Here we go again, Shots fired at Colorado School

[Flopsweat]

I'm not quite sure I understand your reasoning. It goes without saying that every historical atrocity had reasons behind it that were specific to the time and place. That's true of every historical event. Nothing just happens for no reason. No, it would be absurd to think that the powers that be would start randomly killing people just because they could. Does it make it any more palatable that all these historical atrocities had motivation and reason behind them?

These atrocities almost never happen to the average person. It's always those that don't fit in that get the short end of the stick, typically a minority in ethnicity, religion, or political views. Historically there are always complex factors building up to state-sponsored mass murder, but it's still mass murder nonetheless.



Yes, precisely because everything is OK, at this time. When things are going well you don't rock the boat. The global nature of the economy make this especially true. It doesn't take much, in first world nations at least, to rock the world economy, and nobody wants that.

As a student of history and human nature though, it's clear to me that times of peace and prosperity are punctuated throughout the whole of human history by times of famine and violence. We all want to think that society has evolved past that, and I truly do want to believe that, but a basic understanding of history and human nature make me suspect otherwise. We like to think that we are so civilized, advanced, and intellectual that it could never happen here, ever again, but peel back that thin veneer of civilization...

I don't wear a tinfoil hat or see dark conspiracies around every corner. I don't normally participate in SHTF threads or fantasize about the post-apocalyptic future. I see the free ownership of firearms more as a symbol of freedom, rather than a physical deterrent of tyranny and genocide.

I hope and pray that the current level of political hatred and intolerance towards other's views doesn't continue on the downward spiral it's been on in recent years. I'd love to believe that widespread violence and hardship can't happen here anytime in the foreseeable future. I'd also like to think that an armed populace actually helps prevent that kind of thing.

This is one thing that the left doesn't understand about the gun rights movement. They see us as right-wing somehow, when the 2nd Amendment is actually quite libertarian or even liberal in a way. We don't just want to arm people on "our side", we respect the rights of all people to be armed, whether you're conservative or liberal, black or white, straight or gay. If you're a law-abiding American, we think you should have the right to bear arms, for the protection of yourself, your family, your community, your country.

Many people around the world cannot fathom the idea of wanting to arm your ideological opponents. It really is a rather revolutionary idea.

This is the one that always gets to me. Some (thankfully very few) folks seem to be looking forward to this sort of thing. Does it never occur to them that when you get bored you can't just shut the game off and go hang out? You're in it for the duration, be that 5 years, 50 years or the rest of your suddenly miserable life. You don't want this, dummy.

 

[CLT65]

This is the one that always gets to me. Some (thankfully very few) folks seem to be looking forward to this sort of thing. Does it never occur to them that when you get bored you can't just shut the game off and go hang out? You're in it for the duration, be that 5 years, 50 years or the rest of your suddenly miserable life. You don't want this, dummy.

I agree wholeheartedly. It's one thing to think about and plan for potential disasters, but I've met people over the years who truly seem to fantasize and dream about Hollywood-style "end-of-the-world" scenarios.

People who have actually lived it, whether in combat, natural disasters, or third-world civil unrest, normally see it in a very different way. We have no idea just how good we have it in our modern, civilized, day to day lives.

 

[Flopsweat]

I agree wholeheartedly. It's one thing to think about and plan for potential disasters, but I've met people over the years who truly seem to fantasize and dream about Hollywood-style "end-of-the-world" scenarios. People who have actually lived it, whether in combat, natural disasters, or third-world civil unrest, normally see it in a very different way. We have no idea just how good we have it in our modern, civilized, day to day lives.

Perspective is a wonderful thing, isn't it? If it weren't for cutting edge medical equipment, some highly skilled people and a whole lot of luck, I wouldn't be typing this. Any time I get a little overwhelmed, if I can remember that, things get a lot easier.

 

[DunRanull]

all good points, and I don't doubt it.

There was a lot of motivation and reasoning behind those slaughters, and each was relative to their own time and situation.

Currently, if American citizens were disarmed, I wouldn't expect it to be much different than western european countries that have disarmed their citizens, ie, not much conflict, because what would be the motivation or reasoning to just up and slaughter ourselves? We've got a good thing going as far as our country and citizenry is concerned. Armed or not.

These circumstances can change very quickly- just because everything is hunky-dory today is no guarantee for tomorrow or next week. Nor does our "democracy" bear too deep an inspection... there are several ways things could go sideways really fast in our beloved country...
An old quotation is still true today- "I dare not trust any government that does not trust me with a gun."
"...The RIGHT of the PEOPLE to keep and bear arms SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED"... THAT was written into the BOR at the insistence of several of the states whose citizens feared the centralising power and tendency to corruption of government. We are not Europe or any place else.