Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The vote would be strictly symbolic, with the Senate, White House, and SCOTUS all being still R-controlled. But it would send a powerful message to women, minorities, and millennials for 2020. Vote D, and this could be your reward.
The AR-15 was the weapon used in Sandy Hook, Parkland, Aurora, San Bernardino, and so many others.
It was first brought into the military around 1963 by Air Force General Curtis ("Bombs Away") Lemay. The prior weapon was the larger, heavier M1 Grande, which had been intended for use by and against large, bulky white males fighting in European land wars.
LeMay envisioned future fights in places like Vietnam, Central America, and the Middle East, where the enemy would not be white males, but instead brown people, and often women and children. LeMay considered the AR-15 was made-to-order for fighting such hordes. After retiring from the Air Force, LeMay ran as VP running mate with Southern segregationist George Wallace, who ran for President as an independent in 1968.
LeMay ordered several thousand of the weapons from Colt, and sold JFK on the idea of switching to the AR-15. JFK, when in the Senate, had been allies with many of the southern segregationist Democrats senators such as J. William Fulbright, Sam Ervin, etc. He went along with LeMay's idea and eventually acquired a personal AR-15 that he would take out on his boat. He used it to plink at floating debris.
The AR-15 was banned in 1994 by President Clinton, but the law had a 10 year sunset clause. It regained legal status in 2004 under George W. Bush. Bush officially opposed rescinding the ban, but he did nothing to stop it.
With divided government, it's going to be tough to get anything done anyway. Why not go for a symbolic vote, to prepare the way for 2021? It would be a chance to sharpen the debate, and raise awareness.
The vote would be strictly symbolic, with the Senate, White House, and SCOTUS all being still R-controlled. But it would send a powerful message to women, minorities, and millennials for 2020. Vote D, and this could be your reward.
The AR-15 was the weapon used in Sandy Hook, Parkland, Aurora, San Bernardino, and so many others.
It was first brought into the military around 1963 by Air Force General Curtis ("Bombs Away") Lemay. The prior weapon was the larger, heavier M1 Grande, which had been intended for use by and against large, bulky white males fighting in European land wars.
LeMay envisioned future fights in places like Vietnam, Central America, and the Middle East, where the enemy would not be white males, but instead brown people, and often women and children. The AR-15 was made-to-order for such fighting. After retiring from the Air Force, LeMay ran as VP running mate with Southern segregationist George Wallace in 1968, who ran for President as an independent.
LeMay ordered several thousand of the weapons from Colt, and sold JFK on the idea of switching to the AR-15. JFK, when in the Senate, had been allies with many of the southern segregationist Democrats senators such as J. William Fulbright, Sam Ervin, etc. He went along with LeMay's idea and eventually acquired a personal AR-15 that he would take out on his boat. He used it to plink at floating debris.
The AR-15 was banned in 1994 by President Clinton, but the law had a 10 year sunset clause. It regained legal status in 2004 under George W. Bush. Bush officially opposed rescinding the ban, but he did nothing to stop it.
With divided government, it's going to be tough to get anything done anyway. Why not go for a symbolic vote, to prepare the way for 2021? It would be a chance to sharpen the debate, and raise awareness.
Just a quick note: women and minorities are gun owners, too, and are growing in numbers.
Ok, ban the AR-15. Then crazies will use another weapon. Let's ban that also. Rinse and repeat. Liberals want to open the floodgates of banning ALL weapons so no thanks.
No, it’s a terrible idea to ban it. A ban will not do anything to stop mass murders. A semi auto handgun with a standard magazine can hold 18 rounds (17+1 in the chamber) and can be reloaded in seconds, so even if you got rid of semi auto rifles it still wouldn’t stop people who are bent on committing mass shootings.
Another useless ban is a magazine limit, which some states have. It does nothing to reduce gun violence.
No, don't be stupid. The AR-15 is no more the cause of our problems than the semi-auto pistol or automobiles. The issue is that we, as a society are both becoming more stupid (see declining IQ) and place less value on human life. Combine that with a society that does not hold individuals responsible for their actions and you have a mess. The tool doesn't matter-the person does.
I actually showed the falsity of this in another thread, which I think unfortunately got deleted, perhaps due to trolling by pro-gun posters.
A gun does actually jump up and pull its own trigger. Not literally, of course, but that is in effect what can happen. This is due to the combination of gun availability and the 'honor culture.' The process and outcome is exactly as if the gun jumped up and pulled its own trigger. This has been shown through scientific research at the University of Washington.
No, don't be stupid. The AR-15 is no more the cause of our problems than the semi-auto pistol or automobiles. The issue is that we, as a society are both becoming more stupid (see declining IQ) and place less value on human life. Combine that with a society that does not hold individuals responsible for their actions and you have a mess. The tool doesn't matter-the person does.
Quote:
Originally Posted by travis t
I actually showed the falsity of this in another thread, which I think unfortunately got deleted, perhaps due to trolling by pro-gun posters.
A gun does actually jump up and pull its own trigger. Not literally, of course, but that is in effect what can happen. This is due to the combination of gun availability and the 'honor culture.' The process and outcome is exactly as if the gun jumped up and pulled its own trigger. This has been shown through scientific research at the University of Washington.
I'm going to try and be nice, since you're right about one thing (from another thread) - it's not helpful when gun owners point and laugh, rather than attempt to explain.
You're proved Toyman's point here. It's the person who believes in the 'honor culture' who is most likely to shoot another. If you're a person who has grown up in a typical environment, you're not a person who believes in that culture.
In other words, it's not like when the doctor taps your kneecap, and you reflexively kick. If this culture weren't something that's individualized - personal - we'd have people being shot at a rate that would decimate the population. It's a personal choice; it's a person choosing to pull that trigger.
The other thing is that the kind of behavior spoken of in the article isn't the same behavior as those who use the AR-15 platform in shootings. The 'honor culture' shootings make up the vast majority of gun homicides, and those are committed with handguns. Not only that, but some of the worst handgun shootings we've seen have been done with limited-round magazines. These laws are feel-goods (for some, anyway) that will not have any effect on gun deaths.
Last edited by swilliamsny; 01-05-2019 at 04:44 PM..
"Roughly five million Americans own AR-style semiautomatic rifles. The overwhelming majority of citizens who own and use such rifles do so for lawful purposes, including self-defense and target shooting. Under our precedents, that is all that is needed for citizens to have a right under the Second Amendment to keep such weapons."
Justices Thomas and Scalia
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
