geekcognito

Gunman kills 30 on Virginia Tech campus - Yahoo! News

I admit it. I hate crazy people. If someone has the real need to go out shooting a bunch of people, why do they always go to the schools? Why take it out on a bunch of innocent kids and young adults? It just doesn't make sense.

If they have to go kill a bunch of people, why not just obtain access to a prison's death row and do everyone a favor?

Improbable, I know. But I just had to vent.

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ltn1dr

Yeah, I live in VA, so I think some of my friends are a bit worried....

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kaveman

YouTube - Virginia Tech School Shooting Video

Rick

my freind is there....

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trigatch4

I knew there would be people cashing in to register virginiatechshootings.com and other domains like it.... but I just didn't have the heart. Exploiting Anna Nicole Overdose is one thing but for real... gives me the shivers thinking about making money off those deaths.

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Juicify

I'm sorry, don't check the buy and sell forum
EDIT: damn you was too fast

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LazyHippy

Bad shit...

Most peeps here are in the States - what do you guys thing of the gun control issue?

It's kinda hard for me to understand the right to bear arms business, not many people have guns legally in the UK and after Dunblaine they tightened control even more - though shootings have increased since then.

Bet the issue of gun control will get a lot of press again, Michael Moore will be milking it, "I told you so" etc... Charlton Heston will be saying it's got nothing to do with people having guns...

Some opportunities there....

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trigatch4

Without the right to bear arms, criminals (who will get guns either way) will have much less to worry about when committing crimes. It would make their job easier. War on guns would go the way of war on drugs... absolutely nowhere.

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geekcognito

I'll bet that Michael Moore will get back on his soapbox. And Nancy Pelosi was going to make it a very hot issue in the months to come anyway. This will undoubtedly give her much more support.

Gun control is a funky issue. If you look at the stats, there are many, many more gun-related deaths in US states with tighter gun control laws. I won't say that this is a direct correlation but it's something that should be considered.

I'm no NRA freak. I'm not even a member. But I do own several weapons and I am infinitely responsible with them. I have a CWP (concealed weapons permit) but I don't utilize it to carry a weapon into public places unless it's the gun range. I do keep a gun in the truck, though. And it is loaded. Legally.

I feel that I'm a responsible gun owner and that I have enough experience with weapons to warrant my possession of them. If eight years of service in the military, four of which being military police isn't enough then I don't know what is.

So that begs the question: would any American realistically say that I shouldn't be allowed to possess a weapon? I'd love to hear a compelling argument against it.

But to step outside of my shoes for a moment and to look at the issue objectively, it is rather disturbing that almost any dickhead can walk into a Wal-Mart and buy a 12 gauge shotgun (24 hours in some locations!) with nothing more than an ID. Hell, I've done it a few times.

I also don't agree with mercenary justice. Meaning that I don't think that any redneck with a gun should just arbitrarily whip it out and start shooting at bad guys at the first sign of a situation at their local convenience store. But how often do you hear of this? Next to none.

If a criminal wants a gun, he will get it. Typically through ILLEGAL means. Prohibiting guns would only mean another, more deadly alcohol prohibition here in America. Tighter legislation isn't the answer. A more pronounced justice system with stiffer penalties is a partial answer. For the whole answer, you will have to ask someone a whole lot smarter than me. And I don't mean a politician, a liberal-biased academic, or a gun industry lobbyist.

But it'll be a cold, cold day when law-abiding good ol' country boys give up their guns.


Edit: a little redneck humor:

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LazyHippy

Great post - good to here from an intelligent gun owner!

This is interesting, shootings have increased here though control has got tighter. But then many more guns are made each year worldwide than are decommissioned so it's a lot easier to get one illegally. Maybe in countries/states where it's harder to get a gun legally the people that want one get it illegally and so are more likely to use it?

America has a shit load more shootings than other developed countries though, there's got to be some reason for this.

I can see both sides of it - as a peace-loving hippy I'm not too keen on everyone being armed, but I don't argree with any form of prohibition and as our governments increasingly become more like big brother then maybe its the people that don't have guns that'll be fucked?

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pfgannon

I have a family member and a co-worker of mine has a daughter attending Tech. Apparently the rumor around campus is the guy was opening rooms asking for his girlfriend and then opening fire.

Also just heard on the radio that there is a possible second shooter discovered dead.

Both just rumors though, don't take my word for it.

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geekcognito

Yeah, it's a very hairy issue. It's one of those things where there isn't a true "blanket solution." An outright ban would bring about chaos, and very probably more criminals trafficking guns. Not a pretty proposition, if you ask me. But that's what the far left would do, given the chance.

Of course, NRA nuts would have you believe that more armed civilians would mean less crime. I'm sorry, but that doesn't exactly fly either. Ever been around someone shooting a pistol that is untrained and thus nervous around that weapon? It's f'in frightening, to say the least. The prospect of trigger happy dumbasses looking for any and all excuse to draw a weapon in the mall doesn't appeal to me.

Which is why I say that the solution isn't an easy one. But it's one that is almost certainly extremely polarized with extremists on each end, leaving the "common sense" crowd firmly and almost helplessly in the middle.

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GeorgeA

That is way fucked up. Things like that should *just not* happen.

Wtf , you mean in the States you can go in any store with your ID and purchase a gun ? That is so wrong ... I live in the EU , more specifically, in Romania , and here, for someone to obtain a weapons permit it has to first pass a psychological test . If you have *head problems,issues* whatever, you WON'T PASS it . It's not smart to give any idiot would a high degree of aggressiveness and an impulse to kill ... a weapon. Also , the weapons you can buy are considered non-lethal. (No shotguns unless you're a hunter,and you can only keep that in your home, or when you go hunting).Also NO other firearms whatsoever.You can only carry on the street (if you've got your permit that is) handguns that have rubber projectiles/function on gases(dunno it how they're translated in english).No compressed air weapons...

If weapons are to be allowed for self-defense , that means you should carry a weapon that ideally doesn't have any lethal effect over 3-5m.(if it's self-defense,why would you need to sniper the guy out ? ).Get a peper spray,electric zipper , learn some martial arts , get a *small* gun.. whatever... you don't need an AK-47 for self-defense.

Stop giving morons weapons !!

LazyHippy

I think part of the law here is that if you have a licensed gun you have to keep it in secure locked storage.

Is there anything like that in the US? (Different from state to state?) Might help reduce someone using someone else's gun.

Actually just heard on the news, in Virginia you can buy a gun legally without a background check!

Maybe have it like a car licence - you have to prove you can use it safely before you can buy one??

Or go hi-tech - RFID on all bullets? (wouldn't stop this shit though!)

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geekcognito

Laws vary from state to state. I live in the *deep* South, so laws are a little lax here. But incidentally, crimes involving guns don't happen nearly as much. That's CERTAINLY not to say that they don't happen more than I'm comfortable with, however.

I keep a trigger lock on my pistols. It looks a little like this:



There is a four digit combination used to unlock the gun. If an incorrect combination is input more than three times, the lock sounds a high-pitched alarm and the lock cannot be opened, even with the correct code, for a small period of time. I think it's 20 minutes or so. I can't remember right off the top of my head.

It doesn't deter me from getting to my weapon in a timely fashion since I can unlock it and have it dropped from the weapon in about a second. Yeah, I'm a geek that practiced. However, it certainly does deter anyone from accessing the trigger if they don't have the code. Sure, someone could steal it and saw the lock off, but that's not very likely at all with me, as paranoid as I am. They would have to get through my truck's lock, my truck's alarm system (which pages me if it goes off), find the gun, and get into the locked compartment I keep it in. Not a highly likely scenario considering the audible car alarm will be blaring the entire time and my truck will have paged me and I will come running with another gun on me.

I don't have kids, but the majority of weapons that I own are in a safe. Not so much for the risk of someone getting to them and using them but for the possibility of theft. Guns are f'in expensive, man. Ones worth having are, anyway.

But yeah, laws vary from state to state and that Virginia law is probably for shotguns and not pistols. For any kind of handgun, I am 99.99% certain that all states require an FBI background check. This is the same for semi-automatic and automatic rifles. Shotguns and hunting rifles typically only require positive identification. I could be wrong because I only know the laws very well in South Carolina and Georgia.

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