rmanx Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Also the unsurprisingly high number of people who end up "defending" themselves or their loved ones in the home instead of intruders. And I am sure I read somewhere that carrying a gun dramatically increases your chance of being shot...ironically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notwell Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 The ingrained mentality of the average American to guns is really quite disturbing if media reports are a fair representation of the public view. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guzzi Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 The ingrained mentality of the average American to guns is really quite disturbing if media reports are a fair representation of the public view. I'm not sure that pro-gun attitudes represent the public view. My understanding and impression is that in the major population centres of the NE, the urban mid-west (e.g. Chicago) and California, attitudes favour stricter gun-control. In the south and south west, they don't. Obviously, a generalisation, but there is some truth in the stereotype of a Texan with a gun. If the US were to hold a referendum, I don't think it is a given that the pro-gun lobby would win. But at the moment, whilst individual states have a provision for 'initiatives and referendums' or related democratic processes, there is no national equivalent. Proposing a change to the constitution, such as repeal of the second amendment, would need either a two thirds majority in both houses of congress, or two thirds of the states, to support the proposal. It would then require endorsement by 38 of the 50 states. So whatever the popular mood, relinquishing the second amendment would need huge huge effort to shift the democratic machinery. With the current state of the parties in Congress, it just ain't going to happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmanx Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Popular opinion is no match for well funded lobby groups with direct access to those in power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the stinking enigma Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thesultanofsheight Posted October 10, 2015 Author Share Posted October 10, 2015 The ingrained mentality of the average American to guns is really quite disturbing if media reports are a fair representation of the public view. I've spent quite a lot of time in the States and the attitude of some people you meet there scares the crap out of you. A lot of the country is just detached from reality and they've almost become actors in their own collective movie that bears no relation to anything going on in the real world. This guy was hardcore US military and came to Europe on holiday and inadvertently thwarted a terrorist attack almost single handedly. He gets better, goes back to the States, goes to the pub, and a few weeks later gets stabbed half to death in the street. On top of that all the misery in Syria, Iraq, Afganistan etc, etc, etc has been caused by those USA backed bastards trying to make the world a "safer" place, and the end result is that it's clearly now as "safe" in Syria, or Afganistan or Paris as it is in Hicksville USA where armed nutters are also everywhere ready to kill you for no apparent reason. The common denominator would often seem to be; Americans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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