I am genuinely afraid that this country is openly headed for a civil war or some other form of mass violence....but no one else in the states seems to think so....I hope I'm wrong....but, I've seen this building for a long time, dating back to the early 80's....the more power the right-wing got, the more vicious and brutally raw their personal attacks, the more violent they've become, the more self-isolating and intellectually lazy, racist, bigoted, homophobic...well, so much raw hate and negativity....it's got to go somewhere...
...and now that they are out of power, and can't start wars on an international scale....it's just got to go somewhere, like steam from a pressure cooker.
Some of the things I'm reading on an American hunting forum these days--by so-called "average" American men, are quite disturbing.
I fear for all of us . We all know it is getting to the point where there will be only one way to fight back .
They want to prevent criminals from going to more lenient states to buy guns. I say let the criminals buy more guns, maybe we can reduce the population of socialist liberals that way. Start with Obama and Hilary.
Only criminals use guns in crimes, why should we law-abiding American citizens have to give up our guns because of these scum?
No one is a criminal until he or she actually is convicted of a crime. Just under half of all murders by shooting in America, are committed by people who either have no criminal record, or have only misdemanors on their record, with no previous history of violent crime.
This comment came from a California man who was upset with President Obama's stance, regarding California's fiscal crisis (It's significant to note that he was NOT upset with republican Gov. Arnold Swartzenager):
Buy guns and ammo boys, and be ready to roll!!
(Note: it's particularly distrubing that this last person used that particular phrase. "Be ready to roll!," became part of the popular culture in America, after being used by a 9/11 victim on one of the downed planes--that this mook chose this to mean fighting his fellow Americans--aka: domestic terrorism...is more than a little ironic.)
FACT--Everyday in the United States, 8 young Americans ages 19 and under are killed in gun homicides, suicides, and unintentional shootings. In 2002, 3,012 children and teens were killed by gunfire in the United States of America. In one year, more children and teens died from gunfire than from cancer, pneumonia, influenza, asthma, and HIV/AIDS combined.
FACT--American children are more at risk from firearms than the children of any other industrialized nation. In one year, firearms killed no children in Japan, 19 in Great Britain, 57 in Germany, 109 in France, 153 in Canada, and 5,285 in the United States. The rate of firearm deaths among kids under age 15 is almost 12 times higher in the United States than in 25 other industrialized countries combined.
Pro-gun Americans persistantly continue to block all efforts to save children's lives, under the pretense of gun owner's fears of having their constituional right to bear arms imepeded.
This is what one American gun owner, had to say about the recent shooting of seven school children in Detroit:
more reasons to take our guns.detriot is nothing but wasted space.
I think that speaks volumes for the skewed mentality, lack of any real depth or character--and, the infantile thinking of the average gun-owning American male, these days.
FACT--Americans own an estimated 2 MILLION guns...and those are just the one's that are legally registered.
FACT--In 2000, there were an estimated 52,447 deliberate and 23,237 accidental non-fatal gunshot injuries within the United States.
FACT--In the USA, in 2004, 16,907 deaths were caused by suicide with firearms.
FACT--Due to lax state laws, record-keeping for gun buyers is often quite shoddy. In the state of New York recently, convicted felons were erroneously allowed to obtain hunting permits.
FACT--Faulty records enable terrorists, illegal aliens and criminals to purchase guns. Over a two and a half-year period, at least 9,976 convicted felons and other illegal buyers in 46 states obtained guns because of inadequate records. The NRA (Natl. Rifle Assn.) and other pro-gun lobby groups, have blocked all efforts by legislators and anti-crime supporters to crack down on states and businesses, who keep shoddy records.
FACT--In America, children as young as 5 or 6 years old, are encouranged to use firearms. The American Medical Association reports that between 36% and 50% of male eleventh graders believe that they could easily get a gun if they wanted one. Children that cannot vote, or drive a car or fight in a war, are allowed to use firearms in some states, without ANY age restrictions. This has resulted in the accidental deaths of children as young as five years old, whom were allowed to use automatic weapons--such as an Uzi (while under "adult" supervision).
FACT--Americans for Gun Safety produced a 2003 report that reveals that 20 of the nation’s 22 national gun laws are not enforced. Studies show that 1 percent of gun stores sell the weapons traced to 57 percent of gun crimes. Some states have no requirement that guns be kept in safe storage, increasing the risk of theft for use in violent crime.
FACT-at least HALF of all of this country's gun violence isn't by career criminals or gang members at all--but by legal "law-abiding" gun owners, who go suddenly lose what's left of their brains, go nuts and start shooting at wives/girlfriends, kids, family members, and people in their workplace/commuinty/schools, people they've met on the internet...a large majority of these shooters, either have no prior run-in's with the law, or very minor (misdemeanor) infractions.
FACT--many weapons, including those used by terrorists, are purchased at gun shows, where unlicensed dealers and private citizens, are allowed to buy and sell guns UNREGULATED. Many so-called "law-abiding" gun owning Amerian citizens privately sell firearms without doing any background checks or inquiring about licenses, or other regulations. It is a known fact supported by the FBI, the ATF and Homeland Security, that guns purchased at AMERICAN gun shows, are often shipped overseas, and may well wind up in terrorist hands.
FACT--while roughly 6% of the American population uses guns for hunting, some 60% of Americans admit to owning and/or firing a gun.
FACT--almost half of all guns used in violent crimes against American citizens--including children, were obtained LEGALLY.
FACT--Every day, more than 80 Americans die from gun violence.
