Live data from Hacker News

US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

theguardian.com

121–130 of 151 posts

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#121
post #3

Cat's out of the bag on this one. You will never get all the guns back, not without running a very real risk of instigating civil war. Ms. Jackson Lee thinks the real cause of the problem is "guns, guns, guns" - I say it's criminals, criminals, criminals. Why's Texas have so many criminals willing to use firearms for evil?

branon asks: "Why's Texas have so many criminals willing to use firearms for evil?"

What kind of a question is that? Have you ever heard of a criminal who was willing to use firearms for good? If you were in a "Criminals' Bar" and said what you say above, they would laugh you out of the room! The very definition of a criminal requires that s(he) do evil, their very reputations ride upon how evil/badass they are perceived.

I, for one, am glad to see the broad acceptance of firearms in society. They bring with them a protocol that is commonly known, demands respect (under risk of death) and that encourages the adoption of etiquette (good manners), which is a necessity in a civil society. But while firearms keep our society safe, there is a price to pay. It's a sort of tax on society: you don't want it but it is necessary.

Back to the original question:

FWIW if you're a criminal, you'll get more laughs than money by beating someone with say, a shovel or a rake (as long as you don't overdo it). But you can't make decent money in stand-up comedy these days either. Soooo...

In all seriousness fighting is a physically demanding task, especially if it is necessary to survive each encounter. One seeks a tool that will maximize the harvest at least risk and least effort. The firearm comes immediately to mind. For good reason the Colt .45 revolver was call the "Great Equalizer":

https://thefederalist.com/2020/07/31/the-story-of-how-samuel...

The same Colt .45 revolver was called the "Peacemaker".

Finally, the more people, the more incidents of crime and thus more criminals. Texas is a growing state. For more details on crime growth maybe ask Joe Biden?

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Sometimes a tiny bit of friction makes a big difference I have three firearms in my safe right now that were 100% legal when I purchased them. They came with a copy of a letter sent to the manufacturer by the ATF that clearly and explicitly states that they are legal as configured. January 31st of this year, the ATF decided that not only are they illegal, but they've always been illegal. If I don't destroy, modify,…

> January 31st of this year, the ATF decided that not only are they illegal, but they've always been illegal. What do you mean here by "always been illegal"?

https://www.atf.gov/rules-and-regulations/factoring-criteria...

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sigh. This is like Americans being terrified of living in Australia, b/c they've been convinced by Animal Planet that they'll be killed by venomous wildlife. There are dangerous places, but everyone you are working with will quickly let you know where they are in your area, and you can avoid them.

> There are dangerous places, but everyone you are working with will quickly let you know where they are in your area, and you can avoid them People were randomly shot while they were walking out of a H&M in a premium outlet mall in suburban Dallas with a Whole Foods nearby. Doubt you can classify that as a 'dangerous place'. I do agree that this is not common in the USA.

Everybody knows Texas is like Westworld except when you get shot you die. Like OP explained: your coworkers will tell you, don't go to Texas its filled to the brim with gritty gunslingin cowboy hat wearin heeeehawin spur spinnin boot kickin sonofabitches. Ya ever heard of "Don't mess with Texas" well if you didn't now ya did.

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Most "gun control" legislation has resulted in arbitrary technical restrictions, utterly ineffective for their stated purpose I'm not sure that's true, given the rise in gun violence starting when the last assault rifle ban ended in 1994.

The federal Assault Weapons ban started in 1994 and ran for 10 years. Assault Rifles have universal background checks complete with fingerprints, a multi-month waiting period, and a $200 transfer tax - and have since the 1930s . No new assault rifles have been available for civilian purchase in almost 40 years.

> The federal Assault Weapons ban started in 1994 and ran for 10 years.

D'oh! Apparently "what number is higher, 1994 or 2004?" is too much for my primitive human brain.

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#125

If you're queasy, don't watch any pictures or videos of the last two events, they're pretty bad and the twitter algo promoting checkmark accounts boosted them. The mall one had pictures and videos of bodies in a pile with blood all over and what looked like a kid's brains out on the sidewalk. Victims: (no gore) https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/allen-texas-outlet-m...

Maybe what the American public needs is a little gore to snap them out of whatever trance is making them constantly vote for these disasters. Look at how vanilla and sanitized 'mass shooting' news has become: Talking head: "Tonight another mass shooting. Over to our field correspondent..." Field reporter: "Thanks, Mike! Another terrible mass shooting." [Camera shows vague picture of a police car] Police officer: "The…

No one wants mass shootings. People just disagree on how best to prevent them and what’s most important about life.

Throwing fuel on the fire just leads to hastier emotional decisions not better decisions.

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#126

Disturbing to see so many in favor of removing our bedrock rights because they are afraid of a tool. Nobody wants to end up like the UK or Australia in terms of reduced rights. That was literally the impetus for the creation of the USA.

What reduced rights are you talking about?

The guns are there to make sure the public servants don't become the master.

At least, that was the idea.

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The federal Assault Weapons ban started in 1994 and ran for 10 years. Assault Rifles have universal background checks complete with fingerprints, a multi-month waiting period, and a $200 transfer tax - and have since the 1930s . No new assault rifles have been available for civilian purchase in almost 40 years.

> The federal Assault Weapons ban started in 1994 and ran for 10 years. D'oh! Apparently "what number is higher, 1994 or 2004?" is too much for my primitive human brain.

No worries, we've all done it!

And for that matter the most advanced artificial brains screw up math on a regular basis too

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It may not be common but it is becoming more regular. You like those odds? I wouldn't immigrate here, especially if I wasn't white.

Based on the influx of illegals over the southern border, this seems very much like the minority opinion.

> Based on the influx of illegals

Everyone that ever violated a law including speeding or jaywalking is technically an 'illegal' including probably you and your family members. Lets stop addressing human beings as illegals.

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#129
post #84

Why do posts like this get flagged? Are Americans not allowed to talk about their violent culture on HN?

[flagged]

No one associated with YC flagged this article; the mods didn't even see it. It was flagged by a large number of users. This was purely a community response, and others have already pointed out what is doubtless the reason. (edit: one of the flaggers was a YC alum from 14 years ago - I'm adding that for completeness, but it doesn't change the point)

> Some things are encouraged, eg being racist towards Chinese

I've poured countless hours into urging HN commenters to be more tolerant on China-related topics (as on all topics, but China-related ones have been common) and moderating and/or banning the users who won't. Here's a list that I put together for another user last year: https://news.ycombinator.com/chinamod. No one could read that history with even a glimmer of fair-mindedness and conclude that "racism towards Chinese" is "encouraged" by HN mods or anyone else at YC.

I've even had the honor of being "accused" (as if this would somehow be a bad thing) of being Chinese myself, because of how we moderate HN (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22608635). The funny thing is how similar that groundless accusation was to the groundless accusation you posted here. People simply make these claims up based on a small number (perhaps as small as 1, but we can be generous and say 2 or 3) data points they randomly run across and then misinterpret according to their pre-existing views. People with pro-XYZ feelings do this and conclude that the mods are anti-XYZ. People with anti-XYZ feelings do it and conclude that we're pro-XYZ. It's just projection, and works the same way in both cases. (https://hn.algolia.com/?dateRange=all&page=0&prefix=true&que...)

Re: US on track to set record in 2023 for mass killings after series of shootings

#130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Based on the influx of illegals over the southern border, this seems very much like the minority opinion.

> Based on the influx of illegals Everyone that ever violated a law including speeding or jaywalking is technically an 'illegal' including probably you and your family members. Lets stop addressing human beings as illegals.

Me and my fam would only be 'illegal' in the sense I used the word in, if we had sped or jaywalked across an international border w/o papers.

Hyperventilating over the onomastics of what they get called isn't solving the illegal-entry crisis.

Post reply on HN