I'd be interested to know how Americans who live in countries with strict gun controls feel about not being able to carry a weapon? Do they feel any less safe?
Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
201–210 of 389 posts
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#202Earlier quoted context omitted.
The history of the world is essentially a long string of instances of oppression of the many by the few. Democracy is but a blip on humanity's timeline, and there is no guarantee that what is today will still be a century or two (or a decade) from now. We came remarkably close to an all-out financial collapse just a few years ago - what happens if we aren't able to save ourselves the next time that happens; what happ…
If massacres of children in school and young students in college aren't examples of few oppressing many then I don't know what is.
But hundreds of thousands of innocents killed in the "Shock and Awe" of Iraqi cities somehow doesn't count?
More tyrannical U.S Government = More "Shock and Awe" abroad.
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#203Good that the man was not found there(in a sense that no one was harmed). I still would like to understand few things. Of course I shall not be able to understand how it feels to have a gun when you want it(and afterwards take a decision on how to use it. To defend yourself or flash in malls or kill children for fun or out of depression) as I live in a country where having fire-arms is either a luxury for powerful an…
Not american here so this is just a supposition. I think the main issue with it is related to the constitution. While the idea as far as I understand, was for citizens to bear arms and form a militia to protect against a foreign power, many of the people that defend the right to bear arms do so based on a limited knowledge of it (i.e.: 'The right to bear arms is in the constitution' but have no idea what comes next).…
So a silly question: does the constitution protect the right to own ammunition as well as weapons?
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#204Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm not american but i think my own right for life, liberty and happiness would be violated being surrounded by weapon fanatics.. I really don't understand all that "uh, i need to defend myself" bullshit when i look at all the safe western countries with much stricter weapon laws. I think this is all not a matter of rights or self-defense or all that crap people tell me, it's just that most people can't cope with cha…
It's not the weapon that violates any of that it is the person using the weapon. Some weapons have purposes other than as a weapon but your argument would still imply that your right to life, liberty, and happiness would be violated so we should make forks, knives, bats, pans, cars, everything illegal. Slippery slope? Sure. There's a spectrum and everyone chooses where the line sits for them. I don't want easy access…
blah blah blablah, i can stop reading your comment right at " it is the person using the weapon", that's the stupid stuff people keep repeating over and over and over again, like it would make sooo much sense, it's hilarious. Do you honestly believe that less people will die if you distribute more weapons among people!? Honestly?! Like think-really-hard-about-it-and-be-honest-to-yourself honestly? If yes, you are successfully lying to yourself, congratulations.
I think that americans just feel that this weapon owning is some sort of common property, a value of the americam people that needs to be protected because everyone grew up with this value and noone can imagine to not have those rights. In that sense it is the same as the no-speed-limit driving in germany. We grew up with that and it is virtually unthinkable that the state will introduce a speed limit on motorways, partly because of the car industry but more importantly because every german grows up with it. It's crystal clear to me that there are more car accidents when cars drive faster (overall, driving faster equals less time to react to dangerous situations). Yet i can't imagine to drive max. 130 km/h although every surrounding country does that. In the same way i can say "It's not fast driving that kills, it's bad drivers!!!!", but we both know it's a stupid excuse.
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#205I'll start by saying we do not have a gun problem in this country. We have a people problem. Speaking of people problems, I started reading these comments in hope of finding a different attitude than what I have been hearing around the topic of gun control lately. To me, HackerNews has usually been a place with more educated and informed comments but I didn't really find that here. I'm still finding misinformed peopl…
"I'll start by saying we do not have a gun problem in this country. We have a people problem" You have a culture problem, not a people problem. A culture whereby you are so fearful of violence that you have to carry a gun on your person every day is a broken one.
I can tell you without a doubt that I do not live in fear. Carrying a gun simply lets me go about my day knowing that I am equipped to handle an unpleasant or potentially deadly situation should I have to.
Where do you live that you believe you will never fall victim to a crime? Are there no bad people where you live?
There are a lot of great people where I live in a very affluent and safe environment but I'm not naive enough to think that there is 0% chance of someone attempting to take my life. I simply prefer to be prepared.
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#206Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've bought a phone and a pistol this year. The phone was by far the easiest: pick it up, pay, walk out. The guns were a lot harder. Background check had to clear, the waiting period had to pass. Two trips to the store.
I own a pistol (for fun at the range) and a rifle (I deer hunt) and did not have a background check for either. One was private sale and one was gun show though.
Fair point. I wanted a Barretta Nano, and I know the gun store, didn't want to fool around with waiting for a gun show, or finding a private buyer, so I went with the store.
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#207Earlier quoted context omitted.
Does anyone here really believe that when your life is imminent danger that you are better off with a cell phone in your hand calling the police and waiting for them to arrive to save your life than you are with a gun in your hand using everything you possibly can to protect yourself and your family? In the UK, yes we really believe this.
I'm interested in hearing your thought on this in more detail. Can you explain how the police in the UK are able to get to your house fast enough in the middle of the night when someone breaks in? It takes hardly even 30 seconds to kick in a door or break a window and enter a home. Are you really capable of calling the police, having them respond, enter and clear your own home before that person does harm to you and…
(I'll answer in the most crude general terms without aiming for nuance just to give you an idea of the culture here. Of course the reality is much more detailed than I can describe in a few paragraphs and what I say is only true to the coarsest approximation.)
UK residents are simply not afraid of being shot, because there are so few firearms. Armed robberies (with guns and with other weapons) do happen and as I understand it the generally accepted procedure is that you give the robber the material goods that he wants and then he goes away.
Violent physical attacks do take place too, of course, though (without looking at the statistics) I would estimate they happen far less frequently than the US. Even when such crimes cause outrage, civilian gun ownership is never suggested as a means of reducing the crime rate.
Public policy in the UK is far more focused on reducing the number of attempts at violent crime than it is focused on giving individual citizens the ability to defend themselves from such crimes at the moment they take place.
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#208I'll start by saying we do not have a gun problem in this country. We have a people problem. Speaking of people problems, I started reading these comments in hope of finding a different attitude than what I have been hearing around the topic of gun control lately. To me, HackerNews has usually been a place with more educated and informed comments but I didn't really find that here. I'm still finding misinformed peopl…
On the Constitutional rights front it's funny how many of the same groups fight for there to be as little restrictions as possible for one right (owning a gun) but often fight for putting as many restrictions as possible for another right (getting an abortion). Why not make getting a gun as hard as getting an abortion? Mandatory waiting period, show photos of gun violence, require that a professional explain the horr…
I think you'll find a lot libertarians who disagree with putting restrictions on either.
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#209Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think a lot of fear people have of guns is because they are unfamiliar with what they can and cannot do, how to use one properly, how to tell if someone else is using their gun properly, etc. Concealed carry permits already require classes and background checks. Maybe gun safety should be taught to everybody. As further evidence that the fear of guns may be overblown, consider just how widespread gun ownership is,…
Ah, so here's the point where it gets all "us vs them", eh? I have fired guns, enjoy shooting, and several (but not all) of my family members own guns. It's not that I don't believe safe gun ownership is impossible, it's that I don't trust other people, and I would like their failures with potentially lethal tools to have consequences. If you own firearms, you should know where they are, and you should secure them ag…
I almost wonder if you should be liable for having a gun stolen, unless you can prove it was adequately secured.
Re: Person with a long rifle and body armor in the Main Group Building of MIT
#210Earlier quoted context omitted.
If massacres of children in school and young students in college aren't examples of few oppressing many then I don't know what is.
But hundreds of thousands of innocents killed in the "Shock and Awe" of Iraqi cities somehow doesn't count? More tyrannical U.S Government = More "Shock and Awe" abroad.
I find it very hard to understand what you're saying.