What I find "funny" about the current gun control debate

[NightWatcher]

What I find "funny" about the current gun control debate between the NRA, their frothy 4.8 million members, and the roughly 350 million of the rest of us is that had the NRA taught proper safety (locking up your firearms so your mentally whatever children cant get them and use them on you), we would most likely not be in the middle of what those on the right are labeling a Liberal Gun Grab.

Also, had the gun nuts (not gun owners, I'm a gun owner, but shy of nut status) kept their cool and policed their own, they might be not be under this "gun grab".

The well-deserved (and needed) coming Assault Weapons Ban that the RWNJ's and radio hosts are screaming against would not be coming had they not encouraged their flock to use same said weapons. Had Oreilly not called Dr Tiller "Dr Tiller- Baby Killer" no one would have most likely shot him in church. Had they not advocated violence, a lot of this violence would not have gone down, therefore not prompting the rational response from everyone calling for some control.

As my mom used to say, "this is why we cant have nice things". Had the NRA and the Pro gun crowd encouraged safety, control, and not advocated violence, we wouldn't be debating any kind of gun control today.

It's their own damn fault, they need the rational adults to step in and do what they couldn't on their own, control the nuts within their ranks.

(my last two cents)

[Squinch]

1. I totally agree. The onus has to be on the gun owners. When they allow their guns to be

used to commit crimes, they should be jailed. If they fail to keep other people safe from their guns, we shouldn't have to be running around after them to ask if they will please register and be more careful.

I posted a suggestion about this a few nights ago. There was some interesting discussion:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022157020

[GeorgeGist]

2. Natural rights they call 'em.

[Spryguy]

3. Absolutely. Owning a gun is the height of irresponsibility!

Ban semi-automatics. Door to door seizures. The time is *now* to shut down right wing idealogues!!!

[k2qb3]

4. You would start a war.

Thankfully the people in power are smarter than that.

[friendly_iconoclast]

5. Let us know when you've volunteered for a seizure squad...

[Spryguy]

6. Uhh, last I checked...

Thats what cops are for. We pay them good money to enforce the law. Besides, California and New York both seized weapons that they had outlawed and nothing ill came of it. 99% of people will give thwir guns up pwacefully, and, like an earlier article by the rude pundit pointed out, the military will turn the rest of the gun fellaters to shit stains.

[LAGC]

7. No cops I know want that job.

Neither do any that I know of currently serving in the military.

[Flyboy_451]

11. Let me give you an idea of how well that would work...

We (law enforcement) get the order to go house to house as you suggest. The vast majority of cops that I know, myself included, would do one of two things:

1. give the person issuing the order a great big "go fuck yourself!"

2. Actually go out door to door as you suggest, knock on the door, politely inform the residents of our mission and ask "You don't have any any guns in the house, do you? (Wink, wink. Nod, nod). Thank you for your time. Would you please call all you gu. Owning friends and family and ask them to please have theirs ready for turn over when we arrive? Thank you and have a nice day.

I have traveled all over the US conducting and receiving law enforcement training. I can tell you from first hand experience that the vast majority of law enforcement supports the right of individual ownership of firearms, including semi-autos. We also, as a group support the rule of law. This would mean that we would not be willing to shread our constitution to make you or any politician grin.

There are a certain number that would indeed carry out such orders, but I think you would find they are a very small minority. Then the lawsuits would fly, it would be found to be unconstitutional actions (and probably unconstitutional to ban semi-autos), and you would prove every person who has ever even implied hat the democrats were after their guns to be completely correct and we would likely lose any small amount of political credibility that a modern politician or political party can claim. Republicans and Tea Partiers would hold the presidency as well as a super majority in both the house and senate for more years than you can imagine. But, hey, other than that, great idea! Let's act just like a totalitarian ruler with no regard for personal rights, the constitution, or the rule of law! Why didn't we think of that sooner?

Jw

[Fumesucker]

13. Put the drug squads on it

They purely love kicking in doors or they'd be doing something else.

Problem solved.

[Lurks Often]

17. Agreed

your comments mirror what I have seen said by others in law enforcement on other forums on the internet,

I fully expect that military is of the same mindset.

[Puzzledtraveller]

18. Exactly

Extremely violent and well armed criminal gangs all over the US, when people advocate seizure, their well insulated minds only visualize guns being taken away from aocile John and Jane Q public.

[meaculpa2011]

14. Any lawyers out there?

How many amendments does this modest proposal violate?

[KharmaTrain]

8. Sadly Little Changes...

...and as I've witnessed with the widening divide of the "gun nuts" and "gun grabbers" (just the lexicon shows you how far apart the divide has become). The more polarized things are the less political will there will be inside the beltway to do anything about the massacres and reasonable gun control. Between the financial and political clout of the NRA and the rushpublican control of the House the chances of any serious gun control legislation passing this year are a long shot. I wish it weren't the case but we can how people are talking past one another...how name calling and fear supercedes the need to control the spread and use of guns...especially high powered weapons intended only to kill as many people as possible in a short period of time. I guess there hasn't been enough blood spilled...maybe there'll never be too much...

[kydo]

9. Oh the bigger irony, violence in media/games

is really the peeps on the right/rethug that incite most of this. With 24/7 hate and fear both on the tv and radio, that basically incites violence and the easy access to not just guns but high capacity military assault weapons, you have what we have now.

BTW thats probably the missing ingredient in other countries. Many other countries have guns and violent games and movies but not the craziness that we have with killings.

It's probably because these countries don't have a rush limpballs, o loud pie hole reilly, hate oops talk radio and faux noise, spewing hate and fear 24/7 like we do.

[Paladin]

10. Well Said. The Pro-Gun Movement Has Had Many Chances To Make Correct Choices.

But enabled by the right wing political structure over the years, gun safety practices fell to a far-distant second place, behind their promotion of maximum firepower in the hands of a maximum number of people, with little if any regard for how many of those people were clearly unsuitable candidates for gun ownership. The entire country has reaped what the reckless gun activists have sown. There's a thread in the DU Gun Control/RKBA group right now, claiming that 100,000 people have joined the NRA since the Connecticut school massacre. The battle against the sick excesses of gun militancy is a long way from being over, but I'd settle for a solid beginning at this point.....

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

12. The NRA advocated violence? got a link to that?

The NRA has ALWAYS encouraged safety and control of guns. The political harping is fairly recent.

[hootinholler]

16. No shit

I was about to mention something along those lines.

Rather than something that actually works, we are going to end up with another ineffectual measure like the Brady Bill.

[aikoaiko]

15. The NRA does offer a Personal Protection In The Home course...

...which includes safe storage issues.