For those members who are in U.S. and are following the school shooting
I know this tends to be an apolitical forum for the most part, but the events of the last couple days are too big to ignore. So here is a contact to e-mail your various reps.
http://www.senate.gov/general/contac...nators_cfm.cfm It takes only a couple minutes to find your Senator and write an email. Also contact your congressman. Even if he/she is anti 2nd Amendment still let them know. I leave it up to you wether or not you should join the NRA. I've been a member since 1996 and I am now a Lifetime member. I don't always agree with the organization and I don't alwasy send it momey, but I still back it. IT's the only real effective organization backing us. Feel free to use this email copy and paste below or write your own. Make it short and sweet. Remember remain respectful. Don't get hyped and emotional. I spoke to one of the oeprators at the NRA-ILA and she said they've received horrible hate-filled screaming phone calls. that's fine let the other side rant and rave and foam at the mouth. Their emotions will work against them. I am a father of two and I'm horrified by what happened in Conn. But I won't be made a scapegoat and turned into a criminal because of a deranged and evil madman. I was 26 when the first Assault Weapons Ban was passed in 94. I remember all the screaming and hatered being directed at gunowners in 99 after Colombine. It's ugly and it can get you down. Don't let them do that to you. Keep your head, roll up your sleeves and get busy. Despite what some of the nay sayers are posting on other gun forums the political and legal enviroment is stronger (i.e. in favor of gunowners) now than it was in 94 and 99. American gunowners are better organized and thanks to the Internet we are able to communicate and coorodinate better. These are pretty major things. I remember the eighties when we were very limited becasue the media was (and still is) controlled by the LEft and the LEft would shut us out. But not now. Nevertheless we can't take it for granted. If you haven't done so I reccommend you contact your reps at least and if anyone wants to debate (i..e. attempt to scream you down) stay calm and respond with the facts. For example the number of mass shootings in the U.S. have been declining since the 90's and the killer in Conn. broke 41 laws. 41. So how many more laws would have stopped him? Okay. that's it. Good luck. Dear Senator, I am writing to urge you to continue to uphold your oath of office, and protect the 2nd Amendment from more gun control: " I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic..." I am sure you are under considerable pressure at this time to pass legislation, in the name of public safety, to prohibit, regulate, or otherwise control firearms. I understand the point of view of those that support "gun control". I believe, however, that the rights protected by the Constitution should be held above, and protected from, the temporary whim of public opinion. A careful examination of statistical data shows that Armed Response, from security professionals, police, or armed citizens, is an effective deterrent and defense against violent criminals. My right and responsibility as an armed citizen makes me an asset to my family, and to the community. Armed Citizens can and do prevent mass shootings from occurring and escalating: • A 1997 high school shooting in Pearl, Miss., was halted by the school's vice principal after he retrieved the Colt .45 he kept in his truck. • A 1998 middle school shooting ended when a man living next door heard gunfire and apprehended the shooter with his shotgun. • A 2002 terrorist attack at an Israeli school was quickly stopped by an armed teacher and a school guard. • A 2002 law school shooting in Grundy, Va., came to an abrupt conclusion when students carrying firearms confronted the shooter. • A 2007 mall shooting in Ogden, Utah, ended when an armed off-duty police officer intervened. • A 2009 workplace shooting in Houston, Texas, was halted by two coworkers who carried concealed handguns. • A 2012 church shooting in Aurora, Colo., was stopped by a member of the congregation carrying a gun. • At the recent mall shooting in Portland, Ore., the gunman took his own life minutes after being confronted by a shopper carrying a concealed weapon. Knee jerk calls for gun control are never the answer. The 2nd Amendment is too important to be whimsically castrated. I appreciate your time, and hope that you will continue to support and defend the Constitution that you have sworn to uphold. Thank you for your service, |
Cordell makes a bunch of valid points. You can also call your Senator's office as well. You won't speak to him, but you'll get a Congressional intern. And at the end of the day that itern sits down and types a memo of all the calls he got and what they were about. And then he and "his" senator or representative sit down and go over them at the end of the day.
I know, I did that for a semester. Here is the number for the Capitol Hill switch board: 202-224-3121 . Just call them between 0900-1700 EST and give them your Senator/Representative's name and go from there. |
I'm doing my part
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I've already shot off an email to Diane Feinstein here in Commiefornia stating to her how I believe her idea of banning hi-capacity magazines (or "clips", as she was quoted as calling them) won't solve anything.
I'm intending to email Obama as well. I doubt he'll care what I have to say, but I think we all agree that action is better than inaction. |
Don't just email, call. And then call again.
same effort required, more impact. Again, speaking from experience here. "My" Senator would get about a jillion emails a day, but less than 150 calls. To whom do you think we paid more attention? And as Cordell, said, the written letter is the best. But then again, since you have good old Dianne, you could probably send her a letter written in unicorn blood and she wouldn't pay attention to it. |
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...MPLATE=DEFAULT
The NRA is turning out to be pretty quiet this time around. A bit troubling, if you ask me. |
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I called the NRA yesterday and there are plans to get going. Strategy is being worked on and contacts are being made with the folks who who will play a pivitol role in the coming political battle. Let the anti's run around screeching and spewing their hatred. They think the NRA being decent is an indication that they've "won". The anti's had the same thinking thirteen years ago. I remember looking at many posts and article proclaiming after Colombine that the NRa was beaten. It wasn't and we (American gunowners) weren't. The big thing is to stay calm and keep your head. The screeds being thrown out by the usual suspects are nothing new. Contact your reps and prepare for a bruiser of a political dog fight. That's where it's going to be. Not the hysterical screechers on television. |
Okay the NRA just called me and I'm sending them a donation. So the organziation is getting to work. The background with the phone operator was very busy. Lots of voices going.
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Is there any chance we could acknowledge that maybe, in fact, there are some gun control measures that are actually reasonable responses to a massacre such as this? Even if we agree that calling for another AWB would not be one of those measures?
At times like this, what I'd like to see is actual dialogue between gun owners and gun controllers, rather than the usual demonizing of each other that tends to inevitably follow. The more you guys spout the usual BS about how we need more lenient conceal-carry laws*, and how those who support gun control are freedom-hating socialists, the more you're just going to keep digging your own graves. *As with Aurora, I really hope that nobody believes conceal-carry laws would have made a difference in Newtown. When the perp has an AR-15 and body armor, he'll outgun anybody carrying a concealed sub-compact Glock or .38 snub. |
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I am a father of two teenagers. Don't think that the shooting hasn't horrified me as well. The anti's trying to take that moral high-ground isn't going to work on me or many others. As a police officer I've attended more than a few autopsies of young people who have been murdered (to include an infant) and I've been to more than a couple gun realted homicde scenes. I even helped the coroner put a man's body into a body bag. He blew his skull apart with a .44 magnum. I have experience with the reality of firearms violence. I've pointed guns at people and I've had them pointed at me. Yes I'm willing to work with the other side, but they need to work with us as well. Just stating that you want to have some type of dialogue and then never extend the invitation is hypocrisy. Both sides need to meet in the middle. But so-far that hasn't happened. The NRA seems to be offering feelers, but they are feelers that come from strength. Unlike situation for British and Australian gunowners in 96 who had no strength. No organization and no voice. Just for the record I don't own any hi-cap assault rifles. I own a Glock 26. All my other firearms hold ten or less, but that doesn't mean I'm okay with a ban. And when the extremists start talking about confiscations I dig my heels in. Also why does it have to be all about gunowners. Why are we so easy going with the mentally ill now? Here in my city we have several mental folks (autistic, retarded, bi-polar, schizophrenic, so on and so forth) that we deal with all the time. They come into the hospital they go out of the hospital. Liberals will tell you we don't have enough mental health services and conservatives will tell you we molly coddle them too much. All I can tell you is that the system is broken (I'm not sure it was ever working) and I have absolutely no idea how to improve it. Some of them are dangerous and most of them are just wrecks. And that is how it is in the United States. In the past year it's been the mental cases who have been using the firearms to create the carnage. We need to also look at that situation as well. Dialogue? Sure. I'm okay with that. But I want us to be able to participate in the dialogue and negotiations. Not just have things thrown onto us like the old school European nobility did to the peasants. That won't fly. So I am sending the NRA fifty dollars becasue the NRA ensures that we are able to talk and negotiate from a position of strength. Not weakness. |
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When the "assault weapons ban" was passed in 1994, all existing "assault weapons" were exempt.
There's a clause in the Constitution, Article I, Section 9, (Clause 3) which states, "No bill of attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed." And this clause applies more specifically to criminal law. Just a WAG, but whatever "assault weapons" are out there today, would have to remain legal. The Firearms Act of 1934, which created "Class III" weapons, could probably be amended, requiring registration, etc. And good luck with that. The Feds would never be able to confiscate the weapons, because no one knows where they all are, not even a fraction of them. The down-side to any of this type legislation, is getting it through the House of Representatives. They're not in the mood, regardless the outcry from the left, to entertain any legislation. They also have two full years for things to cool down. There's also the cost to implement. In 1934, there were relatively few fully automatic weapons. Today, there are millions of "assault weapons" out there, both in "A4", or similar configuration, and less "menacing-looking". There are also a lot out there being used in high power rifle competition, etc. Things to think about. Things that right now are not being looked at in all the hysteria on both sides. |
First of I just want to say that I am not trying to stir up anything here, am genuinely curious. How would the American gun owners on here feel about being required to have a firearms licence before buying firearms or ammunition? By this I don't mean like a license in the UK which is quite involved to get, I mean something like an hour or two classroom instruction on basic gun safety along with a background check. If you were required to show a license then the sale could be tracked if required, and would flag up instanced of criminals or the mentally ill trying to buy firearms or ammunition. If you need a license to drive a car, then it is my feeling is that there should be something along the same lines for you to be able to buy a gun which is potentially mush more of a danger to other people. I'm assuming that there has already been much discussion about stuff like this, just curious what the opinions on it were.
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We should always promote the right to bear arms everywhere and change the way anti gun advocates think with educations.
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Like what? While the facts are still coming in. She knew her son had problems. I would hope she had her guns locked up. He may have forced her, who knows? She probably believed her son wouldn't harm her. He should have been in a hospital. I don't tell people this, but one of my older brothers is diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic. (Lanza may not have been schizo, but you have got to be seriously fucked up to shoot and kill kids like that.) He doesn't live with me, so I don't have to be watchful unless he's around. But I never turn my back on him, even if he is on his meds. While he's never been violent towards any family members, but when he's off his meds he believes people are going to kill him, particularly our father. It happened to him in his late teens, early twenties like most others. He was in a care center for about seven years, now he's out on his own with his girlfriend. He was never bad enough to be put into a hospital. Quote:
The biggest problem I have with an AWB is that most homicides that used a firearm are with handguns. http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr...es/10tbl20.xls http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr...ables/table-20 Illinois homicide rate is actually higher I think, they don't give out complete info I guess. It's probably up there with Cali. Quote:
The thing about criminals (this is the way I think anyway). They don't want to pay retail for a gun, like a law abiding citizen would. Especially if they have to dump it later on. So they either steal them or buy one that they know to be stolen. Or have their girlfriend do a straw purchase for a Hi-Point. |
I have a LTCH in my state of Indiana and already that is more than enough. Another permit or piece of paper that requires the same level of background checks and another thing the government can hold over me further violates my rights. There is so much level of bureaucracy that I can take before I say enough is enough. States like Arizona where you don't need to get a permit for anything is a good thing. Why do I need to answer to someone on why I need to buy a gun for my own business, be it self defense or hunting or just shooting targets? Why do I need permission from a state that I am already paying taxes too for something that is my natural born right?
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I'm ticked off everyone is spouting off solutions when we don't even know all the facts yet. After Columbine, everyone immediately blamed the NRA, but now that we know the facts, is anyone blaming the NRA? Have the cops even completed their investigation yet?
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No the police have not finished their investigation yet. Last I heard the FBI is still trying to get data off the kids computer as he smashed the hard drives so they couldn't be read. We know what the scum did we just don't know his motive. We do know that to him...THIS WAS A RATIONAL ACT. |
If this kid shot himself when he knew he was surrounded, then wouldn't that indicate that he understood the consequences of his actions?
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So someone sent me this earlier today:
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/201...ing-guns.shtml Am I the only one thinking this is a stupid idea, if indeed it's even real? |
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I do, however, want pro-gunners to stop claiming that AR-15s are not significantly more dangerous than hunting rifles and acknowledge that maybe they should require a somewhat higher level of regulation. I say this as somebody who owns both an AK and an AR-15 carbine. Quote:
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Any changes in legislation that come in the following months need to be well thought out and reasoned, and not the knee jerk over-reactions that followed Hungerford and Dunblane massacres. The Firearms Amendment act of 1988 which followed Hungerford was baffling, banning all semi automatic rifle above .22 regardless of purpose or capacity, along with pump action rifles above .22 calibre but doing nothing about lever action rifles. The first Firearms Amendment act of 1997 which banned all handguns above .22 was over the top but understandable, but when Labour came ino power and followed up with a second act banning .22 pistols as well this was ridiculous. The only reason it happened was as a popularity move based on a petition which only got so many signatures as it was one of the first things of its sort distributed over the internet, and was signed by a large number of people with no knowledge of the subject (likely not realising that there was already a ban on the kind of weapons used in the Dunblane massacre) fuelled by emotion rather than logic. |
Some good points MT2008. Well thought out responses.
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I'm still not clear on the details of the shooting myself, but from what I heard A: he wasn't wearing body armor, and B: he didn't use his Bushmaster, just his pistols. If that's the case, then (even though in hysteria it doesn't matter) calling for an AWB in the wake of this shooting is really unfounded.
No matter what weapon he used, I don't necessarily agree that someone is useless in this situation with a concealed handgun. Outgunned, definitely, but it's reasonable to say that you can make up with a lack of firepower with proper tactics. I'm not saying it's easy, just that it's conceivably doable, especially if the CCW has a reasonable amount of training/skill, and the shooter doesn't. Yes this is semantic, but it seems to be the case in most respects. It's also why I personally don't approve of all these micro carry guns, since they are light and great for carrying all the time but they offer very little in terms of firepower in the event of a mass shooting. Just as well, they're miles ahead of the other people in the vicinity without a gun of any kind. They have the option to engage the shooter to distract or even take them down with a proper shot, as opposed to being forced to run away with everyone else. I really try not to undermine or overestimate the weight one carries along with their concealed weapon, but it's a grey area, and it's certainly capable given the right parameters, more so than an empty hand. The other thing is the idea that mass shooters tend to quit at the first sign of resistance, because, again, they usually lack skill as well as coherence in the situation to understand that they can outgun a single person wielding a pistol with their rifle or whatever they are using, and just like in any other gunfight, they have to take in all this information at 200 miles an hour, where the shots are coming from, how many shots and with what, and given they're in a mass shooting solely to go out with a bang, they can come to the conclusion that they are beat (thats why they were there in the first place), and so they off themselves even if rationally they may have been able to win said gunfight against said concealed weapon holder. That's really the point I wanted to get across though, cause I really don't agree that CW holders are useless in mass shootings, especially if they are a prime example of a CW holder and consider all the factors before making a decision to bust or run. I agree that they are certainly outgunned and not as tactically prepared as a SWAT officer, but a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush and being on scene or four minutes away means everything, and as long as they truly understand the weight they carry along with their gun and have proper mindset, they are an asset in the long run, especially compared to someone who is unarmed. No, I don't think an AWB will do anything to prevent mass shootings, it will only serve to restrict law abiding gun owners. Yes, I am willing to negotiate on lets say background check reform, and I don't see it being too far fetched to ask that individuals take some sort of licensing course to own a gun, given the charge and time investment is appropriate and not ridiculously expensive or riddled with paperwork. Largely though, these incidents are caused by individuals making poor decisions and it's very hard to legislate against a mass of people due to individual bad decisions. Educating the public about firearms safety and use would ideally be the best course of action and leaving the choice of whether or not to carry the weight would be up to them, and they should have to suffer the consequences should they make a bad call. Mag capacity is also not correlative to any of these crimes either, especially since VTech, the most violent shooting happened with nothing but 10 round mags. Granted it reduces reloads, practically speaking, giving people the chance to rush the shooter but rarely do shooters get rushed and taken down anyway (the Arizona shooting is an exception). And again, a ban isn't going to delete weapons or mags or bullets from existence (even if it could, we shouldn't want to be stripped of our great equalizers anyway) and just as well, a CW with as many rounds on tap as possible is a pawn for a pawn in that situation. Not as structured as I'd wanted it to be but I really needed an outlet for all my feelings on this shooting, and I really don't think that CWs holders are useless in a mass shooting. We always say guns are tools, and they are as evil as the person using them, and that means they are as good as the person using them too. The right for one to try and rein in that power and capability should be up to them. |
I just heard this audio clip about Diane Finestein and that she carries a gun and here she is pushing for further gun control? What a hypocrite
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuBbLeqZbPA |
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I don't claim to know everything nor do I have "superior powers of logic and analysis". I am learning more every day about laws relating to this subject, studying the politicians that are trying to suppress our freedoms and you want to be a grammar nazi about how I typed an extra letter and built on that to make me look like an idiot? The fuck did I do to you? I don't know you know just as much as you don't know me. Yeah people make mistakes. What is your fucking grind with me? I'm trying to say we should stand together. Let our voices be heard, educate others about guns and responsibility and you want to antagonize me? |
I agree with Matt frankly, you do consistently fail to use proper grammar or produce coherent thoughts or sentences, and it makes you seem uneducated and an easy target for those with whom you'd argue. I don't think he means to pick on you, he's just repressed the fair criticism to the point where it's just boiled over, and given the political climate at the time, we need both intelligent thinking and proper display of such to discuss these issues, that's all. It'd be worth it to either put the extra effort to make sure the voice you want heard is polished and coherent, or that you step aside from being a voice and do other things to benefit the collective cause.
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No I'm not comparing my brother to Lanza. Nor do I think most people with mental illness will commit mass murder. But I've been around my brother when he's in a bad place. I never knew what he was going do or how to talk him down. Basically you can't be rational with a crazy person. Quote:
Now I don't fall into that "more guns, less crime" bit either. The more guns out there, then there's more that could potentially be stolen and used in a crime. But if more non-gun people are getting into guns and being responsible that's great. Gun education is key. Quote:
More dangerous than hunting rifles. My father has a Remington Model 750, semi-auto .308 "hunting rifle" it takes a detachable box magazine. Usually around 5 rounds I think, it will accept larger ones as well. Making it capable of doing just has much damage as my L1A1 in the wrong hands. (I don't even want to get into that hi-cap mag or "battle clips" they are sometimes referred as.) While the AR, AK and L1A1's etc manual of arms make for a better fighting rifle. A gun is gun at the end of the day no matter what it looks like. Quote:
Thin air, come on! I figured you thought better of me than that. How does one go about checking a potential straw purchase? After a gun is purchased, the law shows up at your house a month or so later to see if you still have it? How do guns get stolen? By having them too accessible to others besides yourself. That seems to be the case with Lanza's mother and she paid dearly for it and so did a lot of kids and teachers. When I first started buying guns, I kept them in a gun cabinet. It would keep a kid out but that's about it. As the collection grew I ran out of room and had to to keep several handguns in a dresser drawer. I thought to myself 'this is bad', it's not only bad, but irresponsible. So I bought a gun safe. Now I know not everyone has enough guns to warrant a large and expensive safe. But even just a simple metal cabinet would help a lot. |
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Guy's come on. We got a good discussion going on here, let's not derail it.
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I've seen a lot of big burly men carrying, all puffy chested because they support the 2nd Amendment and gaining the feeling that they are the thin line between order and chaos when crime acts before police do, and they carry single stack micro .380s, and it just blows my mind. It will get you out of a carjacking at knife point, but it may not get you out of a gunfight, or a mass shooting if it comes down to it, and the only cost to carry a better gun is discipline in consistent carry of a hefty gun and proper dress and gear to carry the gun comfortably. And with that you now have a much better fighting gun in the rare event something truly catastrophic goes down. I mean, what are the odds you'll be in any crime at all, period? and yet we still weigh that against not carrying a gun, and we carry the gun. It's just the next dimension of that philosophy. Women and skinny college kids who don't eat enough and don't have the strength or comfort to lug around a P229 or XDM or something like that, yes, I'm for them carrying SOMETHING like a PM9 or a 642 since it's better than nothing, but the former guns are better for all tasks including the ones that are "less likely" if that statistic really matters. Couple that with other semantic benefits like draw speed and a more terrifying presence, as well as the very minute weight differences between polymer compacts/subcompacts among other things, I find carrying a fighting gun to be worth the cost if one can pay it (I'm talking to full grown men for the most part). Basically, "guns should be comforting, not comfortable" and "carry the biggest gun you can" apply in my mind, and they are better than micro guns given higher versatility at the cost of carriers discipline and full usage of their capability, not minimalistic thinking and action, or, bluntly speaking, if you carry a gun to be a man, then man up and carry a big one. |
I'm very happy to see that we're having a much more constructive dialogue here than what I have seen previously. This is the type of conversation I think that gun owners need to have a little more often.
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(Both of these examples are based on real people who I've actually known, though neither of them ever tried to get carry permits.) Quote:
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That being said, if I were in a building where a mass killer was loose, I would definitely prefer to have some type of gun than none at all. Quote:
You're also not taking into account the ways that mass killers might anticipate and try to mitigate this threat, like wearing body armor with trauma plates. Also, recall that in Columbine, the two shooters exchanged gunfire with the school's security guard, and they didn't off themselves. Quote:
Also, the fact is that there are too many AWs now in private hands for a ban to ever work. It might make them more expensive or harder to get, but it will never eliminate the threat completely. So from a practical point of view, there is no reason to deprive law-abiding gun owners of their rights. I do, however, believe that we should consider laws to reduce proliferation of AWs in the wrong hands. Quote:
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