Orlando Shooting

[MrsK]

There is a discussion in the Rant/Rave Thread about but this totally deserves it's own thread. Please share your thoughts and feelings here. There are a lot of opinions about the causes of this catastrophe and proposed reactions. Some say this could change the course of the presidential election. Discuss amongst yourselves.

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[Thirteen]

I cried a lot.
No one should own an assault weapon, whatsoever.
More xenophobia and homophobia being politicized -- let's teach compassion, respect, love, and service to our children and world.
Stop killing people, please.


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[alotofyarn]

I don't think assault weapons are the problem. They shoot bullets one trigger pull at a time, just like any other gun. Assault weapons are not automatic weapons, they're simply rifles with a pistol grip.

I think it's awful, but I think it's a bigger problem than guns.

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[rufflesanddots]

I haven't been able to form cohesive thoughts about this yet. I see a lot of mental gymnastics happening on my Facebook feed about how this was the fault of the FBI, or DHS, or Islam, or mental illness, or hate, or the USA being "Godless", but as soon as the conversation approaches gun reform that would pull assault rifles from the market the conversation turns to the importance of "liberty." I'm so glad we protected this asshole's liberty to buy a weapon after he beat his wife, was reported for violent statements, and twice investigated by the FBI for links to terrorism. God forbid we infringe on his liberty or the liberty of any other whack job who has been shown themselves to be so lacking in control that they abuse others. Protect their liberty, give them guns!

It is enraging. I am disgusted that people are avoiding naming the LGBT community as victims. I am horrified by the people I see claiming that what is most important is that Americans were attacked, pointedly arguing that their LGBT status doesn't matter--these are the same people who voted AGAINST marriage equality. Who support legislation that prevents their fellow citizens, even themselves, from bringing discrimination suits. Americans? You care about your fellow Americans so much that you voted to keep them as second-class citizens? Please, just stop.

And, of course, Trump is using this horror to promote his ridiculous Muslim ban and insinuate that Obama has an ulterior motive because he won't use the term "radical Islam." https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...ando-shooting/

This is our country now? We let our children be slaughtered in their classrooms and our friends be murdered at a night club and we move towards the possibility of electing a conspiracy theorist, and yet we won't pull assault rifles from the market? We won't permit the CDC to conduct research into guns as a public health issue? Are we that afraid of information and change?

It's almost too painful and overwhelming and exhausting and terrifying to think about. What a disaster. My mind won't stop spinning.

[ladymoreta]

This is just... I don't know. I'm surprised at how unsurprised I am. This has happened so much. I feel awful for the victims and their loved ones, but we've all felt this over and over. It will be awful, and it will hit me hard when it happens in my hometown. And I know it will eventually. And then the president will make a speech, we'll put flowers on a significant wall, we'll post Facebook things, we'll cry, and nothing will change.

While I definitely support tighter restrictions on acquiring guns, liability for gun owners whose guns are used in attacks, and required certification, I don't think banning guns is a solution that will work for our country. It would be nice, but there are too many citizens who oppose it. It would deepen the political wedge we already have and get overturned the next time the republicans gain power.

[Vanquisher]

I haven't been able to form cohesive thoughts about this yet. I see a lot of mental gymnastics happening on my Facebook feed about how this was the fault of the FBI, or DHS, or Islam, or mental illness, or hate, or the USA being "Godless", but as soon as the conversation approaches gun reform that would pull assault rifles from the market the conversation turns to the importance of "liberty." I'm so glad we protected this asshole's liberty to buy a weapon after he beat his wife, was reported for violent statements, and twice investigated by the FBI for links to terrorism. God forbid we infringe on his liberty or the liberty of any other whack job who has been shown themselves to be so lacking in control that they abuse others. Protect their liberty, give them guns!

It is enraging. I am disgusted that people are avoiding naming the LGBT community as victims. I am horrified by the people I see claiming that what is most important is that Americans were attacked, pointedly arguing that their LGBT status doesn't matter--these are the same people who voted AGAINST marriage equality. Who support legislation that prevents their fellow citizens, even themselves, from bringing discrimination suits. Americans? You care about your fellow Americans so much that you voted to keep them as second-class citizens? Please, just stop.

And, of course, Trump is using this horror to promote his ridiculous Muslim ban and insinuate that Obama has an ulterior motive because he won't use the term "radical Islam." https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...ando-shooting/

This is our country now? We let our children be slaughtered in their classrooms and our friends be murdered at a night club and we move towards the possibility of electing a conspiracy theorist, and yet we won't pull assault rifles from the market? We won't permit the CDC to conduct research into guns as a public health issue? Are we that afraid of information and change?

It's almost too painful and overwhelming and exhausting and terrifying to think about. What a disaster. My mind won't stop spinning.

100%


I think the second amendment is bullshit and needs to go.

Guns are only part of the problem, but they are a big fucking problem!!

http://www.upworthy.com/instead-of-a...ut-the-numbers

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

Anything other than shotguns for hunting need to go. You should need to have a license akin to a drivers license to own one that is revocable if you prove incapable of common sense.

No one needs a handgun and no one needs an assault rifle. Full stop.

[spotty_dog]

We don't often discuss the news with our kids, but we had to say something about this. This was THE WORST mass shooting in U.S. history. Sure, it's approached in the news like the same ol' same ol'. But this insanity is not the new normal. It will never be any kind of normal.

No, guns don't create criminals. My own brother owns an AR-15 type rifle, and as far as I know has always handled it and all his guns safely. But nonetheless assault rifles are NOT NECESSARY. Why on earth should you be able to legally purchase a semi-automatic assault rifle with a 30-bullet magazine, designed for battle, built for traits like easily swapping the magazine and easily converted to a short barrel with minimal recoil? We put limits on what fireworks you can purchase, what automobiles are road-legal, even though some people have fun playing with those things. Why can't we put this one small limit into play, to make it slightly more challenging for a person to end this much human life in one go?

I was googling around for something tangentially related and found this website: https://www.massshootingtracker.org

[Michele]

I can't buy 3 boxes of Sudafed without flagging the authorities, but I can buy 3 guns and no one blinks. It's completely ridiculous to me.

[MsSassyBaskets]

I actually came back to the site today after a little break because I'm so enraged and I'm not really one to vent on more public social media, and I didn't know where else to go. I don't know what to do in terms of positive action, because most of the anti-gun or pro-gun-control organizations out there are far too conservative for me. I don't want to tighten gun laws and increase background checks. I want to ban guns. I want to repeal the 2nd and start melting down guns en masse. And I am completely out of patience for anyone who thinks guns are their right. You can stand by and watch BABIES die in their elementary school, and FIFTY innocent LGBT people die in a nightclub, in addition to the other mass shootings that happen every single day, and you still think guns are your right? YOU are a fucking terrorist. The NRA is a terrorist organization holding this country hostage. Gun owners who stand by the misinterpreted and irrelevant doctrine of the 2nd amendment are as bad as extremists who stand by a misinterpreted and irrelevant religious doctrine. I want to picket gun stores and Wal-Marts screaming "baby killer!" and "terrorist!" but then I'd probably get shot. Want to make a reasoned argument about responsible gun ownership? I don't want to fucking hear it, because you are a fucking terrorist.

So, that's where I'm at.

[rufflesanddots]

Yes.

I legit just read some guy stating we need automatic weapons to protect against a tyrannical government, and that such guns would "level the playing field."

... If the U.S. military can be beat by some vigilantes with machine guns, why don't we just quit while we're ahead?

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[Meenah]

I haven't been able to form cohesive thoughts about this yet. I see a lot of mental gymnastics happening on my Facebook feed about how this was the fault of the FBI, or DHS, or Islam, or mental illness, or hate, or the USA being "Godless", but as soon as the conversation approaches gun reform that would pull assault rifles from the market the conversation turns to the importance of "liberty." I'm so glad we protected this asshole's liberty to buy a weapon after he beat his wife, was reported for violent statements, and twice investigated by the FBI for links to terrorism. God forbid we infringe on his liberty or the liberty of any other whack job who has been shown themselves to be so lacking in control that they abuse others. Protect their liberty, give them guns!

It is enraging. I am disgusted that people are avoiding naming the LGBT community as victims. I am horrified by the people I see claiming that what is most important is that Americans were attacked, pointedly arguing that their LGBT status doesn't matter--these are the same people who voted AGAINST marriage equality. Who support legislation that prevents their fellow citizens, even themselves, from bringing discrimination suits. Americans? You care about your fellow Americans so much that you voted to keep them as second-class citizens? Please, just stop.

And, of course, Trump is using this horror to promote his ridiculous Muslim ban and insinuate that Obama has an ulterior motive because he won't use the term "radical Islam." https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...ando-shooting/

This is our country now? We let our children be slaughtered in their classrooms and our friends be murdered at a night club and we move towards the possibility of electing a conspiracy theorist, and yet we won't pull assault rifles from the market? We won't permit the CDC to conduct research into guns as a public health issue? Are we that afraid of information and change?

It's almost too painful and overwhelming and exhausting and terrifying to think about. What a disaster. My mind won't stop spinning.

I could not say this any better, thank you.

[SoonerTexan]

Orlando Shooting

I'm just going to point out that we do have (responsible) gun owning members (not sure how many are active anymore).
I am not one of them. I want nothing to do with guns and have no interest in owning them. I am all for making it very very hard to own a gun. But I've met these members and call other gun owners friends and they are most definitely not terrorists.

I think blanket calling all gun owners terrorists is the wrong response. If anything, that's why nothing has been done. The extremes on either side of the issue are unwilling to compromise on something that would make us all safer. I get the strong reaction, but it makes me cringe.


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[alotofyarn]

Agree with ST. I understand the anger over the situation, and I'm angry too, but there are a whole lot more gun owners that haven't killed people than those who have. I don't care much for guns, but a lot of my family members really enjoy building them and safely shooting them at a gun range. That doesn't make them a terrorist.

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[Vanquisher]

The reason the 2nd amendment is there is so we could stand up against a tyrannical government and form a militia. It's not so we can shoot skeet, have the right to hunt prairie dogs or cougars or anything else. It's not even so that when a horrible person comes into my home and wants to take my shit, that I can shoot him.

We are well past the times of musket balls and standing up to a tyrannical government with a line of dudes in three corner caps.

If we wanted to stand up against our government at this point, it would have to be with our millions voices, our votes, and our world behind us.

The constitution is s living document do people forget how much has been added? Taken away? This isn't a stone tablet.

I'm tired of the same old arguments of "if you take away all the guns, only the bad guys will have them."

Bullshit. Bullshit. We are a powerful people and we could get rid of this if we cared at all about not mowing down rooms of innocent people in seconds.

Since there's no way most people would go as far as I do, let's at least have and enforce a ban on assault weapons. Limit the amount of guns a person can own, require licensure, require strict, lengthy background checks, no guns for terrorist sympathizers, no transfer of ownership.

There are so many things we can do, but we'll do NOTHING, and in another day in another US town, people will not even pretend anymore to be shocked when another mass shooting occurs. And repeat.