?

First off, I'm NOT anti-gun. I'm not some sort of government boogie man who's gonna come into your home and steal your precious ammo so the Democrats can wipe you out while you least suspect it okay?

Secondly, I apologize if my use of the word "gun" offended you. I started this poll for the purposes of seeing what the pro gun people believe should be the focus in preventing future shooting sprees, as I noticed in other gun-related threads that this side of the argument was not being thoroughly discussed.

Yeesh. People, remind me to never start a poll like this again. This intended-to-be-civil discussion went further south than even I had ever expected it to.

Can you say, "Stop and frisk?"

People behave well when there is a fear of reprisal. The way to discourage someone from attempting a shooting spree is to reduce the likelihood of success in a shooting spree. The obvious way to do this is to encourage law abiding people to be prepared (armed) to terminate such activity.

Eradication of guns is impractical (and impossible).


You could have asked your question in a way to get the answers you seek, as you did above. The poll provided pre-disposed answers that aren't going to generate rational responses.

Umm, actually it's contempt for a system/society that one sees as inherently racist and UNJUST that makes a person join with the looters rather than keep to themselves and respect the property of others.

Let it burn.

I think this has to be a complex issue that can't really be simplified down to just one thing. It's probably a bunch of the things listed in the poll working together. I'd say things like gun laws, mental health support, economy / job market, and media messages regarding gun violence and crime in general are probably all contributing factors.

Let's contrast Canada to the States here, since I've lived in both. As far as I know, Canada has statistically less gun violence than the States. Let's look at some details and try to figure out why...
1. Gun laws aren't that much different. Pretty much anyone can own a gun in Canada, you just have to jump through a little more beaurocratic hoops to get it than you do in the States. Nothing that would probably deter someone if they really wanted a gun though.
2. Mental health may have a little more support in Canada. Phychiatrists can sometimes be covered by health care, but psychologists generally aren't. Could be a contributing factor, but probably not on its own.
3. The economy / job market has been a little better in Canada lately. But this is scattered among both countries, with some places doing better than others. Since the economy of Canada is so affected by the States, the difference isn't enormous.
4. Canada gets it's media mostly from the States. So any potentially violence-desensitizing media will be seen by both countries pretty much equally. The general culture and mindset of people in both countries is also very similar because of this. I will say the States has more of a "military focus", which I suppose could potentially be seen as a factor in favor of gun violence. But the States also more of a religious presence (at least in some parts of it), which seems like it would dissuade people from violent behavior.

These things all seem like relatively small differences overall, yet Canada has less gun violence than the States. So it may be that the combined differences between all these factors could be adding up to influence that difference. Or it could be something else entirely, I'm not quite sure.

The chart is for US violent crime, not NY violent crime. Most social scientists put the decline up to demographics: the baby boom, then the boomers aging out of their violent years without proportionate spawning. There's another slight demographic bump moving into their late teens and early 20's now, which means that crime is on the way up again.
http://www.indexmundi.com/united_states ... cture.html
Others speculate that it has to do with abortion - that women who aren't forced to have children that they don't want will spend more time and attention on the kids that they *do* have, and/or not resent the kids that they don't have but would have been forced to bear if abortion was illegal.

Hairless ground apes.

So you came into a politics forum and dove into an extremely contentious subject that was already being argued about in multiple threads, yet you're surprised that things aren't "civil"? Can I interest you in some fine junk bonds before you leave the forum?

Other:

Unchecked human emotion is the primary cause for all forms of human violence.

Why do you want to damn the governmental police about something that they agree with you? Just as you said, if someone is massively treating you or your family with a gun, self defense allows you to shoot at him.

But I dont understand how an legal act of self defense, is linked to the causes of criminal homicide.



What have you expected. You start a poll, with the purpose of removing the most reasonable answer for many people. So when the answers left for me, are anyway not reasonable for me, so that I am forced to give an in my opinion unserious answer, then I can do it as well as unserious as possible.

If I start a poll about: "Why do you think that global warm happens." by involving "Human caused problems." is not allowed as answer, and additional adding readied answers like "Because god is freezing and turned on the heating-device." - "Aliens have moved a gigantic scope between sun and earth." I wouldnt whonder to get lots of unserious answers.

The government's too corrupt now; we as citizens need to take proactive stances for ourselves and those in need, regardless of "official sanction" or other such crap.I remember hearing of a young mother in her 20s, hiding in a closet with her newborn and a pistol, while a man was breaking down her door. She actually called 911 to ask for permission to shoot the intruder, because she was afraid of going to jail for defending her child. How insane is that?!

That's why I don't think the Feds will ever get all the guns away from Texans; we'd shoot them first, no questions asked...seriously.

I don't recall saying it was.

Why is it the governments fault, for that woman having not informed herself about self defense laws? I dont even live in your country, and know that in the average countys, you are allowed to shoot on people, if they refuse to leave your area/house/flat. Knowing about your countries general defense law, is something that you reasonable should care for. And I dont understand how you on one side blame the government for not allowing you to defend yourself, when in opposite they do allow you as you request for, and afterwards you call it crap, that they allow you to do that. I dont understand, because things I want, and that I am allowed to do, I normally dont call crap. Or do you think of governmental laws being in general crap? I dont know about your country, but in general your countries laws, if done democratic, protects people from chaotic anarchy, that would instead rule. I as well dont agree with every rule of my country, but that doesnt make the complete concept of having general laws and rules, instead of anarchy, in an country crap.

I blame the fact that some people are sociopaths. You can always find an object that will make a suitable weapon; only 4% of all murders in Norway are carried out by guns.

Don't blame the gun for violence - blame the violent person who fires the gun.