Just a couple of related thoughts, that are spurred by the current public debates. It is more about the system, than the individual events. I am certain that examples to the opposite could be found, and I would enjoy reading about them for a change.
First, it is has been suggested that perhaps the right answer to the attack in Orlando, was that other bar patrons be armed, and able to shoot back. Wait, I am pretty certain that there was an off duty cop there, working security, not drunk, who did return fire. How on earth could that guy have shot up all those people with another gun in the room?
Maybe because he had 3 times the available ammunition of the cop, fired from a high velocity weapon, balanced and created to be handled in combat and reduce muzzle rise and minimize shooter fatigue? The cop probably had a Glock, most likely a 9 mm. It is taking a pistol to a combat weapon fight, and the predictable occurred.
For, you see, it is not at all like the movies. All cops are not like the movie cops that whip out a pistol, fire 1 or 2 rounds, and immediately incapacitate a shooter. Most cops, just like 99.99% of the civilian population, do not ever fire their weapon in anger, and are not battle tested. They have nerves and have fear, and have a healthy respect as to what an AR15 is capable of. I wish it was different, but, my guess is that cop emptied his weapon's magazine, without hitting the suspect, who then retreated deeper into the building with more potential targets.
Having an AR15 fired at you is quite unsettling. Even those trained for crisis response find it unnerving. When you are stressed, when you are nervous, when you are afraid, one of the very first things to suffer is marksmanship. So, that is the actual event, crazy gay guy goes into gay bar with AR15, kills almost 2 full magazines worth of people, and responding police officer was unable to stop him with a service weapon. Not blaming or complaining about the cop, it is the predictable and general conclusion of weapons fired.
Now, the imaginary: gay person of either sex, with several drinks in them, too inebriated to legally drive, has a weapon strapped to their ankle. Upon receiving fire, in the dark, crowded and loud bar, they pull their weapon out and empty it in the direction of the shooting, they think. Can you predict the likely victims of those bullets? I can, and it is less likely to be the shooter than the patrons, because there is one shooter and hundreds of patrons. Why did the shooter kill so many, just one guy? Because anywhere he pointed the gun and fired, killed people in the crowds.
How on earth does anyone think that a better outcome would have occurred with some patron of the bar firing back at the shooter, when a police officer did not have any success firing back at him? How on earth does that person, thinking that, have the fricking gall to run for President of the United States? Of all the jobs that can easily be occupied by an idiot, the Presidency is not one of them. Look, even if you consider Obama a complete moron, or a Muslim sympathizer, that does not make it okay to replace him with an idiot that is in favor of just about the most unthinkable response to a public shooting in a bar I can think of for the moment.
Just because you hate Obama, is no reason to support Trump, any more than if you supported Obama and justified supporting Hillary because of that. Both are nonsensical. We have to grow up as adults entrusted with the governance and choosing of our leaders, and do a damn sight better job of it, right now. But, electing Trump is rolling the dice in Vegas with the rent money you owe to the Mob and stole from the casino. It is a bad bet, with too much interest that can come due, which is recorded forever for the world to see. Honestly, in 6-7 months, hell 20 years, they are going to play clips of Trump claiming the Indiana citizens approved to the federal bench is really a Mexican, that Mexico is going to pay for a wall, that we ban all Muslims "until we figure out what the hell is going on."
We know, dumbass, Muslims are killing Americans about as often as a perfect baseball game is thrown. The rest of the time, it is some poor crazy bastard that thinks he is the damn Joker from a Batman movie, or the second coming of Christ. We have continual and catastrophic violence, that we put on a timeline and claim exploded because of Obama. We forget that the timeline actually better coincides with the expiration of the assault weapons ban and most of the restrictions passed in the 90's, that made violent crime decrease.
Now, we cannot even get 50 of the sheep we elect to Congress to vote to pass a damn law that says terrorists should not be allowed to buy guns. If you are on the no fly list, you are on the no buy list. This is a massive and unprecedented breach of due process and just cause, that is almost universally supported by the same crowd that wants to ban all Muslims from entry. That loss of due process and just cause is okey dokey, because it is not a position bought and paid for by the NRA.
And, look, I am not for taking away the right to bear arms. However, it seems reasonable to me, that if you are not allowed to board a damn flight you paid for, you should be refused possession of the firearm you are willing to pay for. If you think it is wrong, go see the damn FBI and get it straight and then not only can you buy a gun, you can fly to fricking DisneyWorld and have fun in the world's happiest alligator farm.
There does not seem to be a need to sell military style weapons. Weapons optimize for combat and designed for lethality are best not in the hands of the public. They turn crazies into killing machines at the rate of 30 per about 15 seconds. That is two dead people per second, and that is if the guy is really slow. In the same period of time with a Glock 9mm pistol, you could fire 9, at best 12 shots. The recoil causes much more barrel rise, a much greater problem holding the gun on target and is therefor harder to kill with. It is not optimized for combat, it is not a military style assault weapon.
There will be those that ignore me. There will be those that refuse to believe what I say here. I also agree that it would not have stopped this man from buying the guns and shooting those people. The Joker guy in Colorado was not on the watch list either. But, I want to know, or better yet, I want the FBI to know that someone they think is plotting harm to America, wants to buy a weapon. That would be the kind of clue that we could use effectively to prevent crimes. It makes sense. At most, it inconveniences someone long enough to get off the list. It does not harm us, and makes us safer.
Yet, it cannot be done. Too far, we have rights. That is a principled approach. How about people that are illegal immigrants? Why does anyone have to even show ID? Why can't we sell it to anyone that can manage to get into the store, click on the website, or pay their way into the gun show? Regardless of age, infirmity, criminal record. Hell, if we can sell 'em to terrorists, why can't we sell them to felons? What is the sense there?
I am for an assault weapons ban, but even if we don't pass that AGAIN, I am for trying to make sure that terrorists are not able to arm themselves, once in the country. If it just stops one, it is worth it. I don't get the resistance, I don't get the blindness. I just don't understand. But the guy that is leading them down the yellow brick road this election season, he is all about people shooting it out in a mass shooting event. Not even cops like that idea.
You don't get to come back to life, like on the Play Station. You stay dead. You have an absolute number of one lives. It is best we treat them all like they matter, and are worth protecting. Otherwise, get rid of all the regulations and let it be like the Old West, somewhere outside of the ghettos.
Can anyone explain this to me?
GLYASDI
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