Tyranny in America? Somewhat funny vid

[h2s]

Yes... yes.. I was speaking in generalities, of course. How does my favorite Chicagoan feel about gun laws?

I am a liberal. But I believe in the right to bear arms. I do not support assualt rifles. I also fully support a very thorough background check and gun registration. I do not support private sale.

[burlyman30]

When I said "favorite Chicagoan", you apparently thought I was talking about you... when clearly I was talking about Oprah. Awkward...



I think it is important to look at the big picture on this and other issues... not just what the shift in laws provide for us, but also what might they mean for the future of our country. I think of the Patriot Act... which was sold as a way to protect us and keep us safe as a nation. The other side of that, of course, is loss of freedoms. I believe it is important to think very hard before support the governments actions to take away freedoms in exchange for safety's sake. I'm not saying it should never be done, just well thought out. The country was based on the ability of the individual to be unhindered and unfettered by government. It has obviously not stayed on the same path.

I see the gun laws as more than just protection for citizens. There is more to it on the back end. That being said, I support background checks prior to purchases. We obviously don't want a violent criminal to have a tool of destruction. But law abiding citizens don't need to be put on a list. The government can assume that a law abiding citizen does own a gun since he has a right to do so. A registry is not necessary in my view.

[Freepressright]

I remember the days when being a liberal meant that you wanted an extremely limited government that, above all else, stayed the fuck out of your life and let you live it as you wished, so long as you were not hurting anyone else. Nowadays, that is the definition of libertarian. I am proudly libertarian.

Although predominantly conservative, I do not do religious issues in government, I stay away from the pro-life/pro-choice debate and I have no problem with gay rights. But I think the federal government is absolutely ridiculous in its size, scope and power and that we are slowly and steadily losing our liberties through incrementalism.

What is most troubling to me is the failure on the part of Americans to acknowledge the deep-rooted corruption. It's prevalent in both the Democrat and Republican parties. Barack Obama, for example, is Dick Cheney with charisma. He is all about amassing power.
His people largely profess to be anti-war, but do not call him out on the unconstitutional and illegal acts of war he engages this nation in. They do not call him out on the drone strikes overseas, that to date have killed 176 children. They don't balk at his signing of the National Defense Authorization Act, despite threatening to veto it, then caving, then saying he was for it but against it and then fighting when a federal court overturned it.

And now we have the attempt to greatly limit the scope of the Second Amendment based on a politically-manufactured term, "assault rifle." These "assault rifles" are no more deadly than popular high-powered hunting rifles, but based on their look, they are interpreted as evil and therefore the target of an overzealous movement that ultimately wants to see the people of the U.S. disarmed.

"Assault rifles" as defined by the low-information politicians who are pursuing their ban, are NOT machine guns. "Semi-automatic" does not mean that you hold down the trigger and bullets spray everywhere. One trigger pull means one bullet, and marksmanship will always rule the day.

At the same time I grapple with the gross misunderstandings on this issue, I am also equally disgusted by the GOP for a myriad of reasons that just make me angry to think about. We've reached a point in this country where nothing concerning how this nation is governed makes any sense at all.

[Macdon1588]

i know if you use your imagination youd get an idea of what can generally thinks of the states, question.......how does an educated american like yourself view your neighboors? and not the cold and hockey bullshit

As I can I spent my summers in Nova Scotia and I love it. As an adult I've done work in Saskatchewan, British Columbia, and Québec. From what I can tell from discussing various issues is that ideas of conservatism and progressivism are different from Canada and USA. One thing I think is funny is that in EVERY providence, every last Canadian knows that the USA's military budget is X times as big as Canada's entire budget. Canadians seem more aware of their government which I appreciate and I feel like the Canadian government still serves its people unlike here. One thing that you see right away is how homogenous Canada is. For the most part, Canada is made up of healthy white people, so I chuckle when they talk about the American health care system as if government insurance is an easy fix.

[Rodja]

here comes honey boo boo aint doing you guys any favors

This touches upon something far more important than guns in the US and that is the downfall of our overall education. The shit, and I mean SHIT, that is on television these days that we deem "entertainment" and our perception of "celebrity." Look at the Kardashian's and how high their profiles are despite a lack of any discernible talent or any of the cast of Jersey Shore. If there was 1/100th of the fervor about the demise of our education system/standards that there is on the gun issue positive changes would occur, but it shows the lack of overall value of education by the general public. Seeing the level of popularity and the somewhat romantic connotations surrounding these shows and how it churns out the message that anyone can be famous creates this fake sense of entitlement. If anyone has an ear to the ground of the attitudes and personas that teenagers have these days, they'll see how they all think that they're destined for fame (the underpants gnomes mentality). What's even worse is that the parents feed this machine by encouraging their sense of importance while syphoning away any responsibility and accountability from their child and blaming everyone and everything else.

When I was a GA during grad school (I'm not making this up), I got an email from the parent of one of my students asking why he was failed. In her mind, I made the class too hard and it was my fault for going too fast for him to keep up with the curriculum. This was not a freshman level course; it was a senior level course and the sheer fact that this even happened blew my mind. Luckily, I was close with the chair and she told me that I had zero responsibility for the failure of the student and didn't have to answer to the parent. I didn't plan on it anyway as he's not a fucking a kid and I wasn't teaching 4th grade.

[Coolazice]

I am a liberal. But I believe in the right to bear arms. I do not support assualt rifles. I also fully support a very thorough background check and gun registration. I do not support private sale.

The Truth About Assault Weapons

[h2s]

I remember the days when being a liberal meant that you wanted an extremely limited government that, above all else, stayed the fuck out of your life and let you live it as you wished, so long as you were not hurting anyone else. Nowadays, that is the definition of libertarian. I am proudly libertarian.

Although predominantly conservative, I do not do religious issues in government, I stay away from the pro-life/pro-choice debate and I have no problem with gay rights. But I think the federal government is absolutely ridiculous in its size, scope and power and that we are slowly and steadily losing our liberties through incrementalism.

What is most troubling to me is the failure on the part of Americans to acknowledge the deep-rooted corruption. It's prevalent in both the Democrat and Republican parties. Barack Obama, for example, is Dick Cheney with charisma. He is all about amassing power.
His people largely profess to be anti-war, but do not call him out on the unconstitutional and illegal acts of war he engages this nation in. They do not call him out on the drone strikes overseas, that to date have killed 176 children. They don't balk at his signing of the National Defense Authorization Act, despite threatening to veto it, then caving, then saying he was for it but against it and then fighting when a federal court overturned it.

And now we have the attempt to greatly limit the scope of the Second Amendment based on a politically-manufactured term, "assault rifle." These "assault rifles" are no more deadly than popular high-powered hunting rifles, but based on their look, they are interpreted as evil and therefore the target of an overzealous movement that ultimately wants to see the people of the U.S. disarmed.

"Assault rifles" as defined by the low-information politicians who are pursuing their ban, are NOT machine guns. "Semi-automatic" does not mean that you hold down the trigger and bullets spray everywhere. One trigger pull means one bullet, and marksmanship will always rule the day.

At the same time I grapple with the gross misunderstandings on this issue, I am also equally disgusted by the GOP for a myriad of reasons that just make me angry to think about. We've reached a point in this country where nothing concerning how this nation is governed makes any sense at all.

The Truth About Assault Weapons

An armed individual enters a school where your child attends. Would you rather the individual have a 6-bullet capacity handgun, or a 60-bullet capacity Ar-15? That is the difference between an assuault rifle and a standard "gun." If you state that you don't see a difference, then I refuse to believe you have any intelligence behind your view, and are so-stuck in your argument that logic has been toppled.

A semi-automatic rifle provides an extremely fast range of fire. That 60 bullet clip can be emptied in 60 seconds. This is a rifle designed to provide an assualt-like attack. It can be fired into a crowd of people and hit with great accuracy. It also provides a much larger range of fire than a standard semi-automatic pistol. A combination that can be, and has proven to be deadly.

The logic side of me says do away with guns compeltely. Do not feed me the bullshit about how citizens would become enslaved, etc.. The fact of the matter is this country has more guns, and in turn, more gun-related violence. We are the number one country for homicides involving guns. Countries with stringent laws against guns also happen to see the least gun violence. This is fact, not opinion.

Unfortunately, the constitutional supporting side of me states that guns should stay, albiet I see the need for regulation (including registry). I also realize that there are so many guns in this country that a complete removal wouldn't work, and would leave the weapon balance in the hands of the criminal.

[burlyman30]

The Truth About Assault Weapons

Excellent educational site. I'm not a rabid gun fan, though many of my friends are. I learned a lot, actually. Thanks for this.

[h2s]

I was just discussing this with a buddy (who is a member here), here is his way of describing the regulation

It makes me furious I have to point this out:

A. Cars are not designed with the sole purpose of the ability to kill
B. You have to be insured to have a car
C. You have to be licensed to operate a car
D. You license can be revoked
E. You have to take a test to get licensed
F. You have to take a course to even take the test
G. Generally a 6 month trial period
H. Cars are highly regulated by the govt

When a gun is designed with the sole purpose of killing, why is it harder to get a license for a car than a gun?

[BigCLS]

An armed individual enters a school where your child attends. Would you rather the individual have a 6-bullet capacity handgun, or a 60-bullet capacity Ar-15? That is the difference between an assuault rifle and a standard "gun." If you state that you don't see a difference, then I refuse to believe you have any intelligence behind your view, and are so-stuck in your argument that logic has been toppled.

A semi-automatic rifle provides an extremely fast range of fire. That 60 bullet clip can be emptied in 60 seconds. This is a rifle designed to provide an assualt-like attack. It can be fired into a crowd of people and hit with great accuracy. It also provides a much larger range of fire than a standard semi-automatic pistol. A combination that can be, and has proven to be deadly.

The logic side of me says do away with guns compeltely. Do not feed me the bullshit about how citizens would become enslaved, etc.. The fact of the matter is this country has more guns, and in turn, more gun-related violence. We are the number one country for homicides involving guns. Countries with stringent laws against guns also happen to see the least gun violence. This is fact, not opinion.

Unfortunately, the constitutional supporting side of me states that guns should stay, albiet I see the need for regulation (including registry). I also realize that there are so many guns in this country that a complete removal wouldn't work, and would leave the weapon balance in the hands of the criminal.

Lets be glad this wasn't done with a 6 round 12 gauge. Probably more children dead, and more wounded.

I wonder what the argument would be then?

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