a follow-up poll might be:
Why do all Republican's object to gun control?

1. because it (debatably) conflicts with our 2nd Amendment right.

2. they're funded by the gun lobby, including the NRA, who wield heavy influence.

3. they're anal retentive and don't feel safe without a deadly weapon even though statistics indicate it is more dangerous to own a gun than not to.

4. the ak47 pins look so cool on our Congressional Reps despite them being the murder weapon of choice used on our children

but that list got even too snarky for me

Republicans also like to say guns don’t kill people; people kill people and blame mass shootings on mental health issues. Yet they don’t support funding for mental health services. Their arguments never make sense to me.

Guns: The American Sickness. The Eternal and Incurable National Social Disease (the "gift" that keeps on giving). America's Favorite Candy and Not At All Guilty Pleasure.

Gun deaths? School massacres and church shootings? Meh. Sh!t happens. There is no unacceptable tipping point. No intolerable amount of "collateral damage." No "beyond the pale." The sky's the limit. And like Heaven above, the Second Amendment is holy and sacred and must be honored . . . at all costs. No matter the costs. It will never be infringed. God willing.

. . . and God is a Rock-Ribbed, Right-Wing Gun Owner . . . who has all of us in His gunsight.

On 11/5/2025 at 6:06 PM, macphysto said:

Guns: The American Sickness. The Eternal and Incurable National Social Disease (the "gift" that keeps on giving). America's Favorite Candy and Not At All Guilty Pleasure.

Gun deaths? School massacres and church shootings? Meh. Sh!t happens. There is no unacceptable tipping point. No intolerable amount of "collateral damage." No "beyond the pale." The sky's the limit. And like Heaven above, the Second Amendment is holy and sacred and must be honored . . . at all costs. No matter the costs. It will never be infringed. God willing.

. . . and God is a Rock-Ribbed, Right-Wing Gun Owner . . . who has all of us in His gunsight.

“America’s favorite candy and not at all a guilty pleasure”

Daily mass shooting has become a common place occurrence. It shouldn’t! It shouldn’t happen and we shouldn’t be numb to it. 13 years ago Sandy hook Elementary school massacre occurred 20 children and six adults were killed. I thought certainly this will be the turning point. It wasn’t. While watching the latest shooting at Brown College last night, 2 killed 9 seriously injured my first thought was dear God not another one. A reporter was interviewing a student. Visibly shaken the young student explained she picked this college because she felt it was safe and secure. She had been in a mass shooting in middle school. She was shot in the stomach and she survived. Her best friend was not as lucky. He died on the scene. As she told the story it gave me chills when she very calmly said I can’t believe this is happening again. I felt sick, why should this poor girl have ever had to go through any school shooting let alone two. What is it going to take? I ask myself that question way too often these days. What’s it going to take?

1 hour ago, Lindy said:

"Daily mass shooting has become a common place occurrence. It shouldn’t! It shouldn’t happen and we shouldn’t be numb to it . . . What's it going to take?"

More than is capable of the human will, alas.

An acquaintance of mine who is a self-described "flaming liberal" bought a gun after DJT was re-elected. "We have to be ready and prepared for the fascists," was her (to me, cockeyed) rationale. She took a firearms training class during which the instructor -- in all seriousness -- told students,

"Y'know, back during the 'Wild West days' people were more respectful when everyone was armed."

That's the type of mentality that anti-gun and gun control proponents are up against.

Decades ago I was robbed at gunpoint. By a blessed miracle of fate, I was spared becoming a gun-violence statistic. Despite that experience, I was not, never have been, and never will be compelled to buy a gun.

I've gotten to where I just don't know what to think anymore, as far as America's gun fetish and how or if we will ever make any progress against our country's epidemic of mass shootings. But I do know that I appreciate and agree with both of your perspectives here. After THE LYIN' KING got elected, I too was planning to buy a handgun and learn to shoot for the first time in my life, as part of expected self defense against the MAGAs, who I still think will eventually be acting as paramilitary groups, same as ICE is now, only they would be hunting anyone opposed to MAGA, not just brown people. Anyway, I didn't buy that gun, not because I don't think it's eventually going to come to what I've been dreading, as far as MAGAs in packs coming to hunt us, but because I realized that arming myself wouldn't really prevent them from killing me,, and the the satisfaction of being able to fight back and maybe being able to take out a couple of them in the process, was not worth the risk I was also developing that I might also succumb to my worsening depression and use it on myself sometime. So no gun for me, and I'm just hanging in there, trying to have some hope that we somehow get thru this nightmare, while in the meantime stick as close as possible with my local offline friends and enjoy what I can in my personal life.

To me, an armed society and religion are much alike. People acting falsely and more ethically and fairly towards others, only out of coercion that if they don't they will suffer, either in this life or some imagined afterlife. Makes me proud to be non religious, so I act morally and ethically because I want to, not because I need to for approval from other church members. And glad I can still have many places where I don't have to deal with armed assholes ready to blow me away, if I say something that pisses them off. That's what makes for a free society, not the Old West stuff of having to shoot it out every time there's a disagreement. And from what I've read. there was actually more gun control than people think in the Old West, at least as far as in the towns there, where people did have to turn in their guns when they came into town, etc..

As far as the Beatles song, the irony of it has always haunted me after Lennon's murder, which was two days after my birthday, in 1980. If only John had known how his life would end that way, even tho he reportedly was afraid for some time before his death, that he would be assassinated, either by the govt. or by one of his crazed fans..

Here is the link to the Annual Gun Law Scorecard on the Giffords Law Center website. My home state, California, scores an "A" . . . which perhaps translates to a "C" (because it's in the USA) when compared to China, Japan, and The Netherlands.

My state, Iowa, scores an F, what a non surprise. But why should it be? We also lead the nation in cancer rates, worst water quality, worst economy (as far as economic growth), and our current governor is the least popular governor in the country. No wonder all my fellow libs here call us Mississippi North... I can only imagine how Iowa stacks up against those other countries you mentioned, on gun control..

2 hours ago, BobDylan said:

. . . As far as the Beatles song, the irony of it has always haunted me after Lennon's murder, which was two days after my birthday, in 1980. If only John had known how his life would end that way, even tho he reportedly was afraid for some time before his death, that he would be assassinated, either by the govt. or by one of his crazed fans..

I had the same thought while watching One to One: John & Yoko. Lennon had adopted New York City (and ergo the USA) as his new home. While living in America, he was constantly worried about being deported. Had that happened and had he returned to the UK, I cannot help but wonder if he might still be around today.

6 minutes ago, BobDylan said:

". . . I can only imagine how Iowa stacks up against those other countries you mentioned, on gun control."

We both know the score on that comparison, BD.

I do agree that if Lennon had ended up living in the UK, instead of NYC, he might very well never have been murdered, but we'll never know...