eagleye13 Loc: Fl

I wouldn't have figured you for being for gun control, bahmer.

bahmer

I changed it, I hadn't read all the way through and only read about the first two sentences, or so, and thought that the republicans were in favor of this bill to confiscate guns sorry.

DogLover99

A gun can't shoot anyone. It's the person pulling the trigger that's guilty. We need better laws for mental illness and better help for people with mental illness.

Mike Easterday

Just more RINOs !

Unintended Consequences

So now that you shredded my opinions, what is your plan for ending mass shootings?

Smedley_buzkill

First, make mental health care more available, and more standardized. Many people who need help are hesitant to seek it due to the real or imagined stigma that goes with it, and they fear that it will follow them. Also, medical opinions on mental health vary quite a bit. That is why we have competency hearings, to let a judge decide which mental health "professional" has the best spiel. There needs to be a consistent standard. For instance, Domestic abuse is one of the most abused reasons to deny legal firearms ownership. Some domestic abusers have no business owning firearms, while there are other cases where this law has been applied so capriciously that the prosecution should be the one in jail.
You want "red f**g" laws? Fine. Any confiscation of private property should leave the person who swore out the complaint civilly and criminally liable, just like any other search and seizure. You cannot just take someone's property without due process. Any competency hearing should take no more than three days. No defendant in one of these cases should have to pay any legal expenses for representation. At the end of the three days, an immediate hearing, and if the defendant is found blameless, then the person[s] who swore out the complaint should be looked at, and criminally prosecuted. A counter suit for malicious prosecution (with free legal help) should be an option for the wrongly accused.
The only deterrent that has proven truly effective is fear. While the Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, the definition of that commodity has changed drastically since 1791. It used to be that public h*****gs, and floggings were not considered cruel and unusual. Nor was brutally hard labor on a chain gang. Fear of unpleasant consequences is a deterrent that works. Many nut jobs who do not fear death DO fear pain.
One reason that mass shootings are rarely stopped by the proverbial "good guy with a gun" is the FACT that nearly every mass shooting happens in a "gun free zone" where there ARE no "good guys with guns." In such a scenario, it doesn't matter what sort of firearm the shooter uses. A bolt action rifle or a revolver can cause quite a bit of havoc when no one can shoot back. If you want to know how well a ban on semi autos works, look at England. In 1900, when they had no gun control, their murder rate was lower than it is today. Actually, England is not a valid comparison since they have never had a gun violence problem, gun control laws or not. Same for Australia. While there have been no mass shootings in Australia since they banned semi autos (by the Australian definition,) there have been two more by the US definition. Bear in mind that Australia's murder rate is essentially the same now as it was in the pre ban days. Other violent crimes have also increased.
New Zealand has strict laws for acquiring semi auto weapons. Didn't help them.
France has a prohibition on the weapons that were used in the nightclub shooting that took about 150 lives. That did not stop Muslim terrorists from smuggling in these weapons.

Once more, the only prevention that has been proven to work is fear of punishment and pain. Penalizing non criminals with ineffective "gun control" has never worked and never will. That is like saying that the way to prevent drunk driving is to revoke the licenses of non drinkers.

Unintended Consequences

[quote=Smedley_buzk**l]First, make mental health care more available, and more standardized. Many people who need help are hesitant to seek it due to the real or imagined stigma that goes with it, and they fear that it will follow them. Also, medical opinions on mental health vary quite a bit. That is why we have competency hearings, to let a judge decide which mental health "professional" has the best spiel. There needs to be a consistent standard. For instance, Domestic abuse is one of the most abused reasons to deny legal firearms ownership. Some domestic abusers have no business owning firearms, while there are other cases where this law has been applied so capriciously that the prosecution should be the one in jail.
You want "red f**g" laws? Fine. Any confiscation of private property should leave the person who swore out the complaint civilly and criminally liable, just like any other search and seizure. You cannot just take someone's property without due process. Any competency hearing should take no more than three days. No defendant in one of these cases should have to pay any legal expenses for representation. At the end of the three days, an immediate hearing, and if the defendant is found blameless, then the person[s] who swore out the complaint should be looked at, and criminally prosecuted. A counter suit for malicious prosecution (with free legal help) should be an option for the wrongly accused.
The only deterrent that has proven truly effective is fear. While the Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, the definition of that commodity has changed drastically since 1791. It used to be that public h*****gs, and floggings were not considered cruel and unusual. Nor was brutally hard labor on a chain gang. Fear of unpleasant consequences is a deterrent that works. Many nut jobs who do not fear death DO fear pain.
One reason that mass shootings are rarely stopped by the proverbial "good guy with a gun" is the FACT that nearly every mass shooting happens in a "gun free zone" where there ARE no "good guys with guns." In such a scenario, it doesn't matter what sort of firearm the shooter uses. A bolt action rifle or a revolver can cause quite a bit of havoc when no one can shoot back. If you want to know how well a ban on semi autos works, look at England. In 1900, when they had no gun control, their murder rate was lower than it is today. Actually, England is not a valid comparison since they have never had a gun violence problem, gun control laws or not. Same for Australia. While there have been no mass shootings in Australia since they banned semi autos (by the Australian definition,) there have been two more by the US definition. Bear in mind that Australia's murder rate is essentially the same now as it was in the pre ban days. Other violent crimes have also increased.
New Zealand has strict laws for acquiring semi auto weapons. Didn't help them.
France has a prohibition on the weapons that were used in the nightclub shooting that took about 150 lives. That did not stop Muslim terrorists from smuggling in these weapons.

Once more, the only prevention that has been proven to work is fear of punishment and pain. Penalizing non criminals with ineffective "gun control" has never worked and never will. That is like saying that the way to prevent drunk driving is to revoke the licenses of non drinkers.[/quote]

I'm impressed. You have obviously spent a lot of time thinking about this. Now who can you get to implement it.

Smedley_buzkill

Certainly not the current crop of douche bags infesting the Capitol Building. They are too busy getting reelected so they can protect us from career politicians.
Brings me to another point. I hear a lot of calls for term limits. We already have them. They are called e******ns. I will not v**e for an incumbent more than once. If he or she needs more than two terms to steal enough money to last them the rest of their lives they aren't smart enough to represent me. Don't tell me I'm throwing out the baby with the bathwater. There's a lot more bathwater than there is baby.

Peewee Loc: San Antonio, TX

You have a sharp mind, logical reasoning, common sense, and it's all Constitutional. I like to say "That'll preach"! Amen, my brother! Unlike what happened to the Bundy family who stood up for their rights and was almost murdered by our deep state government and Harry Reid and son for China.

Smedley_buzkill

Thank you.

Peewee Loc: San Antonio, TX

You're welcome, kudos to those who merit them. Just wished I'd said it.

eagleye13 Loc: Fl

"Don't tell me I'm throwing out the baby with the bathwater. There's a lot more bathwater than there is baby." - Smedley_buzkili

Yep!!!
and that bath water is damn dirty.

dirty babies make dirty water.
We need to replace them with cleaner babies.