Are Americans weird when it comes to guns?

[CheeZee]

i actually got called to the office because they thought i was some beginnings of a psychopath being bullied. i wasnt a weirdo,

...see my school didnt give a flesh ..i was allowed to bring in handguns for my 6th year exam speech and had my first shotgun certificate counter signed (age15 ) by the headmaster ..this was shortly after being suspended for err abusing various cleaning products lmao .. now if there was ever a case for asking " young dude " are you a cyclepath ..then there it is .. but my headmaster after signing my certificate ( much much to my surprise ) proceeded to tell me that the reason he signed it was because he hoped it might put me in jail one day !! !! now theres skooling for you man lmao ..

And no none of the above proves any point in any shape or form that guns create nutters ...i was a nutter without them , if anything the training (military & domestic) i gained gave me more respect for life and conservation than i ever would have had

[northswell]

Reuters - The gunman who went on a rampage at Virginia Tech had been sent to a mental health facility in the past because of worries he was suicidal, police have said.


And he still managed to buy guns.

[Otter]

So there's the reality. A nut got a hold of some weapons, and took vengenace on innocent folks. It's terribly disturbing, but I don't feel that banning guns is the answer. I don't disagree that stricter controls should be enforced. The shooter applied and was granted ownership rights to his weapons. There was no record of mental illness. Should all Americans be forced to turn in their guns due to one nut case? Some would say yes, I say no. I believe that even if 30K people are killed annually by guns, probably 95% of those folks are killed perpetrating crimes and are killed either by other gang members or the cops. Perhaps some of you heard about the African student who shot his professor a few years ago. Two students ran out to their vehicles and got their weapons, forced the shooter to surrender. Otherwise, it may have been the first massacre.

No I don't expect the American people to become a massive militia and overthrow the gov. But at least we will be able to defend ourselves if the time ever does come. I'm seriously thinking about buying a 9mm now, and attempting to get a concealed carry permit. Not that I want to be a hero, but if the situation ever arises where my having a weapon could prevent someone from taking the lives of innocents, I 'd like to think I have the cajones to do what's right.

Sorry some of us can't agree on this topic.

[northswell]

Its your street, you play in it.

[^*^BATMAN^*^]

I'm seriously thinking about buying a 9mm now, and attempting to get a concealed carry permit. Not that I want to be a hero, but if the situation ever arises where my having a weapon could prevent someone from taking the lives of innocents, I 'd like to think I have the cajones to do what's right.

Dude, honestly. If you do this, make sure you take ALL the training in weapons handling you can get. I know most people can shoot. I have had to shoot while being shot at....its a whole different thing. Most people who carry weapons are very poorly trained, and end up just shooting a bystander, or getting the weapon taken from them and shot with it. Train lots, and train often. I havnt had to fire a pistol in about a year, and i bet that it would take me about 2-3 hours of shooting to get it all back(mind you that is fireing while moving and distance stuff, but still). I am spoiled in that respect being in the army, its my job to keep well trained in shooting.

So ya, lots of training if you decide its best to go this route. I dont carry any weapons outside of work. I know that if someone pulls a pistol out on me within about 4 feet. I can have the pistol pointed to the sky in under a second, and in my hand very shortly after. Though again, that is me...i have spent 6 years doing this stuff.

[northswell]

I've forgotten all my training. I was a crap shot anyway.

Good with Bombs though!

[CheeZee]

Sound sound advice from Bman there .. seriously , when it comes to the crunch the wrong decision or movement will have you in a dark place with yourself for a very very long time

and just to lighten this up .. Nswell ..man you better go carefull throwing comments about like that or you'll get visited from an nice chap from the anti-terroist division of scotland yard .. trust me lmao

[CheeZee]

...dont panic Swell , im just messing .. " cheezee has a vision of Swell checking out front for some dudes in black carrying a loud hailer and door ram ...

bro if they ask you what your demands are ... ask for pizza ..im starving

[Luke]

I'm seriously thinking about buying a 9mm now, and attempting to get a concealed carry permit. Not that I want to be a hero, but if the situation ever arises where my having a weapon could prevent someone from taking the lives of innocents, I 'd like to think I have the cajones to do what's right.

Sorry some of us can't agree on this topic.

If i was in the bank tomorrow, and someone walked in with a shot gun....the last thing i'd do is point a gun at them.

[RJD]

If i was in the bank tomorrow, and someone walked in with a shot gun....the last thing i'd do is point a gun at them.

Its situation dependant though, I understand the arguments..

Like Plane Hijacking. Pre 9/11 if you were hijacked you just sat tight, 99/100 you got out OK.

Post 9/11 anyone hijacking a plane better be perpaired for taking on all the passengers because I dount anyone is going to sit still now.

But as said above, the issue is you'll end up with a lot of armed, untrained, scared witless people waving 9mm's at each other, and the police (remember the people paid to do the law enfocement) wont know who is who.

[jethrodog]

Well, if someone walked into where I was and pointed a shotgun, I would definately be pointing a gun back. I have been in the situation before, and I feel that if I hadn't had my weapon with me then someone would have been seriously hurt, maybe fatally. I'm not saying that it is always the answer, or that it is right, only that when I was in the situation, I was extremely glad that I was packin'.

[Luke]

Well, if someone walked into where I was and pointed a shotgun, I would definately be pointing a gun back. I have been in the situation before, and I feel that if I hadn't had my weapon with me then someone would have been seriously hurt, maybe fatally. I'm not saying that it is always the answer, or that it is right, only that when I was in the situation, I was extremely glad that I was packin'.

Can't say i'd risk it myself....glad you ok though.

[^*^BATMAN^*^]

But as said above, the issue is you'll end up with a lot of armed, untrained, scared witless people waving 9mm's at each other, and the police (remember the people paid to do the law enfocement) wont know who is who.

Another good point. Anyone who thinks about owning a weapon and having a carry permit better really think about the issues surrounding it. I have alot of friends and family that are police officers. I know that they have a hard enough time dealing with the criminals and their weapons, let alone some untrained civvies who want some protection that end up shootin up a place. Not saying dont do it, just think about it before you do.

[jethrodog]

I never thought I would either, and honestly, I never carried before, it was blind luck that I had it with me. But being in that situation, it was different, and you don't think about anything but making sure that you stop the situation before anyone gets hurt. I just think about my wife and family being there, and I could do it again if I had to. Pray that nobody ever has to again.

[Otter]

I figured training and education were obvious. I wouldn't carry a gun without proper training, frankly the damn things scare me.

[northswell]

and just to lighten this up .. Nswell ..man you better go carefull throwing comments about like that or you'll get visited from an nice chap from the anti-terroist division of scotland yard .. trust me lmao

I was in the Royal Engineers for a while, family trdition and all that. Nephew now in Iraq.

All i did was pretend, play football, and clean stuff. Oh and got the nickname of rent boy cause if it went down those lines i'd be the one bending down for the soap, apparently.

[^*^BATMAN^*^]

I figured training and education were obvious. I wouldn't carry a gun without proper training, frankly the damn things scare me.

See now though, you have that rare commodity called common sense though(or apear to). Alot of people just go buy a pistol and carry it with them. They are the ones that pull it, get it taken, and shot by their own gun..... I think it is just beating a dead horse, but if you havnt gotten it yet, if you must carry a firearm, get proper training....
Now i dont know what training you can get around your way. Just how to shoot it is good and all, but if you are serious about it, i would say see if you can get on a one day tactical shooting course. It is a real word shooting kind of course. I mean i would LOVE it if the baddies just stood there not shooting so i could double tap their chest without batting an eye...but in the real world its different. I have done shooting lieing upside down on a hill. like on my side, shooting, hard to explain, it was the only way to stay in cover and get my shot....

[Otter]

Thanks Batman, if I do proceed, I will definitely be taking similar courses. I'm not looking to get shot, or even shot at, but dang if I'm gonna sit there and get shot doing nothing about it.

There may be a terrorist connection with the shooter guy. A Ishmael was the return address on a pkg he sent to ABC or NBC with tapes explaining why he did what he did. Time will tell, I'm withholding judgement until more facts are out...

[Bad Beat Maker]

Guys, guns are easy to get no matter where you live. You just have to know the right people. When I was as young as 12 and in JUNIOR HIGH I knew kids who had bought street sweepers (UZI's) for $400. This is obviously blackmarket but also this was when AUTOMATIC guns were banned in America. It's not hard to get ANYTHING - WHEREVER.

Don't think it is just us American's. That is just a dumb thought to have. If you think YOUR country is safe and this can't happen you obviously are out of touch with what really goes on around you and you just got brought up in a very sheltered life.

[paulS]

Don't think it is just us American's. That is just a dumb thought to have. If you think YOUR country is safe and this can't happen you obviously are out of touch with what really goes on around you and you just got brought up in a very sheltered life.

I don't think anyone has said it's just Americans....but if you look at the stats of deaths by guns, America tops the list...ok the UK is far from perfect, we had a large amount of knife deaths after a knife amnesty!!

The point is yeah you can get anything but it is a lot harder to get hold of guns here (for the majority of the country)...and the whole attitude is different...i guess it's what you are used to...

I feel pretty safe from guns and im sure most of the ppl in this country do too but it doesn't mean i'm dumb or have had a sheltered life, far from it!!!

(Id also like to add: this isn't about being Anti-American, i for one am not at all Anti-American, have lived,worked and travelled throughout the US...I don't have anything bad to say about Americans and your country, in fact the complete opposite....myself i just don't understand your Gov'ment for not protecting its people)....BTW you are more than welcome to slag of our Gov'ment too...i do..