Shooting at Connecticut Elementary School

[SciFiFan]

I know many of the US members have already heard but, in case some of our overseas friends are unaware, This morning in Connecticut a gunman shot and killed at least 26 people, including 20 children. It is reported that one of the teachers was the shooter's mother and most of the children killed were her students. This is a horrific and senseless act of cowardace. There is no place in this world for killing.....especially that of children. It is said that since the Columbine shooting, there have been 31 school shootings in the US. In that same time, only 14 in the rest of the world combined. I am a gun owner myself and I am a believer in our right to bear arms. The gun I have is a bolt action hunting rifle that my dad gave me. I believe that gun control in the US needs to be taken to a new level. Not to the point to where we loose our guns in total however. In the end, the ultimate problem is not the guns themselves but, the people who wield them and the society we live in. By that I mean, in the US, it is much easier for the average person to buy a gun than insurance. The ability to recognize problems and offer help and solutions are too slow. Even when the signs are readily apparant, most tend to turn away as to not get involved and inconvenience their lives. Then those same people are shocked when something like this happens. The country of ours is bipolar and unfocused. Our government would rather further their own greedy agenda then do what is best for the people they govern. I love my country and I have defended her but, there are times when I can't help but wonder if I would be better off somewhere else.

 

[Styer_Crisis]

Don't forget Casper Wyoming a couple weeks ago, where a man came in and shot his father (the teacher) in the head with a compound bow, and proceeded to brutally stab his father to death infront of the class.

 

[Jetfreak]

Really a sad day for the US, what a shocker. Those young kids didn't deserve this.

 

[Majestic]

Really a sad day for the US, what a shocker. Those young kids didn't deserve this.

I totally agree with this, kids are innocent and I really feel for the parents who have lost their children to this.

As for Guns, well SFF knows my opinion on this, we respect each others opinion on the matter, even though we may disagree with one another.

I just go by my country's measures. They outlawed guns in the late 90's after a shooting in Tasmania and apart from gang wars there hasn't been many if any deaths by guns since guns were outlawed. Only licence gun holders can have access to them, it is rather hard to get a licence, gun clubs, gun shots and police and military officers are the only ones. Guns and ammo have to be kept in safes bolted to the ground and in separate safes. I feel guns are as dangerous to the people who hold them as they are to others. The best weapon one can have is to know martial arts and self defense.

But this shooting is terrible and the loss of those children indescribable. I really feel sorry to the parents and family of those children. Makes one think if security should be stationed at schools due to all these school shootings.

 

[CrazyFrog1903]

It is a very tragic event.
There was another case in the city I go to for Army drills. A student at Bartlesville high school, in Oklahoma, was arrested early Friday morning after school admins and authorities were informed Thursday that he was attempting to recruit fellow students to accomplish his own massacre involving guns and pipebombs on the chained doors to kill police. In that case the students he attempted to recruit did the right thing and reported him.
As far as the one that made national news, Apparently he killed his own mother at her house. Then proceeded to take her car and guns to the school to kill her students. Now this shows he was a very sick and twisted person.

I think we should not turn this into a gun control issue. In both these cases the guns were not registered to the terrorists. Yes, I consider them both terrorists. I also think they should be treated as such. It does not matter if you pass gun control laws or not. The criminals will still use them. All you do is prevent innocent people from the ability to defend themselves. Do Meth and drug laws remove the act of using them? No.

I believe what these constant acts teach us is the fact we are getting away from the principles that the USA was founded on. To long has the media done what it can to destroy the family unit to gain control of the individual. What we need as a country and a world is for EVERY parent to teach their children what honor, trust, dignity, and respect for one self and others really means. I am a father of two sons. I do my absolute best to teach my children the values that seem to be disappearing from this world. This is difficult. Even today their mother tried to blame and slander me to the kids just to try to win their favor. My children saw through the lies and chose to stop talking to her today. I was proud to see my kids stand up for what they knew was right. It lets me know that I might just be doing a good job as their father.

I have seen what parents all over the world have taught their kids. In Afghanistan, kids are taught it is honorable to run into traffic or to blown themselves up. In America they are being taught it is all about yourself. In other parts of the world I see the same lack of proper teaching. I know that not all parents are teaching their kids this but to many are. We need to get back to teaching our kids how to live by good honest morals again and to strive to teach them there is a better way to live than what the world is becoming. I am a Christian. I also believe everyone has the right to believe or have faith in whatever or whom ever they choose. I have even fought to defend that right. When the Bible was allowed in our school systems the worst situations in class was chewing gum and smoking in the restrooms. Now that we have removed it our issues are death and violence in the schools. Now, I am not expecting there to be a Bible on every desk but when you remove the backbone and teachings that are the basics of what we consider to be good decent morals where do you really expect our civilization to turn? I know that as humans we all have faith in something. Are we really going to allow this kind of stuff to happen? When will we get back to good morals and mutual respect for others. I know that every generation has had it's issues but this is getting crazy.

I apologize for the long rant and I do not mean for this to become a debate over religion or beliefs. I used Christianity and the Bible as an example. I know every religion and belief structure has some good morals and teachings in them. It is mankind that twists them for evil. I am saddened to see news like this. I think we should learn from this and instead of blaming the tools people use to commit crimes, let us look at the people who commit them. What could have been done to change their hearts and minds when they could have been reached to prevent them from making such horrible choices? Let us work on the people and the way they are taught to deal with others. Our society is quick to blame everyone else. Let us remind ourselves and teach our children what personal responsibility truly is. Get people to ask, " What can I do to improve my life and the others around me?" Now I know there is a time to fight but people need to learn to recognize when that moment is really there and when a better option should be chosen. Also to make sure the reasons someone would fight are the correct reasons. Let us learn from these tragedies and hope that we can create a world where people do not feel the desire to react or lash out at each other as the evil few have chosen to do.

May the victims rest in peace and may all their families find peace in this difficult time. They will all be in my prayers.

 

[Starfox1701]

The ability to recognize problems and offer help and solutions are too slow. Even when the signs are readily apparent, most tend to turn away as to not get involved and inconvenience their lives. Then those same people are shocked when something like this happens. The country of ours is bipolar and unfocused. Our government would rather further their own greedy agenda then do what is best for the people they govern.

You hit the problem on the head here. This foul deed was not done by a gun. It was don by a person. Not having a gun would not have prevented it and just because guns are outlawed would be no guarantee he would have been unable to get one. We in this country need to wake up to the fact that most of these events were both foreseeable and in my mind preventable but only by human intervention by people who care.

The fact of the mater is that we as humans have been killing each other for more the 10,000 years. Outlawing weapons wont stop it just like outlawing drugs didn't stop them. Cain didn't need a gun to kill and neither do I or any other person of a mind to do so. The way I see it guns are actually saving lives over her as with all the violent criminals in this country they are just as likely to start making bombs out household cleansers, sugar, and oil as switch to knives if they can't get a gun.

As bad as these shootings are what if the killers had made a simple explosive like TATP instead and used it? Evil doesn't care about the law and will do what ever. Good men don't need rules remember.

 

[Adm_Z]

Though I dont want to turn this into some kind of debate, nor do I wish to detract from topic of mourning and remembrance, but I feel the need to voice my opinion. Right now, in the US you hav to be over 18 to buy a rifle, and undergo police background checks. To buy a pistol, you must be over 21. There are also added levels of security depending on the state. I don't mean to say that our laws are perfecat at all and account for everything, but sometimes you just can't predict what insane people will do. And this was obviously the act of an evil person who was out of their mind. People like this will always find a way to get a gun or weapon. Gun laws only make it harder for people who legally use guns to get them. I would say the real problem lies behind why socially and mentally disturbed peoplI like this have access to children, but I will resist divulging into a rant about the broken public school system.

 

[Majestic]

Thread turning into a debate over guns and so is being closed.