As a father of a young daughter in elementary school, school shootings are something I am going to have to be concerned about until she graduates. Ever since Columbine, things changed. Guns are a big part of the problem. They're the main tools used for these mass shootings. How many people would own guns if it took a pretty decent effort to even purchase a gun? Americans are lazy and we make it too easy to get access to guns. We have to do something as a country and we shouldn't wait until this tragedy hits you first hand before you want to do something about it.
Mass/Active Shooters, Part **FIVE**
- Thread starter jthomas666
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As a father of a young daughter in elementary school, school shootings are something I am going to have to be concerned about until she graduates. Ever since Columbine, things changed. Guns are a big part of the problem. They're the main tools used for these mass shootings. How many people would own guns if it took a pretty decent effort to even purchase a gun? Americans are lazy and we make it too easy to get access to guns. We have to do something as a country and we shouldn't wait until this tragedy hits you first hand before you want to do something about it.
People killed in school shootings thus far in 2025: 18 (includes 22 college school shootings)
Teens killed texting/driving in 2023: 286 total deaths
I've yet to hear a single person who blames the easy availability of guns blame the cell phone, though.
Columbine also featured an illegal weapon (sawed off shotguns) during the time the Assault Weapons Ban was in effect, which I'm constantly told is what's going to stop things like (wait for it) Columbine.
It also featured 99 bombs, but nobody mentions that part.
Minnesota is rated B by the Giffords Gun Control folks. It's not exactly easy to buy ANY gun in Minnesota, and this person with no criminal history bought THREE weapons.
Westman would’ve needed a permit to purchase the handgun and semiautomatic military rifle. Applying for such a permit takes more time than an actual in-store purchase and includes a background check. The shotgun purchase also would have required a background check, but that can be completed while the customer waits.
“So all of the background checks that we want done were done,†said Rob Doar, senior vice president of the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus and a gun-rights advocate.
Here's the part I've never been able to understand (no reflection on you, spider): how is it that the exact same "liberals" who tell me you can't outlaw abortion because people will find ways to have them anyway, you may as well hand out condoms in school because they'll do it anyway, you can't censor anything because they'll find a way anyway, and you can't prohibit alcohol (we tried that, it didn't work), and we may as well legalize drugs......how is it these exact same people develop the cognitive dissonance on JUST THIS ONE SUBJECT and actually think "but we can come up with a way to keep someone from that REALLY WANTS ONE.....from acquiring a gun?"
What's funny is they're absolutely right on the other subjects - abortions can be induced, teenagers are going to have some not so innocent fun, censorship with the Net today is laughable, and there were many drunk 17-year-olds at my prom when the drinking age was 21.
So why on this one subject do folks suddenly pretend those same "you can't stop them" rules don't apply?
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I will agree with you on the texting and driving bit. Cell phones are a huge issue/distraction while driving. Those numbers are a sobering reminder of how bad that is. But, I have seen several billboards and PSAs regarding this.
On the abortion issue, I am definitely more in the camp of "it's a woman's body and her domain, so she should be able to make decisions on issues occurring inside her own body." But, I do get your argument there.
I am not saying if we make changes and make it harder to buy guns, it will eliminate the issue, I am hoping that if 6 shootings would have happened, only 2 of them happened because it was harder to acquire guns. I know even 2 shootings is unacceptable, but we need to do something different than the status quo.
I do respect your opinion though
And just like that! ........
Trump’s DOJ considering banning trans people from buying guns
The Justice Department is discussing proposals to potentially block transgender Americans from buying firearms, sources told The Post.
nypost.com
Talk to any libertarian and you'll know that they have never considered Trump to be a true supporter of 2A. This can't possibly be a surprise to anyone.And just like that! ........
Trump’s DOJ considering banning trans people from buying guns
The Justice Department is discussing proposals to potentially block transgender Americans from buying firearms, sources told The Post.
It really depends on whether one views transgenderism as a mental illness or not.
And whether it predisposes to physical violence or not. Most mental illnesses do not and I don't know of any studies indicating a propensity in that direction. Remember 4473 doesn't even mention "mental illness." It just asks if you've been adjudicated a mental defective or been committed to a mental institution...
I really wish those who believe that transgender identity is a mental illness would provide some scientific evidence. The great majority of experts no longer believe it to be true.
I believe it's self-evident, whether others agree or not.
That said, I'm a strong 2A proponent, so I'm happy this isn't my decision.
Its usually not a good idea to make absolute statements. Both sides err here. Gender is not totally binary, it's somewhat a spectrum. I would guess that most transgender issues are NOT a 'mental' issue but are rooted in biology.
Right! The problem lies in the definition of "illness" and who applies it, not mention how. All too often, it's a euphemism for "different from me and I don't understand it"...
and is usually backed up by "my own research"
Kennedy is asked a tough question about why “looking at firearms†wasn’t included in the MAHA report. He answered her question with class and grace, and you could hear a pin drop as the room hung on Kennedy’s every word:
“We had comparably the same number of guns [when I was a kid]. Nobody was doing that [walking into buildings and shooting strangers]. We had gun clubs at my school. Kids brought guns to school and were encouraged to do so. And nobody was walking into schools and shooting people. “And this is not happening in other countries. Switzerland has a comparable number of guns as we do. And the last mass shooting they had was 23 years ago. We’re having mass shootings every 23 hours. So, there are many, many things that happened in the 1990s that could explain these. "One is the dependence on psychiatric drugs, which in our country is unlike any other country in the world… “And we are looking at that at NIH. So we are doing studies now. We’re initiating studies to look at the correlation and the potential connection between over-medicating our kids and this violence.â€Â
“We had comparably the same number of guns [when I was a kid]. Nobody was doing that [walking into buildings and shooting strangers]. We had gun clubs at my school. Kids brought guns to school and were encouraged to do so. And nobody was walking into schools and shooting people. “And this is not happening in other countries. Switzerland has a comparable number of guns as we do. And the last mass shooting they had was 23 years ago. We’re having mass shootings every 23 hours. So, there are many, many things that happened in the 1990s that could explain these. "One is the dependence on psychiatric drugs, which in our country is unlike any other country in the world… “And we are looking at that at NIH. So we are doing studies now. We’re initiating studies to look at the correlation and the potential connection between over-medicating our kids and this violence.â€Â
Washington Post gift link
RFK Jr. links SSRIs and mass shootings. What does science say?
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suggested that psychiatric drugs may have played a role in the Minnesota Catholic school shooting  a statement widely criticized as unsupported by science.
The data doesn’t support RFK Jr.’s claim. A Columbia review cited in the above article found antidepressant use among mass shooters was about 4%, actually lower than the 11% rate in the general U.S. population. FBI reviews also show no evidence that most school shooters were on psych meds.
But science has never been RFK Jr.’s strong suit. He’s built a career on twisting research and promoting fringe theories, so it’s no surprise he’s peddling this one too. Ironically, given his erratic rhetoric, he might benefit more from psychiatric treatment than from attacking it.
Something is different here - at least they’re trying to figure out why it’s so different here than in other places with firearm access but no / fewer shootings.
Need more of this proactivity.
www.wesh.com
Police arrested a 13-year-old in Washington state who had ‘everything ready to go’ for a mass shooting
When police arrested a 13-year-old boy in Washington state accused of making threats to kill, they found he had “everything ready to go to commit a mass shooting†– including a trove of more than 20 guns in his home.
www.wesh.com
Switzerland has a lot of guns, but there is also much higher percentage of military service (compulsory, military or civil service) so that everyone is properly trained.
They do have a stricter application process than we do, though I don't know the details. That might be one avenue to explore: What percentage of gun applicants are denied? for what reasons?
Plus of course, all that good chocolate.
RFK Jr is a moron and I wouldn't take medical advice from an idiot like him. However, these mass shooters definitely all have a screw loose and while they may not have been on SSRIs, they definitely needed to be on something.
So far he’s blamed SSRIs and video games. If he wants to figure out why we have so many shootings, he needs to make a real effort rather than continuing to spout his loony conspiracy theories. He’s already decided the answer to the question and now he’s looking to make the data fit his agenda. This guy is a clear and present danger to American lives.
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