School Walkouts

[Punaperson]

I am not against guns per se. I grew up on the mainland hunting with a .22, and until recently, owned a gun for self-protection. ( I sold my Glock 9mm because after my road was paved, my house was broken into 3 times in a year, each time while I was not home, and I did not want it to end in the hands of someone who would use it for the wrong purpose. I have other means of self-protection now. )

Having said that, the easy access to large caliber, semi-automatic weapons is something our society needs to deal with. I read the autopsy reports of the Parkland students, and was horrified by the commentary within, and the accompanying medical articles . According to the articles, a .22 or a 9mm, will cause damage to the human body as it goes through, but no where near the damage of the bullets of an AR-15. Those enter the human body with such energy that they literally shatter the internal organs and make them explode, leaving no hope of repair or survivability. I asked a friend who owns an AR-15 if I could see the bullets used. They were several magnitudes larger than anything I had seen or used. If anyone is not familiar with them, please take the time to see how different they are from what I used to think of as a ‘normal’ bullet, and then think of what they will do to a human body.

I know children who now have major anxiety going to school here in Puna because they have all heard/ read about the incidents that have recently made the local news about the shootings/hostage incidents,. They know that it is the crazies who cause the problems, but they also all know there are many, many crazies in Puna. Arming the teachers is not going to solve the problems of kids being fearful of going to school because they might get shot. ( And correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t it reported that the Parkland shooter was wearing some type of body armor, so that a precise head shot would have been needed to bring him down ? )


Also, having been to Australia several times, they were able to deal with their gun issue in a way that was seen as a reasonable compromise, and have had no mass shooting in 20 years. Now beefs are settled the good old fashion way, with drinking contests and pub brawls. Civilized ? Maybe more than the US.

[PaulW]

Thank you Punaperson, there is still hope.

RWR/airpogparking, see what I mean about mental contortions? A gun nut calling someone without a gun "violent" and "we should be watching you".
Sometimes it takes a tragedy before people understand what is common sense to everyone else. I'm trying to avoid tragedies, not cause them.

KJ, you rattling off NRA bumper stickers just proves my point about mental slaves. So, never been to Australia, so what would you know about how they compare to the US.

[Kapoho Joe]

Keep it up Paul, you're doing a really great job swaying my opinion! /S

[PaulW]

Oh I've given up on that already, don't worry.

[Kenney]

really. This thread is very discouraging.
Poor kids.

[Old Croc]

Australia is a different beast. It is a socialist nation with cradle-to-grave welfare. There are generations of families who have never worked.
Its population is only about 25 million vs. over 327 million in the U.S.
Australia did not come about by a violent revolution from an authoritarian government.
There are over 11 million illegal aliens in the U.S., which would be over 44% of the Australian population if they were there.
There are over 40 million Africans in the U.S., which would be over 160% of the Australian population if they were there.
The most popular crime is theft.
The majority of homicides were committed using firearms. The number has been decreasing, although not consistently, since 1992, about five years before the gun confiscation law took effect. (Source: Australian Institute of Criminology, National Homicide Monitoring Program)

[PaulW]

Do you really want to be on the same side as this ^

[PaulW]

"It is a socialist nation with cradle-to-grave welfare."
No, it is not. Have you ever been there? Let me guess!

"There are generations of families who have never worked"
As is the case in every country.

"Australia did not come about by a violent revolution from an authoritarian government."
So?

"There are over 11 million illegal aliens in the U.S., which would be over 44% of the Australian population if they were there."
That is a ridiculous comparison. You might want to compare percentages instead of absolute numbers if countries have such a large difference in population. Anyway, what about illegal aliens? Do we need guns so that we may shoot them?

"There are over 40 million Africans in the U.S., which would be over 160% of the Australian population if they were there."
Africans? Dear Sir, whatever do you mean? South Africans?

"The majority of homicides were committed using firearms."
Wrong. Check your source. In reality only 14% of murders in Australia are committed using firearms. The difficulty in obtaining a gun has probably led to the overall decrease in the murder rate. Hey, something we could do with here in Hawaii.
http://theconversation.com/three-charts-...ates-79654

[Tink]

Well it appears that the protests are being heard, so to speak. Another major retailer on the mainland is pulling inventory and not selling anymore guns. Another step in the eventual removal of the second amendment , but a downfall as a result of knee jerk actions. What amendment will be next due to this process?
I state this as the right to bear arms is not the problem as I see it, but the type of gun being allowed to purchase. An assault rifle is designed to kill humans, and only humans. If you use one to hunt, you will have more lead than meat when you bring it home. Does saturating the area with a barrage of bullets make you a better hunter?
The sad thing is, gun manufacturers were facing a slow death until their marketing department took advantage of what is seen in the movies and decided to sell to the public a "badass" rifle that will make one feel "king of the jungle" once in ones hands. Just like "Ahnold" in the movie Terminator. Put that weapon in the hands of an insecure individual that wants to "be somebody" and you are seeing the results.
My feeling is ban all assault type rifles and return to the bolt action single round rifle for hunting purposes and have licensing requirements of minimum age 25. If there is a way, only sell them in areas that the caliber of the hunting rifle matches the wild game of the area. No sense in selling an elephant gun if only rabbits are the wild game. No sense selling or having a gun in a densely populated area as well. Establish "No Firearm Zones" in those areas and actually enforce the law. Pulled over by the cops and you have a weapon, you better have an active hunting license and tags that match the weapon found. State game preserves with an approved, licensed guide where one could hunt with the guide and their equipment by providing the proper credentials is another option.

Community begins with Aloha

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

What amendment will be next due to this process?

Do any other amendments (other than the 2nd Amendment) kill 30,000+ people every year, as well as taking lives from innocent children on a regular basis?


My feeling is ban all assault type rifles and return to the bolt action single round rifle for hunting purposes and have licensing requirements of minimum age 25.

That sounds like a reasonable compromise, which lies somewhere between what both sides want.

I said, ‘Wrong, Justin (Trudeau), you do.’ I didn’t even know. ... I had no idea. I just said, ‘You’re wrong.’ - President Donald J. Trump, 3/14/18