Mass shooting on campus in Oregon

Expert: Woman shouldn't have fired gun at Home Depot shoplifter

 

But that evil shoplifter might've gotten away with 9 dollars and 77 cents worth of lugnuts and superglue if she hadn't come out blasting. She's a goddamn vigilante superhero!

 

Word was that it was close to a grand worth of tools and such. The thing is that I doubt she had a clue of what was downrange when she opened up. If she had hit an old man or a baby by accident this is an entirely different discussion. This is the great fear regarding the "good guy with a gun", that he may not judge the situation correctly and shoots the wrong person, or that he simply screws up because he is not used to shooting under combat pressure and stress.

Once you squeeze the trigger that bullet is going somewhere, and you don't know where unless you are firing into a solid backstop.

 

Congress Still Bans CDC Scientists From Studying Gun Violence

 

You REALLY don't believe that an extensive waiting period wouldn't give someone a chance to cool off, or perhaps a suicidal person time to rethink things and get help?

 

This discussion made me curious about Canadian gun laws so I looked up the application form on the RCMP website. The application process includes a background check that can take "up to 45 days" and you cannot apply for a license until you have completed a required training course.

What guns can you have?

This part I wasn't aware of (and it makes absolute sense:

 

Washington Post editorial rips Republicans for contemptible and/or ignorant comments about gun violence, says they real the "poverty" of the anti-gun control argument:

INCREASINGLY UNHINGED commentary by Republican presidential candidates about the massacre last week at a community college in Oregon might not seem worth a second glance. Some of the statements have been contemptible and/or ignorant, it is true. But they are worthy of attention, if only for what they say about the poverty of the argument against regulation of gun ownership.

Republican candidates’ dangerous incoherence on guns

But, by the end, they're forced to concede that that Republicans are "right" up to a point. We can't prevent all violence, which are the statements that have many on the left most "unhinged":

Up to a point they are right, of course; the government will never prevent all violence. But it’s also perfectly obvious that the government could take steps that would reduce the incidence of mass shootings, suicides, domestic homicides, children shooting children and other gun violence.

And, despite its obviousness, the post doesn't advocate for any specific "steps" that the government could take to reduce gun violence.

It's been pointed out that the most often mentioned "steps", like "closing the gun show loophole" will do little.

So, what does the Post propose, and why won't they tell us?

If we're going to have a discussion, put it out there. Are your ideas any good, or are they similarly "unhinged"?

Maybe the WaPo could look at one proven tactic that dramatically reduced gun violence -- Stop, Question, and Frisk.

I wonder if they support that.

 

How do those Canadian restrictions get around the 2nd Amendment?

Oh, right...

 

We must do everything possible to reduce gun violence, unless it requires spending political capital:

The White House thinks the acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is doing such a great job, they’re planning to demote him.

The unusual move allows the administration, which has said fighting gun violence is a top priority, to avoid a nasty confirmation hearing for a troubled agency.

The Obama administration has no plans to name a permanent director for the agency, and career agent Thomas Brandon has been serving as the acting chief since April. But by law, he can’t hold that interim title for longer than 120 days, and that clock runs out on Oct. 27.

Brandon confirmed to POLITICO on Wednesday that he has agreed to stay on while re-assuming his previous title of deputy director – but still serving as the agency’s highest-ranking official.

“We're not going to nominate you, but we have full confidence in you if you stay at the ATF,” said Brandon, recounting the explanation he received from the White House.

"If they don't nominate anybody and I revert back to just the deputy director, but I'm still the CEO, I will give the taxpayers what I've always given them: a hard day's work,'' Brandon said in an interview following a summit on violent crime hosted by Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

The arrangement would leave the federal agency in charge of regulating the firearms industry and investigating illegal guns without an official leader indefinitely, even as gun violence has once again become an administration priority. President Barack Obama has vowed to do all he can to reduce gun violence in the wake of last week's college shooting in Roseburg, Oregon -– where he plans to travel to pay respects to the victims on Friday -– all while continuing to castigate Congress for refusing to pass new gun control laws.

White House plans to leave top gun control job vacant

 

That's the thing.

I was required to take training on how to drive a car. I also had to take training to get a CDL.

Shit, I'm required to take bi-annual training to ensure I don't accidentally say anything sexually suggestive to a co-worker.

Yet, all I need to buy a gun is a pulse and a "take my word for it" assurance of mental stability.

 

What training did you take before you were allowed to vote?

 

High school civics class?