Going back to something Saya said, gun ownership is legal in Canada and Mexico, so where is the justification that illegal guns in either country only come from the US? Both countries allow gun ownership at 18 - in Canada, as young as 12 in some cases. In the US, the legal age for rifles is 18, handguns, etc is 21. And all guns manufactured in the US have to be marked and serialized.
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Originally Posted by Versus
Firstly, fuck you.
I didn't say they would no longer be in circulation. I said that gun crime rates would drop. A lot. That is a fact. I take examples from every other fucking country that has done it.
I can see it now. Next you're going to say that if you make owning handguns illegal because they're dangerous, you should do the same for kitchen and fast cars.
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Crime is going down in the US anyway, as I've already pointed out and backed up with source directly to the FBI's website. Statistically, violent crime is the lowest it's been since 2000.
Most gun crimes in the US are committed by gangs who do not obtain their guns via the legal route. Making guns illegal is not going to stop that.
You cannot legally own a gun if you have a criminal record.
You cannot legally own a gun if you have a history of mental illness.
I'm well aware that these laws do not always prevent criminals or mentally ill people from obtaining guns, such as the case with VA tech where - IIRC, the shooter had a history of mental illness but somehow was still able to purchase a gun. That is the fault of whoever was in charge of his records tho, not the fault of gun laws.
While I agree with and support legislation that makes background checks more thorough, and makes it more difficult to obtain guns via alternate means, such as craigslist, flea markets, etc., without going through proper background checks - I even support legislation that requires training courses at purchase, on how to properly handle a firearm - I will never support making gun ownership illegal and neither will the vast majority of Americans. And yes, it very much is a sense of entitlement, which is provided by the 2nd amendment. Many would argue that it is also a responsibility as a citizen.
I've always been around guns. For as long as I can remember, both my grandfathers owned guns (one being a wwII vet, the other a korean war vet), my dad has always owned guns, my uncle casts his own bullets and has for decades, which he learned from his dad. Who knows how much ammo that man has by now. At last count my brother has 7 or 8 guns and shotguns. All growing up, my one granddad kept a revolver strapped to the bottom of the kitchen table pointed at the door "just in case". It's still there 7 years after he's gone. While it's a little extreme, we've always thought it was more than a little comical. I can't remember any of them ever using their guns for hunting or going to any shooting ranges. They keep them for protection, not sport.
I don't even know how many guns my family owns, but I have never once been tempted to grab one and go on a spree no matter how pissed off I've gotten. I see them as a means of defense, not aggression. It provides an extra sense of security knowing that if some fucker breaks in my house or tries to rob me while I'm out somewhere I always have a gun within reach and while I may not live through the confrontation, I will make damned sure he won't either. And I really don't give a fuck if that offends you or anybody else. It is my
human right to defend myself and my family from an aggressor, as it is everyone else's, and that is what the majority of responsible gun owners in the US see it as.