People Kill People, Not Guns

[theunorthodox]

FBI statistics show that crime in Kennesaw plummeted after the gun law was passed and remains low today, even though the city's population has skyrocketed during the past two decades.

www.washtimes.com/national/20031124-103155-9038r.htm
Later on it says 275%, which probably works out to about 50,000 or so. Still a small town, but it's just about a crime-free one. If they said the crime rate dropped 90%, there must've been *some* sort of activity going on. I'm not saying that it was some sort of gangster paradise that had brawls and drug wars every five blocks, but whatever problems they had stopped once the gun law was made.
All I was trying to say by even bringing this up is that gun don't equal death and violence. I wasn't trying to make any more sincere of a point then that.

That is a Bad Analogy. And I'll tell you why: For that analogy to be truly correct, it would be the girl that took the bus home that got raped because the girl in the dark alley gave the rapist the other girl's address. And even then it would still be incorrect. Basically, the people in the neighborhood with the bear have to pay for the stupidity of the tourists, while the tourists don't have to pay for what they did.

I did say it wasn't the best example, but it was the only thing I could come up with off the top of my head. Should've noted that. All I was trying to say was that people shouldn't be punished simply because they're stupid or at the wrong place at the wrong time.

[irishdragonlord]

The said:

How could a jump in gun violence be attributed to September 11? Do you honestly believe people thought, "OMG PEOPLE DIED TERRORISTS KILLED THEM I'LL KILL J00!!!!!1" or something along that line?

I should've said that included suicides. And yes, some people would find life to hard to bear and maybe take it out on someone else. I DID say MAYBE and *SHRUGS*

Save somebody's life? That doesn't make sense. If there were no guns nobody would be killed with a gun. Besides, what does a gun do? Why, is shoots a bullet out of a barrel -- and every bullet fired out of a gun has been made out of some sort of metal -- lead, for example, was the type of bullet used in early American history. Bullets are made out of lead for a reason -- to kill. What do you think the earliest medieval guns were used for? That's right -- to kill people. So let's recount a summary:

-Bullets are fired out of a gun
-Bullets are made of metal
-Guns kill
-Knights in full chain mail armor firing guns is a cool idea

So far we've learned that bullets tend to kill or injure when they are fired at living objects. There has been an extremely low occurance of bullets healing somebody when fired at them (0% in fact).

How in the world could a guns save lives if guns are meant to kill? A gun is a weapon. Just like swords. I suppose you say swords can save lives too. What's that? They can't save lives because they aren't the same? Yes, they are. Swords kill people. Swords are weapons, developed for killing -- just like guns, what a coincidence! Oh, you say swords aren't the same because they don't shoot bulets. So let's make a sword that shoots bullets! So now it can save lives?

Can you see what I'm saying? (And by the way, that last paragraph is sarcasm.)

I'm saying that if you kill the crazy man he won't kill you, your wife, and little Lizzy. Yes, crazy man dies, but three people live, and whoever else he would kill. Definitely unlikely happenstance, but still possible.

And please, don't get so hyped up.

[Buddy]

Washington, D.C. used to have a relatively low crime rate in the 1960s. It never used to be the nation's Murder Capital.
But that all changed after the city passed its draconian gun ban in 1976. In the following 25 years, the city's murder rate has increased 51 percent, even while the national rate has decreased 36 percent.

Yes, Washington D.C. banned guns. But the states of Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvannia, all of which are within 90 minutes driving distance, allow guns and are, in fact, huge hunting states.

Washington, of course, does not exist in any state. So, the city of Washington has banned guns, while the surrounding states have kept them legalized and easily obtainable.

[theunorthodox]

Buddy said:

Yes, Washington D.C. banned guns. But the states of Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvannia, all of which are within 90 minutes driving distance, allow guns and are, in fact, huge hunting states.

Washington, of course, does not exist in any state. So, the city of Washington has banned guns, while the surrounding states have kept them legalized and easily obtainable.

...but that still doesn't explain why *after* the gun ban, murder rates went up. Because they bought their guns from surrounding states? Why was there a sudden influx of a need to kill people if the guns had been easily obtainable for decades before the law was passed?

I'm not trying to rag on you...it's just I seriously don't understand that. o0

[Buddy]

The said:

...but that still doesn't explain why *after* the gun ban, murder rates went up. Because they bought their guns from surrounding states? Why was there a sudden influx of a need to kill people if the guns had been easily obtainable for decades before the law was passed?

I'm not trying to rag on you...it's just I seriously don't understand that. o0

The reason is very simple.

You see, if you were to ban guns nation-wide, no one would be able to get guns - criminals, or "honest civilians".

However, that reason cannot apply in this case, as the criminals are still capable of aquiring guns from the surrounding states.

Now, as for why there was a sudden influx... well, that is something I simply cannot explain, other than by pointing to the gangs and normally-higher crime rates that exist in all major cities.

In larger, more urban areas, there simply seems to be higher crime rates. I don't know why this is - if I thought about it, perhaps I could come up with some type of socialogical reason or answer that would satisfy you.

The answer you're looking for is on a more socialogical level than I know. Therefor, I cannot really give you a decent answer.

[kittygirl]

It is a close call. But I said guns kill people. There are just some times where a baby comes across a gun and says ohhhhh, *bang* and some one is dead. It is bad. But it is really not the guns if you want to look at it literally, bulets kill people. And weather it is by accadent or not the bulet is what does it.

[Buddy]

Kittygirl said:

It is a close call. But I said guns kill people. There are just some times where a baby comes across a gun and says ohhhhh, *bang* and some one is dead. It is bad. But it is really not the guns if you want to look at it literally, bulets kill people. And weather it is by accadent or not the bulet is what does it.

Don't you think you're reading it a tad too literally?

[irishdragonlord]

Buddy said:

Don't you think you're reading it a tad too literally?

Buddy's right. The guns are what make the bullet kill people. If I throw a lead pellet at you, you won't die.

Unless you swallow it.

[TheEaterofWorlds]

If you want to get that litteral, it's not the bullet- it's the tissue damage the bullet causes. You can get shot and live, it depends where you are hit and how quickly you get medical attention.

[Killix]

TheEaterofWorlds said:

If you want to get that litteral, it's not the bullet- it's the tissue damage the bullet causes. You can get shot and live, it depends where you are hit and how quickly you get medical attention.

...and how many times you're hit and what kind of gun was used.

[Luna]

"Guns don't kill people.....bullets going realy, realy fast do!"

[TheEaterofWorlds]

Meowth4 said:

...and how many times you're hit and what kind of gun was used.

Or the type of bullet. Those hollow tip bullets are wicked. Of course how close you were when you were shot also matters.

[Lilly ~ Queen of the Grarrls]

I'll throw my 2 cents in here as well.

It's obvious people kill people. However, I think we should have stronger gun control laws and stronger penalties for those who break these laws.
I think it should apply to ALL fire arms, even hunting guns. How many 'accidents' have killed and mamed kids because the gun was easy for kids to get to? How easy is it to buy a gun in this country? You can get a hunting gun right away, same day. And you only wait 7 days I believe to buy a hand gun. The semi automatic war type guns, you can pick up from any local illegal gun dealer on the street.

While the stronger laws may not deter people from guns, it certainly would give them a run for their money.

[mushroom]

A ban on guns doesn't mean no guns. It means those following the law don't have guns. A serious thief or the like is probably not going to have qualms about acquiring a gun on the black market.

[kittygirl]

Since the last post didn't get the message across. People kill people with guns. But that is just usually there are some cases with a different answer.