Interesting Stuff

The NRA / Gun Control Debate


Today the National Rifle Association held its first news conference since the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings.  Many people were waiting the hear what the NRA had to say since the shootings.  The NRA has gotten criticized by many people for being in favor of guns.  Until 1974, the NRA was pro-gun and pro-gun control.  Then the absolutists took over wanting everyone to be armed and allowing guns in all public places.  NRA Executive VP Wayne LaPierre said the most effective way to protect our children from horrors like last week’s school shooting in Connecticut is to provide armed security personnel at all schools.  The NRA suggests gun-free school zones make children less safe, leaving them “utterly defenseless.”

nra-gun-controlThere have been calls to place armed guards at schools and even arm teachers.  But I have a problem with this.  There are over 100,000+ schools in the United States.  So if we want to put cops in all schools it would require hiring a force 3 times larger than the NYPD. Plus in a time of teacher layoffs and classroom cutbacks.  Who has the funding to provide armed guards at every school?  I also don’t like the idea of arming teachers.  If we arm teachers it won’t be long before a child accidentally shoots someone because of a teacher’s gun.  The NRA is calling this The National School Shield Emergency Response Program.  Learn more by clicking the link.

705407267LaPierre said “The only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.”  And while that is true it did not stop him from blaming things for the gun violence.  First, he blamed the media, Hollywood, movies, songs, the courts, and video games like Mortal Kombat for creating a culture of violence.  Seriously, a game like Mortal Kombat which has no guns in it is creating mass murders?  The NRA needs to get its heads out of the sand.  Playing video games DOES NOT turn people into killing machines.

Along with the NRA saying the news media is “demonized gun owners.”  The NRA wants America to create a national database of mentally ill people to prevent them from buying weapons.  And yes; I have a huge problem with this!  The school shooter had Asperger’s Syndrome and I also have it as well.  So are we going to limit the rights of people with Asperger’s and Autism because they could be the next mass killer?  I am also afraid a list like this would put a big target on our backs and would prevent us from getting jobs because we are on a database.  The NRA has also blocked a national registry of gun ownership which I think America badly needs.

no-assault-weaponsThe NRA has demonstrated once again that nothing, absolutely nothing, trumps guns, guns, and more guns; and it’s not right for America.  I found this from the LA Times and I do believe the NRA is out of touch from much of America.  “’I have never seen a more precise example of how out of touch the NRA’s Washington lobbyists are with the NRA’s membership,’ said Mark Glaze, director of Mayors Against Illegal Guns.  “’If there is a need for security at our elementary schools today, it is largely because the NRA’s Washington leadership has gutted the gun laws that used to keep schools and day cares and churches safe,’ Glaze added. ‘Thanks for the proposal, but we would have preferred that you apologize for causing the problem.'”

gun controlEven the top lobbyist from the Southern Baptist Convention said that the “New Testament justification for owning firearms” lies in Jesus’ command to “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”  Each year 30k Americans die from gun violence.  This is way too many people!  And since the shootings last Friday around 100 Americans have been killed because of gun violence.  And yes, Columbine High School had a armed guard on the day of its mass shooting.  So these ideas from the NRA is simply not going to work!  Why is the NRA not talking about ways to have better gun controls in this country?

I support the ideas from the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.  First, I think a big change in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System is needed. There needs to be bigger mental health checks in everyone that is wanting to purchase a weapon.  I would like to see a requirement of having people getting two family references saying its okay for them to get a weapon.  I would also like to see these requirements put in at gun shows and for online purchases.  There is no reason a website or gun shows can run background checks for gun buyers.  I would also like to see required classes for people wanting to get a concealed weapons permit so people can be properly trained and the police can find someone who is mentally unstable.

701999774The big tipping point is about assault weapons.  I have gotten into a Twitter and Facebook war with people who think America should never ban any guns.  These assault weapons are made to kill and to kill at a high rate of speed.  And yes, I do think they need to be banned!  I would like to see Congress to ban all military-style semi-automatic assault weapons along with high capacity ammunition magazines.  According to ATF reports, in 2010 there were 5,459,240 new firearms manufactured in the United States, nearly all (95 percent) for the U.S. market.  An additional 3,252,404 firearms were imported to the United States.  America has close to 300 million guns which is a bit too much.

Before some people say I should move to California.  I do still support the second amendment.  People do have a right to arm themselves and I think people should get a concealed weapons permit.  But I think America can do a much better job in controlling guns and making our streets safer.  It needs to happen folks!  If don’t agree with me leave a comment below.

To learn more about the the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence go to:

17 replies »

  1. Who has the funding to provide armed guards at every school?

    I agree with you. It would be too expensive but maybe some trained volunteers could take over the role of professional police officers. Anyway some immediate changes need to be implemented in this particular area. When I heard the news about the massacre I was thinking about the safety regulations in my own country. A few days ago I read an article on my native Vancouver which is often presented as one of the most liveable cities with the safest neighborhoods in the world but only now I realize that you are never truly protected anywhere. And the risks your children are exposed to every day are omnipresent.

  2. This is why I encourage people to get a concealed carry permit and I wish it was allowed all over America. High Schools already provides a resource officer but they are not armed. So it is going to cost a lot of money to train and place people in every school in the country. Plus people don’t want their taxes to go up for anything and this will result in higher taxes. Thanks for commenting!

  3. You really don’t understand how online purchases work. Buying a firearm online is not like ordering something from The gun doesn’t ship to you.

    Online orders can only be shipped to a fully licenced firearm dealer (a local gun shop), who then transfers possession to the purchaser. Dealers usually charge a fee of about $20 or $25 for this service and it includes the standard background check and paperwork. In terms of checking out the buyer, it’s no different than if the person walked in and bought an item already in stock at the store.

  4. I find this very hypocritical. The author, who has Asperger’s, states that there should be no such database including individuals with Autism or Asperger’s because it may infringe on their rights or ability to get a job. However, in the very next sentence, the author endorses a national database including the names of everyone who owns a gun. That is the very definition of contradiction, in the same paragraph no less. What the author is saying is that it’s not ok for anyone to track Asperger’s, but it’s ok to track people with guns. There isn’t a logical argument out there to support gun control.

  5. I do not think America needs a mentally ill database. It is just discriminatory! And yes, I believe it is wrong. I do think we do need a way to track guns in America. I don’t want guns to fall into the wrong hands.

  6. Not all websites operate like that. Yes, many websites do background checks but there are places on the web where you can buy weapons with no checks whatsoever. There are online gun marketplace websites where you join the site, sign up and buy guns without a background check or sell guns without a Federal Firearms License. Click the link to learn more.

  7. Nathan, you’re saying its discriminating against people with different medical issues, but not discriminating against gun owners by keeping a national database tracking who has guns? That’s the definition of hypocrisy. Registration will eventually lead to confiscation, just like Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, and modern day Australia and The UK.

  8. Seriously, I do not think America will not start doing gun confiscations. Because if that happened, many gun owners would not allow it. Many would shoot anyone trying to take their guns. Sorry, I do not like the NRA’s idea of a mental health database.

  9. The NRA (aka 4.5 million American citizens that bothered to join the lobby group and another 80 million gun owners that did not bother to join that are represented by their opinion, and lord knows how many of their wives, children, and friends that are uncountable) is not stopping mentally ill folk from getting treatment, they have nothing to to with them. They have nothing to do with spree killers, criminal gangs, or any violent offenders. There is no need to tax guns and ammo to give funding for mental health, no need to blame the NRA for killing children, no need to blame gun owners at all for anything.

    Millions of normal Americans that happen to own firearms for self defense are in no way shape or form worthy of being scapegoated as the cause of crime nor criminal actions.

    Scapegoating, demonization, stereotyping, these are all types of propaganda. Google propaganda for a definition and note the sub-types and how it is done, you will see what I say is true.

  10. Yes, there is plenty of propaganda going around right now and it’s sad. The cable news networks have been on a blaming spree in the last few weeks. I have no problem in having people own guns for protection or hunting purposes. I also wish mental health in this country would get better as well. Thanks for commenting!

  11. face it,… people are afraid and they are drowning in what if’s,…. once the lawas are passed and life gets worse…. maybe you fools who think “gin control is going to “help” will realize how bad you misjudged. it will be too late then and people will still be getting killed.

  12. Guns have been around a long time and people didn’t go on shooting sprees… People are sick in the head today. The Jackass generation… Idiots that want that 30 seconds of video of themselves doing something that makes them a somebody on Youtube or the news. An entire generation of kids growing up in front of glorified violence,… violence is nothing new to the world, it is the way we have learned to make it funny that is sick,… the way Americans have packaged Violence and are now addicted to it. Parents love the violence too,… violent movies and violent games make great baby sitters, training an entire generation to the view of carnage. A great way of having kids “out of the way”,…. Kids raising themselves hooked on violent mannerisms and strategically out of the parents view, until one kids pops and kills 20,… then nobody wants the violence at THAT point, but up to then keep it coming,… As long as that kid is quiet and out of the way the parents go back to being self indulged WHILE the parents look at the TV and ask “why” yet their own kids are locked in the bedroom “playing” violence… Meanwhile the parents are wondering during commercial breaks if they should add Abilify to their anti-depressant. It is a messed up world.

  13. So, you are accusing violent TV shows and video games as the reason why we have had multiple mass shootings? Sure, young kids should not be watching or playing anything that is violent and at times parents do not oversee what their kids are watching. If violent video games and TV shows are the problem we would have multiple mass shootings a day! I do not suggest removing all guns in America because it will never happen. People believe gun control will bring back tyranny and that will never happen. Some people just have nothing better to do but to argue over anything.

  14. Hi Nathan,
    I’m really glad you are interested in trying to curb gun violence with reasonable solutions. One of the things we disagree on is Concealed Carry. I just think that will create more George Zimmermans. Anyway, regarding video games, if you have time to read this massive article, it is VERy interested and supports the idea that some children are driven to want things because of video games, ie bb guns, real guns, etc. It also shows a game or two that has guns in it and that the NRA lent its logo to! (Play Station 2, Gun Club). Let me know what you think of it,

  15. Interesting article. I am surprised that the NRA and gun makers are paying the the video game makers to put realistic guns in video games. This is something I think needs to stop. How about making up weapons and guns to use in video games. I also think the video game rating system will need to change as well. Video games with guns needs to only be sold to adults. I still think that video games don’t turn people into mass murderers.

  16. I like your solution of offering to have made up weapons, or maybe build your own weapons like Spore builds bodies or something. The problem with the Rating is that kids bug their parents and say, “Everybody else is playing it!” and you know what happens after that. I recently paid my son 55 dollars for Call of Duty which I taped closed, it no longer belongs to him, and he isn’t allowed to play it any friends’ houses either. He was underage anyway. Now he feels weird and embarrassed so I have to sit down with the parents and let them know that our family does not think these kinds of video games are good for us, and hope they will still respect us. You read the whole scenario where that boy wanted more and more guns/rifles/bb and he, Aidin Smith, said, ” I have 6 pellet and BB guns, all of them are ones that are in Call of Duty. I like guns more because of Call of Duty.” Another underage Call of Duty game player. And I don’t deny, the fault lies entirely with the parents of said children.

  17. All this boils down too is parent responsibility. And that is lacking in society today. With many kids being rude and getting in trouble, parents have got to pay attention to their kids!