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I know this is the political forum. I know this opens our discussions up to immature, bias and insulting responses. I am asking each of you that responds to put politics aside and offer unfiltered, non-political feelings. I ask the mods to allow for this honest discussion, but not allow trolling.
My honest feelings.
I consider myself right-leaning economically, left-leaning socially. I am pro-2nd Amendment. I own multiple handguns and long-rifles, 1000's of rounds of ammo, and my family has basic firearms training to defend themselves. I also enjoy shooting for sport (target practice), but I don't hunt. And am I am vehemently against hunting for sport. I have an allergy to deer meat so I feel no need to kill an animal for trophy. I am not alone.
In every instance of gun violence, mass shootings, terrorism, etc, I look for instances to differentiate me from the violent actor. In every instance, it was easy to do so.
Until now.
I told my wife tonight.., Paddock has shown no indication that he would be a mass-murderer. This is the first occasion that I can draw parallels with a shooter. And it concerns me. I am troubled. I am hurting for other's losses.
I pray to God that information comes available that separates Paddock from me and the many, many responsible gun owners I know.
OP, have you ever shot anyone? have oyu ever thought of shooting someone? would you seriously act on those thoughts?
we may never know why this guy did what he did. i mean did he decide that the unabomber was right and he wanted to change our society with his actions?
If there really was an omnipotent deity floating around out there somewhere that cared about us as much as his zealots claim, couldn't he just wave his magic hand and make all of this violence go away? Make it never happen again? Gotta be something an entity like that could do for us little ol' humans, right?
I'd like to say a sincere, heartfelt "thank you" to all of the heroes - people in the crowd who risked their lives to try and save others. People who weren't there who are donating blood and airmiles, hotel points, money, etc. to help those loved ones get to and stay in Vegas with hurt loved ones. Yes, there are crazy people who cause tragedy and suffering - but we've still got a lot of really good people here in the US.
OP, have you ever shot anyone? have oyu ever thought of shooting someone? would you seriously act on those thoughts?
we may never know why this guy did what he did. i mean did he decide that the unabomber was right and he wanted to change our society with his actions?
I think his point is that this could have been a guy who never had those thoughts but one day something snapped. It does happened. And it could happen to you. You just never know.
If there really was an omnipotent deity floating around out there somewhere that cared about us as much as his zealots claim, couldn't he just wave his magic hand and make all of this violence go away? Make it never happen again? Gotta be something an entity like that could do for us little ol' humans, right?
you are forgetting this thing called free will. when god created man, he didnt want automatons that did everything he wanted them to do, he wanted people to worship him of their own free will. its like you having children, you dont want them to automatons do you? our heavenly father is the same way.
Quote:
Originally Posted by vacoder
I think his point is that this could have been a guy who never had those thoughts but one day something snapped. It does happened. And it could happen to you. You just never know.
this guy didnt snap, he planned this shooting down to as many small details as he could.
I know two gun collectors who ended committing suicide with a gun. People change or snap for various reasons---health issues, changes in a marriage, losing a job, financial problems, etc., etc. Some people blame others for all their problems while others don't. In my lay opinion, it's those people who routinely blame others for their own unhappiness who have the potential to go off the deep in and take others with them when they end up committing suicide.
I know many gun owners and they are all good people. But who is to say they might encounter in life situations they may not be able to deal with? I'd rather they not be a gun owners in those cases.
I support the right to own guns for self-defense. I support the right to own guns for hunting. I support the right to own guns for nation defense (including domestically). But I don't understand the fascination for guns in our culture, especially movies, TV, and video games. To me, shooting for entertainment makes me uneasy.
As for automatic and semi-automatic rifles, I would prefer they were kept in some kind of armory. The armory and the guns therein would be privately owned. But in order for gun owners to access their guns, they would have to go through a process that provides some assurance they will not be able to use the gun for criminal purposes, for example the gun could only be fired in a designated area and with other competent gun-onwers in the vacinity. This would hopefully eliminate the lone wolf, but would still allow gun ownership for target practicing and national defense reasons.
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