Take-aways from the Giffords Shooting

What can we do with the little we know?

Sorry this is so long.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Gabrielle
• Giffords
• Jared
• Lee
• Loughner
• Raúl
• Grijalva
• gun
• free
• speech
• rights
• assassination
• attempt
• concealed
• weapons
• public
• events
• safety
• accountability
• individual
• responsibility
• censorship
• first
• second
• amendment

[LiberaLib]

i've gotten tired of fighting the gun control fight. let the right have their guns. what i read FFTA as saying is that we're just going to have to accept that this sort of thing is going to happen as a result. this incident disproves the argument that we're safer with guns. there WAS a guy there with a gun, he couldn't get there till it was too late. takes less than five seconds to kill or maim 20 people with a gun of this kind. by the time you pull out YOUR gun, it's over.

[FeelFreeToArgue]

@LiberaLib I did a vid a while back which has gotten a lot of hate called How fast is your morality. Once again, I wasn't really saying anything about gun control, more explaining why I personally will not use a gun because of the relationship between the split second time frame and the necessary certainty, in my mind, involved in pulling the trigger. Apparently, a lot of people feel very certain that they would be right - I can only wonder if I'd agree.

[MarmaladeINFP]

Why are debates always portrayed as black/white? Many (I suspect most) people are for gun rights AND for gun regulation. Just because I don't want crazy people with criminal records to be able to legally buy guns doesn't mean I'm against the second amendment.

[FeelFreeToArgue]

@MarmaladeINFP How dare you be reasonable about this issue. Find a pole to defend, like a decent person.

[mejt223]

Im sad to see you Zach argue to the lowest common denominatoor (stricter gun laws) of this event.

Im not a gun owner and no one aroiund me is, but I can see that more gun control will not solve or stop more of this from happening.

You say youre not judging, but you are.

Where I would like to see ANY discussion on this situation would be:

Was he on medication? What type? Anti depressants? Ritilan? This is a far bigger issue to me when 1/4 kids are on one of the two.

[FeelFreeToArgue]

@mejt223 I think it is interesting that I say personal responsibility but you hear gun control. Do you think people should be free to use a gun irresponsibly. Do you agree with the shooter in this case?

All I say is that if you do not do psych screenings on people before you sell them a gun then crazy people will get guns. I think this is a reasonable consequence, borne out by this exact instance.

Your reaction to this vid does not help your case.

[Inderrix]

Sir you seem to be smart,and you hit many good points.

I absolutely agree that trying to gain votes or favor through painting your opponent as a bad person is ultimately a morally bankrupt idea.

We should be careful how we exercise our rights. The fact of how everyone regards how important they are but never how we should use them wisely is a problem that is likely going to cost us in the long run.

But I'd like to remind you that most crimes involving firearms are done with illegal firearms.

[paddedshell]

"Get on Target for Victory in November Help remove Gabrielle Giffords from office Shoot a fully automatic M16 with Jesse Kelly" is NOT inches away. It can be interpreted in no other way. Palin has introduced linguistic salad with a side of cute in such a way that this imagery can be spewed at will while everyone pretends it's funny or a clever way of "just sayin'". It is provocation, it's what cheer leaders do, it's getting an audience worked up into a frenzy for the kill.

[paddedshell]

as someone who has been "diagnosed" and re-diagnosed with one mental disorder or another, I can vouch that anyone can pass as sane for at least long enough to undergo psych screening. the crazy talk has to be called out for what it is. I include the lunatic conspiracy theorists, the right wing militants, every bat shit fundamentalist cult, and for crap sake, get these kids who think they're on some spiritual dream transcendence some help. more people are on the edge than anyone wants to admit.

[55ella2007k]

Once you start demonizing your opponent, making them appear as less human, then there will be trouble ahead, regardless of whether this is legal or not. Speech has consequences + underhanded symbolism towards violence, while sometimes justified, should be looked at very carefully, especially by those who initially agree with the sentiment. The feeling of resentment in the face of injustice + corruption, oftentimes backfires upon itself, as long as underlying cause is not addressed.

[55ella2007k]

Your take on the 'distance' between the political class vs. their constituents is, in my opinion, accurate + this incident will only serve to further this distance.

[KazukiSeirei]

Spot on my friend, spot on! =D

Peace.

[Smarterthanyouarable]

@FeelFreeToArgue I have been in that situation. Adrenalin kicks in and you can make the decision. Someone was trying to run me down with a truck and I pointed my gun at the driver and began pulling the trigger when I realized shattering the windshield would be just as effective.

[Heartbreakin]

As a kid I vaugely remember the hate filled attacks on Carter,then Reagan, Bush etc....and of course this current adminstration is not the first to feel the full rath of the internets. The last admin took an incredible barrage of the (hate side) dialectic, from bloggers and pundits.Not everyone has the ability to debate & calmly sooth people, like a Noam Chomsky. As for this Jared guy ,he had no issues to kill for, no issues ....let alone to even debate.

[tyrbolo]

@FeelFreeToArgue LOL The Laws are not "lax" in Nevada and Arizona, they are quite rigourously enforced.

California on the other hand is notoriously slack about enforcement because they have way to many bad laws on the books which are selectively enforced. It is also a State where a mimeoed bill of rights presented as

a petition couldn't get signatures because it was "too controversial".

BTW pricks who shoot women and children usually get hung in the states of the west even if they are insane.

[Connect2Homes]

A psych evaulation while novel will not stop a crazed man or women from obtaining a gun if they want it that bad. It will add government jobs though. Awesome.