Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Discussion Area => Topic started by: Sir Tigger KC on 25 March 2018, 12:14:51
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Hundreds of thousands of people took to the the streets in the US (and beyond) yesterday, to campaign for stricter gun controls. :y
While I don't think these protests will change anything, maybe just maybe, it is the start of what will have to be a huge effort by the American people to change habits and attitudes in their country. :-\ I think that the younger generation coming on might have the appetite to force the necessary changes to reduce gun violence that their forebears didn't have. :y
Many will say that it can't be done, that attitudes are too firmly entrenched, but the US has undergone huge changes in the past in the face of dogged resistance with the ending of slavery in 1865 and the civil rights movements of the 1960's. ;) While these marches might not herald the winds of change, it might just be a faint stirring. A beginning of something bigger? ??? :y
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-43526413
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Although, what will it really achieve?
If you're minded to, and have a couple of screws loose, its not that hard to get hold of firearms (or any other lethal weapons for that matter), and go and give yourself 15mins of fame (or a bunch of hypothetical virgins, or whatever floats your boat).
I think the real solution will be dealing with the root cause (mental illnesses, extremist beliefs (which probably is a mental illness ::o) etc), rather and fannying around with the options said people may use. But people, especially middle America, are sheep, and will think this is the total solution.
Not necessarily suggesting its a bad thing, just that its not a solution, or even a partial solution.
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Hundreds of thousands of people took to the the streets in the US (and beyond) yesterday, to campaign for stricter gun controls. :y
While I don't think these protests will change anything, maybe just maybe, it is the start of what will have to be a huge effort by the American people to change habits and attitudes in their country. :-\ I think that the younger generation coming on might have the appetite to force the necessary changes to reduce gun violence that their forebears didn't have. :y
Many will say that it can't be done, that attitudes are too firmly entrenched, but the US has undergone huge changes in the past in the face of dogged resistance with the ending of slavery in 1865 and the civil rights movements of the 1960's. ;) While these marches might not herald the winds of change, it might just be a faint stirring. A beginning of something bigger? ??? :y
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-43526413
The 'good ol boys' who live in the mountains with their sister will come down and shoot them.
They hate liberal do gooders.
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It ain't gonna change diddly, because "I have the right to bear arms" it's in the constitution.
And that's the first stumbling block, the majority of spanks agree, and won't change it, lots of doing the dance, but nothing else.
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It ain't gonna change diddly, because "I have the right to bear arms" it's in the constitution.
And that's the first stumbling block, the majority of spanks agree, and won't change it, lots of doing the dance, but nothing else.
It's an amendment to the constitution, so it could be amended again. ;) But if change does happen it will be slow and probably take decades, in the face of fierce resistance from gun rights advocates, 2nd Amendment nutters and powerful organisations like the NRA. ::)
It will take a new generation of voters who won't vote for politicians who take cash from organisations like the NRA, who vote for those who advocate stricter gun controls and yes it will take a long time, but I think it might just be starting to happen. :y
I note however that I havn't seen reports of huge rallies in places like Dallas, Memphis, or New Orleans. ;D
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It ain't gonna change diddly, because "I have the right to bear arms" it's in the constitution.
And that's the first stumbling block, the majority of spanks agree, and won't change it, lots of doing the dance, but nothing else.
For constitution read law. Laws can be, and often are, changed or amended.
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As Sir Tig says change-if any- will possibly take decades to come about,but it is the youth of today who are the voters of tomorrow that could force the issue if they have the taste for it.The guns will never disappear but tighter/better regulation may just improve matters although there's always going to be those you cannot stop.
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It ain't gonna change diddly, because "I have the right to bear arms" it's in the constitution.
And that's the first stumbling block, the majority of spanks agree, and won't change it, lots of doing the dance, but nothing else.
Sad but true that but what else would you expect of a country were you can buy a assault rifle at 15 years old but can't sit down in a bar and have a beer until you are 21 ::)
Then again, i'd rather live the American way of life then the way this oppsed up joke of a country is going :(
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Then again, i'd rather live the American way of life then the way this oppsed up joke of a country is going :(
I suspect you wouldn't ;)
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Then again, i'd rather live the American way of life then the way this oppsed up joke of a country is going :(
I suspect you wouldn't ;)
Hit Post to early ;D
A lot of what is going wrong here is imported from the good ol' US of A. And after 10yrs of working for an American corporation, I can suggest its a different culture. Minimal vacation, a hire and fire culture, and an attitude of "if you don't like it, you have a choice". In the 9.5yrs I worked there, some pre the global financial downturn, we got no payrises, again with the attitude that you have a choice to work there... ...hence I have little sympathy for the civil servants over here crying over a 1% rise cap for that past 5yrs.
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There's a series on Netflix called Flint Town.
I strongly suggest that you watch it... :-X
That's to say that it provides a clear insight into the problems that beset the nation as a whole... including why people feel duty bound to arm themselves.
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There appear to be a LOT of folks in the UK, not just on forums like this, who have built a "belief" that the life in the USA is some sort of utopia... probably based on a totally skewed view mainly gleaned from watching far too many TV shows.
The reality of life in the States is markedly different for the average working guy.
I have met a LOT of Americans, a large number being servicemen and their families, who have introduced me to their non-service friends, so, admittedly, mostly from a similar financial bracket, but they are all worried about the future for them and their kids ... which sounds a bit like a normal parent ..... however when you talk to them about their worries they are very far removed from what we, in the UK, tend to worry about.
It is probably a stupid view, but IMHO, one of the main reasons for many of their worries/problems is the fact that most Americans feel totally insecure 90% of the time ... they worry about job security (hire & fire is prevalent), health security ( no insurance = no treatment= big bills), home security (high rates of crime), personal security (they are convinced they will be car-jacked/mugged at any time), "popularity" security ( especially kids who will do anything not to get shunned on social media which rules their lives to the nth degree), "image" security (the amounts spent by Americans in having their teeth fixed/plastic surgery is amazing), education security (the "norm" is a university degree and the costs are paid by parents) and at the top of the list .. financial security ( they are petrified of not having "enough" as there is no state aid fall back like we have here and everything listed above costs !!)...... they then progress to non-personal worries ... political security (there is no "middle ground" in American politics and extreme views are becoming the "norm"..), national security (TV and papers full of stories about terrorism and North Korea)
The grass isn't always greener on the other side .......
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There appear to be a LOT of folks in the UK, not just on forums like this, who have built a "belief" that the life in the USA is some sort of utopia... probably based on a totally skewed view mainly gleaned from watching far too many TV shows.
The reality of life in the States is markedly different for the average working guy.
I have met . . . .
etc
The grass isn't always greener on the other side .......
Well said. I used to travel to the USA quite a lot. It's great if you have money, really NOT great if you don't, much more the case than in the UK, although I'm sure the whingers over here would disagree.
A few years ago I visited freinds in the Mid West, and over dinner conversation turned to Obama. I was shocked by the venom aimed at him, and in particular Omabacare. The view was that they paid for care and insurance, why should others get it for free ? Goddam liberal lefties ! Gun laws ain't changing any time soon, and they are quite baffled by our benefits system.
Red neck America and staunch republicans make our Tories look like lefty tree hugging wimps.
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Red neck America and staunch republicans make our Tories look like lefty tree hugging wimps.
That's because they are ;D
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Just to the left of Ghengis Kahn then... ::)
Even those without are not equal... Race is still very much a sore point, especially at the shitty end of the stick. No pun intended.
Social security is designed to prevent you from starving or freezing to death, nothing more or less. Unfortunately we are cursed with a pandering system that cannot cope with the sheer number of people ripping the arse out of it.
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Red neck America and staunch republicans make our Tories look like lefty tree hugging wimps.
That's because they are ;D
Zackly. :y ;D
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Some interesting points there :)
My info on the good old US of A comes from a ex military friend who currently resides in San Diego and loves the way of life.
He has had a hell of a lot of medical shite ect to deal with over the last 10 years or so so maybe he just looks at life differently to the other people out there :-\
Hey ho ........... ;)
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To give you an idea of the content...
http://www.indiewire.com/2018/03/flint-town-review-netflix-documentary-police-1201933936/
It's a fair summary having watched all eight episodes :y
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What will change things is when / if the gun lobby becomes toxic from a financial perspective.
Schoolkids getting gunned down is one thing, but, if it starts hitting their bottom line, they will start to take note.
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Schoolkids getting gunned down is one thing...
I saw one discussion yesterday - I know a lot of "you'll take my guns over my cold, dead body" folks in the US through work - where someone said (slight paraphrasing but the bulk is verbatim):
"It's really not that bad. Only 586 children have been killed in school shootings since the formation of the country!"
.. I desperately wanted to say "And over here in the civilised world, only 18 since the invention of the gun." but decided not to (Dunblane being our only school massacre AFAIK?).
I should add - these gun types come from all walks of life and all political persuasions from anarchist to libertarian to conservative, from left to right.. and they all seem in total agreement: They need their guns.
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Both sides should be armed and allowed to shoot the f**k out of each other.
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What will change things is when / if the gun lobby becomes toxic from a financial perspective.
Schoolkids getting gunned down is one thing, but, if it starts hitting their bottom line, they will start to take note.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-43540708 a sign of things to come ?
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Both sides should be armed and allowed to shoot the f**k out of each other.
And there's the rub...
In most States, they are, but choose not to. (Apart from an incredibly small percentage of people obviously...)
And most of those doing the random shooting aren't actually licensed gun carriers... But let's not ruin a good Daily Mail moment ;)
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I don't disagree with that, but the sheer number of guns and the easy availability makes it so much easier for those who want to do this kind of thing.
As an aside, 8 people have been shot or stabbed to death in London in the last 12 days, so we aren't exactly free from problems here either.
It doesn't seem to get much media coverage though. Perhaps the Mayor has friends in high places ? ::)
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I don't disagree with that, but the sheer number of guns and the easy availability makes it so much easier for those who want to do this kind of thing.
As an aside, 8 people have been shot or stabbed to death in London in the last 12 days, so we aren't exactly free from problems here either.
It doesn't seem to get much media coverage though. Perhaps the Mayor has friends in high places ? ::)
Or is it that most of it is black on black crime and it would be un pc to publicize the fact ? iz you gangsta ?