Originally Posted by wesiscool

Guess its time to invest money into mental health.

Not true. It is a statistical certainty that a certain number of "crazies" will exist in any country, regardless of how good the mental health system. What is important is that they don't get access to firearms.

Then if the crazies don't get firearms, they will use knives/anything dangerous...

Originally Posted by wesiscool

Then if the crazies don't get firearms, they will use knives/anything dangerous...

See post #14.

Fact is if they ban guns, its already out there. It will be like prohibition. It will not help. Maybe psychological testings or exams if you may might be needed in order to get access to a gun.

Originally Posted by Alexmahone

Note that none of the children in the Chinese incident were killed, which is why the US needs to ban guns.

I doubt that would change anything. you can kill people with knives just as you can with guns. Maybe not as easily, but that doesn't mean they're any less dangerous. plus, since there are inevitable survivors, some severely injured, there's a lot more trauma inflicted on those kids.

as well, if people wanted to commit atrocities they could find any number of ways to do it, including poisonous gas and bombs.

while I personally stand on the "no guns" side of the issue, guns could easily be obtained through other underground sources. (and also, @stja1: the other gunman in the mall shooting from a few days ago, he stole a gun from an acquaintance, so putting steps to do psych evals on gun owners wouldn't really change that situation)

I don't really feel that this kind of horrific event is possible to prevent. some people can be caught early if people know the warning signs, but there are some who don't have any psychological problems and thus are unpredictable. It's just the sad truth of today's society.

Originally Posted by Alexmahone

Not true. It is a statistical certainty that a certain number of "crazies" will exist in any country, regardless of how good the mental health system. What is important is that they don't get access to firearms.

lack of proper care for mental patients is a big issue. the real problem is that reagan shut down the national asylums some thirty years ago, which not only results in our current homeless problem (most of the homeless are the mentally disturbed and children), but also events like what happened in connecticut. american societys current structure is making people more likely to mental disease, and we're doing nothing to care for these people. because of this, we end up with events like today. its important to see what we can do at the root of the problem and see how we can counter it with the use of therapy and drugs and not some random point of the problem's path such as whether our murderer used a gun, bomb, or a knife.

invest money on security guards at school?

Originally Posted by ymich

invest money on security guards at school?

I highly doubt the next school shooter is going to target the same school...

Originally Posted by Alexmahone

I highly doubt the next school shooter is going to target the same school...

It really makes no difference whether a school has had a mass shooting before. If they don't change any protocols/security, then they are just as likely to have a second mass shooting as they were to have the first.

Most of the time, the school is chosen because it has some sort of meaning to the shooter. Just because it has happened once to the school, that doesn't mean someone else can't do the same thing at the same school, and it's naive to think otherwise.

It's also naive to blame guns. If a person wants to do something like this, they will find a way. I agree that you shouldn't make it easy, that there should be protection and regulations in place, and I'm generally in favour of stronger gun laws rather than more lax laws, but I don't think you should look at something like this and blame guns or gun laws.

Originally Posted by starfish

It really makes no difference whether a school has had a mass shooting before. If they don't change any protocols/security, then they are just as likely to have a second mass shooting as they were to have the first.

Most of the time, the school is chosen because it has some sort of meaning to the shooter. Just because it has happened once to the school, that doesn't mean someone else can't do the same thing at the same school, and it's naive to think otherwise.

It's also naive to blame guns. If a person wants to do something like this, they will find a way. I agree that you shouldn't make it easy, that there should be protection and regulations in place, and I'm generally in favour of stronger gun laws rather than more lax laws, but I don't think you should look at something like this and blame guns or gun laws.

Agreed. There are many other ways to kill people, home made bombs, knives (China) etc. Gun's are just another way to do so, if one has a reason to kill someone or a group of people (I never see a reason in killing anyone) but some psychopaths may; they will find a way to do so. Blaming gun laws is not the most viable solution at the moment, as other problems can and probably will arise due to this.

I would just ban guns so that higher sentences can be achieved.
Scary fact: the average sentence for cold-blooded murder is five years in jail.
EDIT: In America.

Originally Posted by Zebedee

I would just ban guns so that higher sentences can be achieved.
Scary fact: the average sentence for cold-blooded murder is five years in jail.
EDIT: In America.

Why don't you just ban crime? That would definitely be a lot easier and totally solve all the problems.

It's also naive to blame guns. If a person wants to do something like this, they will find a way. I agree that you shouldn't make it easy, that there should be protection and regulations in place, and I'm generally in favour of stronger gun laws rather than more lax laws, but I don't think you should look at something like this and blame guns or gun laws.

Most of the people who do these things don't follow the laws to begin with, so stricter laws would just piss off most of America. And you are right, you really shouldn't blame the guns.

I mean, when 9/11 happened, nobody blamed the planes, did they?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8C6Wkkabcbs

Banning guns in the US will be the biggest waste of money and it will not solve anything. But damn I know some politician will love making those jobs.
Also the gun that was used at Connecticut is for varmint, and even in Canada, would be illegal to hunt deer with, you would need something stronger.
Its shitty parents and bad access to mental healthcare

Also, its obviously not a fraud, but this guy is pretty weird after losing his daughter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urrRcgB581w