How do you know that?Scooter wrote:I would say that this BOY wouldn't have known where to buy an illegal gun if a smuggler slapped him upside the head with one, and that would have meant that fewer people would have died today.
Hmmm, suburban kid with mommy issues. Yeah, just the type who would have access to underworld gunrunners.Joe Guy wrote:How do you know that?
I'm a proponent of gun regulation & restriction. But I've learned through my own experience that regulation & restriction doesn't do much to eliminate the problem.Big RR wrote:Joe--OK, let's assume he could have gotten it illegally; does that mean we should just abandon any discussion about whether access to such weapons should be restricted? I'm pretty sure most of us could buy (or make) explosive ordnance and IEDs as well, but that doesn't mean we should be able to go in and buy them at a Walmart.
the concept is purely abstract. The desire for retribution is ingrained. There is a want to make him feel the loss he so carelessly inflicted on others. There is a desire to see him face judgement. To see him humbled for his crimes. And there is a pain in the thought he has been placed beyond reach. Some take solace that judgement at the hands of a higher power can not be avoided others don't afford themselves that luxury.Lord Jim wrote:Even if the state had a death penalty, (which Connecticut doesn't ) in a case as heinous as this, there's really no way for our society to mete out to the perpetrator the punishment he truly deserves...(For that to happen they would not just have to get the death penalty, they would have to be tortured repeatedly and horrifically for years first, and no modern society is going to sanction that.)
As a practical matter, the ones who get truly punished by having someone who has done something like this walk away alive from the crime are the families of the victims and the community as a whole, who get to relive this terrible tragedy as the case winds it's way through the legal system and the attendant media coverage, culminating in a trial that takes place months or years after the monstrous deed....
No, they've suffered more than enough; much better they should be spared that.
I wouldn't agree with that, and it would never pass Constitutional muster anyway...How about no handguns, no concealed carry, and no automatic weapons of any kind for civilians.
But no worries, because:Due to tremendous demand, we are heavily backordered on our 100-round magazines.
Please check with your local SureFire dealer for availability.
NOTE: Our 60-round mags are available now.
There's no guarantee, (in fact I would argue it's highly unlikely) that the kind of sociopath it takes to do something like this is capable of feeling anything like that.There is a want to make him feel the loss he so carelessly inflicted on others.
No guarantee of that either...To see him humbled for his crimes.
I believe that fully automatic weapons are already highly regulated and extremely expensive. (I had thought they were already outlawed, but apparently not) This is what I found on that:How about no handguns, no concealed carry, and no automatic weapons of any kind for civilians.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index ... 642AA1yRuXContrary to popular belief, fully automatic weapons are NOT illegal. They are however HIGHLY regulated. Full auto weapons have been regulated with three different pieces of legislation. The first was the National Firearms Act of 1934, then the Gun Control Act of 1968, and finally the Hughes Amendment in 1986. In essence, what these three laws have done is to say respectfully that fully automatic firearms must be taxed and regulated, cannot be imported from outside the United States, and can no longer manufacture and/or register new/existing full auto weapons with the federal government (BATFE).
In order to legally own one, you must first find one that you wish to buy. For it to be legal, it must have been made and registered with the BATFE prior to 19 May 1986. These are what are known as transferrable NFA or Class III items.
Your next step will be to negotiate a price with the buyer. Most buyers have their prices set pretty firm and the going rate for a M16 varies by condition and model (M16A1, A2, AR-15 conversion, etc). A brand new, unfired, factory Colt M16A2 is going to run you about $18,000+ while a used AR-15 conversion will run you about $9,500-$13,000+. You will just have to shop around and look for the best deal out there.
Once you find one and negotiate a price you will need to pay the seller. Depending on if you are buying the item from out of state or not, you may also need to find a local Class III FFL/SOT to handle the transfer. NFA/Class III items CANNOT be shipped or carried across state lines without the proper prior approved paperwork. If buying out of state, you would need to have it transferred to a local seller who would then transfer it to you. Once you have found a FFL/SOT if needed, you will need to pay the seller. Unlike with other firearms where you can often do installment payments for years or put it on a credit card, most NFA sellers want full funds up front although some are willing to work with you and do half now, half when the paperwork comes back. At best, you are looking at half up front before he will even start the paperwork.
Once the seller is satisfied with the payment plan and has his funds, he will begin the paperwork. This requires a little bit of work on your end. You will need to get a few things in order for the process to be complete. You will need to get two sets of fingerprint cards done, two passport photos, and fill out a Form 4 (to include the signature of the CLEO of the area you live in) and write a check to the Department of the Treasury for the $200 transfer tax. It is this special tax that will allow you to legally own the weapon. Once you have all this together along with the required paperwork from the seller, you will ship it all to the BATFE who will then have one of their 10 or so inspectors sit down and review it. Any little error will cause it to be rejected and sent back. This is where the frustration begins as the wait starts. It generally takes anywhere from 50-90 days for them to process an application. The main thing that they will be doing is running an extensive background check on you through the FBI criminal database using all your information as well as your fingerprints.
Once the paperwork finally comes back, the seller can then legally ship/transfer the weapon to you. You CANNOT take posession of it before this time or it will be the same as being in possession of an unregistered machine gun which carries a stiff penalty in federal prison.
Year 1 teacher Kaitlin Roig has told US television reporter Diane Sawyer how she hid her class in a bathroom to protect them from the gunfire.
"I just knew we had to get in there, I just kept telling them it's going to be OK," Ms Roig said as she fought back tears.
She recounted how she pulled a bookshelf in front of the door before closing herself and the children inside.
"I was so afraid that if he did come in and he would hear us he would just start shooting the door."
She said the children were extremely brave and she told them: "There are bad guys out there now; we have to wait for the good guys."
When the children became distressed she told them to "show me your smile". She told each of the children that she loved them "because I thought that was the last thing they were ever going to hear".
"I don't know if that's ok .. [for] teachers [to say that] .. but I wanted that to be one of the last things they heard, not the gunfire in the hallway."
Another hero teacher story has emerged from the second deadliest school shooting massacre in US history.
The Daily Mail reports that music teacher Maryrose Kristopik saved 15 children during the shooting by barricading them into a closet, as gunman Adam Lanza was outside the door screaming "Let me in! Let me in!".
The paper quoted an unnamed mother, in her 40s, whose nine-year-old son was among the children, saying: "I want to thank her. She saved their lives."
Another parent, Brenda Lebinski, said her eight-year-old daughter was safe thanks to the "hero" teacher.
Aside from the desire being largely abstract there are things that can make anyone feel loss. True, most would be considered "cruel and unusual" but that is beside the point. (OTOH could you imagine how that guy would be treated in prison?)Lord Jim wrote:There's no guarantee, (in fact I would argue it's highly unlikely) that the kind of sociopath it takes to do something like this is capable of feeling anything like that.There is a want to make him feel the loss he so carelessly inflicted on others.
No guarantee of that either...To see him humbled for his crimes.
In fact a person like this is quite likely to enjoy the fame, notoriety and attention that this sort of crime grotesquely confers....
