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badgenome on 13 January 2011
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rocketpig said:
badgenome said:
richardhutnik said:

I am finding this sickening.  STILL people CAN'T resist arguing political bulletpoints here?  I see an argument, in this thread advocating EVERYONE own guns?

So it's sickening to use this as an occasion to argue that everyone should own a gun, but it's just peachy to use it as an occasion to argue that no one should have a gun or that we should use this as an opportunity to "chip away at the ol' Second Amendment"?

Are you arguing that such political opportunism is wrong and shouldn't be done, or that it is okay and should be continued? Which side are you on, or is that those of a libertarian bent shouldn't use such tragedies to push a political agenda but everyone else is permitted to do so?

Or maybe there are some of us in the middle who think that maybe this is a perfect opportunity to discuss Arizona's insane concealed carry law. Why do we license people to drive but in some states, don't even bother to check the mental capacity or training of someone who carries a FIREARM in public, concealed or otherwise? That isn't "personal protection", that's downright insanity.

And before anyone labels me a "gun hater", I work in a gun shop. I spend 50 hours a week surrounded by firearms. I own firearms. I see some of the people who carry around me and question their mental capacity but at least all those people have basic firearm training and are NOT mental patients or violent felons, as it's a requirement for a carry permit in Minnesota. While it's not a foolproof system, it provides a thin layer of protection between the public and lunatics walking the streets with loaded Desert Eagles, just itchin' for a fight to break out so they can play "hero".

Yeah, I was just curious as to why FreeTalkLive's proposition got under his skin when MrKhan's idea to use this as an opportunity to abridge or eliminate the Second Amendment didn't. Not all political opportunism is equal, I guess.

But you make a good point. I also think it's high time to reevaluate the way the mentally ill are dealt with in general. In Arizona (and in Virginia, too, I understand) a family member, teacher, or classmate may request that someone undergo a psychiatric evaluation. Despite the fact that both Loughner and Cho-seung Hui were sending up red flags left and right, no one ever did. While it may be partially due to ignorance of the law, I think the more fundamental problem is that school authorities just don't know how to deal with the situation and probably wouldn't have taken advantage of this privilege even if they were aware of its existence. The teachers of these two sounded at a complete loss as to what to do. It's worrying, and I really hope there's some reflection in the aftermath of this incident, because this pattern will continue to play itself out until something changes.