Sally Redux

I was thinking of answering this but 'FFS' always seems to preclude a discussion.

Autonomy

Herein lies the problem with the discussion of whether or not to control guns and the 2nd Amendment... a lot of US citizens and commentators have a very entrenched opinion - it's very much yes / no or black / white answers.

You are clearly very pro-gun ownership and also I'm clearly not a US citizen... rather than start going on about simple yes/no or black / white absoutes - I'm curious what you think on smaller questions:

should assault rifles (with or without large ammo feeders) be available to the public?
should any weapon that is not clearly designed for either animal hunting or personal self defence be available?
does the 2nd Amendment really say guns of any nature should be available for everyone (and what does the militia reference have to do with the US society in the 21st century)

Desert Dubliner

I am not a US citizen, and my opinion is not necessarily related to US alone. For example I find it ridiculous that the Irish or UK police are unarmed.

1. no
2. no
3. not a constitutional expert - I note automatic weapons and assault rifles were not available at the time the constitution was written.

Autonomy

Glad to see that non US citizens have shown the way... seriously - they (the US) need to break it down into smaller debates and some good might come of it....

Desert Dubliner

See, I'm a moderate gun nut.

The Dean

OK - so Moore has his critics (including on this forum) but sometimes the power of his passion is hard to contradict. The final minutes of his CNN interview with Piers Morgan this week:

jackthehat

CNN April 14, 1865: "But more importantly Mrs Lincoln, what did you think of the play?"

jackthehat

A gun is an 'Inanimate Object?' - Don't be absurd!

Cypselos

You think guns are alive?

Desert Dubliner

You are correct. When someone is semi-hysterical about an issue and manipulative in delivery of arguments, this is very hard to contradict.

I stand by my assessment of M.M. He is self-serving and manipulative.

OleJanx

There is a book out called 'Citizen Moore'. It in no way flatters Michael Moore.

The Dean

To be fair to him, he doesn't try to conceal his place on the political spectrum. He often refers openly to neo-conservatives as 'the other side', and is all too willing to defend his corner as vigorously as he needs to when challenged by frequently inaccurate counter-arguments. Remember his attack on CNN's respected Wolf Blitzer when 'Sicko' came out, and CNN challenged his statistics?

Kim67

During the late 1980's and early 1990's, Australia had a series of mass murders using semi automatic weapons. In the mid 1990's, the PM decided semi-automatic and automatic weapons would no longer be allowed to be kept by the general population. In 1996 the government bought back all of these weapons. Licensing laws were lightened and brought into line across all states. There hasn't (touch wood) been a mass shooting since.

jackthehat

'Wolf Blitzer?' Is that a real name? It must be the equivalent of 'Chuck Hoover' on BE! I am not sure whether that is a name or an instruction?

The Dean