Quote:
Originally Posted by Azhiri
I saw some quote from some guy somewhere who was using the incident as an example of why more people should be able to carry guns because someone could have stopped Holmes when he opened fire. Honestly, I think that's a terrible sentiment for two reasons -
1. The guy was covered in protective armor. He wouldn't have gone down too easily - and if someone managed to kill him, he wouldn't have been able to tip the police off after he was taken into custody that his apartment was rigged with explosives.
2. In the confusion with people running around, this guy armed, stalking up and down the aisles in the dark theater, anyone else with a gun on them could have easily gotten confused and ended up harming even more innocent people, and caused even more panic.
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You don't fully understand how body armor works. Even if you're wearing armor, you won't just go "hahaha" and stand perfectly still (unaffected) as you're being shot. The impact of the round will still knock you down and allow the opportunity for others to disarm you. The point of body armor is that you're more likely to survive a shot due to the lack of penetration (depending on the round and type of armor worn).
And actually, I agree with the quote you're alluding to. I did a research paper on gun control back in 2009 for school and I was against gun control after seeing how uneffective it is statistically when it comes to preventing crime as well as these kinds of catastrophic situations. The majority of people who USE guns to commit crimes obtain them illegally. Gun control typically only hurts those who use them legally. Besides, if an armed burglar enters your home, wouldn't you like to at least have the OPTION of being able to shoot back?
Instead of restricting the sale of firearms in general, I think they should work to restrict the TYPE of firearms available for purchase, as well as the time it takes to purchase additional guns in succession. According to the news, he purchased all of them within the span of a few weeks. Look at how easily this guy was able to purchase an ASSAULT RIFLE. These kinds of weapons should not be sold to regular civilians. And WTF - 100 round magazines?? Ridiculous.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Euphoria
Well, to me that sort of thing seems planned, which points to more deep seated psychological problems than just going crazy.
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Definitely more deeply seated psych issues. In fact, I'm tired of people automatically labeling these kinds of people as "crazy." I understand that it helps to distance yourself from the kind of horror that such people are capable of and say "that ain't me." But truthfully, the scary part may in fact be that they are NOT crazy. They're as sane as you or me, but they crossed the line at some point and went the extreme route. You never know what you're capable of, and saying that they're "crazy" is not addressing the real issue. The psychological effects of pressure and stress in modern society has and continues to cause increasingly "crazy" behavior. I won't go into my technology rant because I don't want Unabomber comparisons again, but seriously, times like these make me want to go back to the hunterer/gatherer era.
AHHHH Have more to say but I gotta go
