Canadian Chat → Re: [Serious] Mass shooting at Batman

You're not comprehending.

I did not say that guns "made people more violent". Violent breakouts occur irrespective of whether guns are present.

Rather, I'm stating that ease of access to firearms can transform heated altercations into something that may conclude with someone's death.

Furthermore, the number of deaths resulting from just the misuse of guns let alone deliberate attempts to take someone's life outweigh whatever supposed "balance" is achieve by having everyone own a firearm. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to assume that regular urban citizens not carrying weapons at all would actually produce the best outcome.

However, I'm beginning to wonder if you're just trolling given that you're a hardcore gun advocate who brags about ordering over 10k of ammunition in a thread linked to a story where 14 people lost their lives and 58 more injured.

That, more than anything, I find absolutely disgusting, insensitive and tasteless, to say the least.

And I countered with personal experiences where the consideration that the situation could escalate into something more serious dissuades people from engaging in heated altercations.

agreed...i work with several people who have their PAL license (and work at the range i am visiting in a couple of weeks)...none of them are "gun nuts" and wild west lunatics who would shoot up the place if someone didn't turn their blinker on in front of them.

Fear of mutually assured destruction sounds like an ideal deterrent were it not for the fact that the reactions it draws aren't really consistent across the board.

The optimum scenario would suggest that participants in a heated incident are in the right frame of mind to consider the consequences of utilizing guns. Unfortunately, not everyone is always in the right frame of mind.

Rage is largely defined by a temporary onset of insanity; not a good mix when factoring in an accessible firearm. When just the squeeze of a trigger is enough to give someone the power of life and death, it only takes a fleeting second for an irrational mind to do just that. That's a significant difference when compared to a knife, a baseball bat or a fist being utilized as a weapon.

One could bring a baseball bat and knock someone out with it but to finish off a person with such a crude instrument requires a bit of forethought. Most individuals by then come to their senses and realize they've already made their point and to escalate it any further beyond assault would unleash the kind of backlash no one in their right mind would want. When a firearm is used in the heat of passion, it is already too little too late by the time the shooter realizes what they've done.

There have been a few cases where an argument took place and ended with one person walking away - only to have him return from his car with a loaded revolver to "conclude" session. What prompted this altercation in the first place? It's usually over something as silly as one guy taking another's parking space.