Children Sacrificed to Pay for Easy Access to Guns

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What was the OP's point?

What's my point? Exactly what I wrote in the original post. I am starting this thread to people can see just one small part of the high price our society is paying to allow easy access to guns. In economic terms, the United States is paying $229 billion per year to deal with the costs of gun related deaths and injuries. http://www.businessinsider.com/gun-violence-costs-america-more-than-229-billion-every-year-2015-4 That's over $1800 per taxpayer every year to subsidize people who get their jollies from owning guns. But beyond the economic cost, there's also the human cost in wholly innocent lives destroyed by guns. That's the societal cost I'm highlighting with this thread.

As I made clear in the opening post, I'm realistic enough to acknowledge that eliminating all guns in the United States is not an option. I'm not even advocating an effort to stop the sale of new guns. I'm simply saying that our society needs to make some changes to ensure guns are distributed, stored, and used more safely. Stop the senseless deaths of innocents.

To be blunt, I consider it the responsibility of gun owners to develop and implement measures to reduce these costs and prevent needless gun deaths. It's a problem they are creating, so should take responsibility for solving it. However, gun owners and the gun industry have failed to control themselves. If gun owners irresponsibly will not advocate for gun safety regulations, then the burden falls on the rest of us.

I'm tired of everyone turning away from these innocent deaths, and forgetting the high cost our society pays to subsidize guns. No more subsidy for gun owners. Open your eyes to the true costs of your hobby.

[Anonymous]

June 23, 2016 -- My son Noah was a social butterfly. Everybody knew who he was, and he loved everybody. ... He would have been 16 this past Wednesday. We visit his grave on his birthday and have pizza and cake. On the night of December 30, 2011, Noah was shot and killed by his best friend with one of the four guns the friend had laying in his bedroom. They were not locked. The friend picked up the gun and was "playing" around and pulled the trigger. That "playful" action destroyed my life and created a sorrow in me that will never go away. I'm not even sure that other people completely understand what it feels like to bury your child. Especially when it wasn't because of anything he did or anything you did. It was because of someone else's irresponsibility and poor judgment. ... I am a gun owner. I believe in gun locks and following strict safety procedures around guns. I am always surprised that some folks view my beliefs as being against the right to bear arms. I am not against guns. ... Since Noah's death, I've learned that nine kids are shot unintentionally every day. I want people to understand that it's very important to practice gun safety if you own guns, and to ask each other if there are unlocked guns where a child may visit or play.

http://www.today.com/parents/one-heartbroken-mom-s-plea-other-parents-ask-if-there-t100190

[Anonymous]

I read just this morning that only 3% of gun deaths are civilians using a gun for protection/stopping a crime.

I'll see if I can find that article to post. It said something about people stopping crimes without a weapon of any kind were much higher (tackling someone, that kind of thing)

[Anonymous]

May 25, 2016 -- Earlier this month, 5-year-old Mariah Davis died after she shot herself with her grandparents’ gun. Family members say Davis was playing upstairs when she found the gun under her grandmother’s pillow. Davis accidentally shot herself in the neck and died from her injuries.

http://kfor.com/2016/05/25/grandparents-charged-after-5-year-old-girl-accidentally-shoots-kills-herself/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I read just this morning that only 3% of gun deaths are civilians using a gun for protection/stopping a crime.

I'll see if I can find that article to post. It said something about people stopping crimes without a weapon of any kind were much higher (tackling someone, that kind of thing)

here's the article I was looking at. While it definitely has a slant, the facts don't lie ( couldn't remember the exact situation the 3% pertained to, but it is explained below):

9. The “good guy” stopping a “bad guy with a gun” is a myth: According to the FBI, between 2000-2013, only 3 percent of active shootings ended with a “good guy with a gun” stopping the “bad guy” — yet 20 percent were stopped by people who didn’t have a gun. Yeah, there’s really not a whole lot I need to add to that.

http://www.forwardprogressives.com/10-indisputable-facts-debunk-nearly-every-ridiculous-gun-nut-talking-point/

[Anonymous]

While we are at it, might as well say children are being sacrificed for easy access to pools of water:

http://www.m1-garand-rifle.com/gun-safety/firearms-versus-swimming-pools.php

having a swimming pool in a household is something like 4.3 to 5.6 times as likely to lead to an accidental death as having a firearm, when we look at the numbers for all age groups.
For children less than 15, the difference is more like 19 to 25 times as likely.

Let's ban swimming pools. NOW!

The fact is, children need to be supervised and watched constantly by a sober adult --not some wine-sipping mom with eyes glued to her iPhone, not a dad having brews with his buddies not watching out for his little ones.

For dangerous things like guns, keys to the car, and swimming pools, extra precaution needs to be taken. Taking away everyone's access to swimming pools
is just as stupid as taking away everyone's access to guns (of which we have a constitutional right to have).

Stop using children to push an obnoxious, freedom-killing political agenda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Stop using children to push an obnoxious, freedom-killing political agenda.

You figure out how to stop killing children then. If you want to own guns, you need to figure out how to keep them safe. Clean up your own mess.

[Anonymous]

June 23, 2016 -- Friday evening, a 2-year-old boy shot himself after finding a gun inside a residence Friday afternoon in Texarkana Ark., according to police. This vibrant little boy, is Jett Osburn. Jett continues to bravely fight for his life at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, accompanied by his family who has not left his side.

https://txktoday.com/news/a-tragic-accident-unites-a-community/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What was the OP's point?

What's my point? Exactly what I wrote in the original post. I am starting this thread to people can see just one small part of the high price our society is paying to allow easy access to guns. In economic terms, the United States is paying $229 billion per year to deal with the costs of gun related deaths and injuries. http://www.businessinsider.com/gun-violence-costs-america-more-than-229-billion-every-year-2015-4 That's over $1800 per taxpayer every year to subsidize people who get their jollies from owning guns. But beyond the economic cost, there's also the human cost in wholly innocent lives destroyed by guns. That's the societal cost I'm highlighting with this thread.

As I made clear in the opening post, I'm realistic enough to acknowledge that eliminating all guns in the United States is not an option. I'm not even advocating an effort to stop the sale of new guns. I'm simply saying that our society needs to make some changes to ensure guns are distributed, stored, and used more safely. Stop the senseless deaths of innocents.

To be blunt, I consider it the responsibility of gun owners to develop and implement measures to reduce these costs and prevent needless gun deaths. It's a problem they are creating, so should take responsibility for solving it. However, gun owners and the gun industry have failed to control themselves. If gun owners irresponsibly will not advocate for gun safety regulations, then the burden falls on the rest of us.

I'm tired of everyone turning away from these innocent deaths, and forgetting the high cost our society pays to subsidize guns. No more subsidy for gun owners. Open your eyes to the true costs of your hobby.

People who own guns get $1800 a year from the government? Where do I sign up for this? This is even better than the Obama phone!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop using children to push an obnoxious, freedom-killing political agenda.

You figure out how to stop killing children then. If you want to own guns, you need to figure out how to keep them safe. Clean up your own mess.

That's an easy one, concentrate on parental skills. Mandatory annual parenting skills training and testing. Random drug testing of all parents. Random home inspections of all parents. Three strikes and you lose legal rights to your kids and they go to foster care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop using children to push an obnoxious, freedom-killing political agenda.

You figure out how to stop killing children then. If you want to own guns, you need to figure out how to keep them safe. Clean up your own mess.

That's an easy one, concentrate on parental skills. Mandatory annual parenting skills training and testing. Random drug testing of all parents. Random home inspections of all parents. Three strikes and you lose legal rights to your kids and they go to foster care.

Sounds good. You call Noah's mom, or Jett's dad, and tell them what terrible parents they are. Have the NRA help you make those calls, and maybe some of the Republicans in Congress too.

[Anonymous]

So, I'm hearing you want more government, then?^^^

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop using children to push an obnoxious, freedom-killing political agenda.

You figure out how to stop killing children then. If you want to own guns, you need to figure out how to keep them safe. Clean up your own mess.

That's an easy one, concentrate on parental skills. Mandatory annual parenting skills training and testing. Random drug testing of all parents. Random home inspections of all parents. Three strikes and you lose legal rights to your kids and they go to foster care.

Sounds good. You call Noah's mom, or Jett's dad, and tell them what terrible parents they are. Have the NRA help you make those calls, and maybe some of the Republicans in Congress too.

Well your basic premise is gun owners need better training and oversight of how they store/handle guns. All I'm saying is why stop there? Why not have more training and oversight of all things that cause deaths to innocents? The list of which is many more than just guns.

Or do you not want that because it may personally impact your freedoms? Which screams you're not really concerned for the innocents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What was the OP's point?

What's my point? Exactly what I wrote in the original post. I am starting this thread to people can see just one small part of the high price our society is paying to allow easy access to guns. In economic terms, the United States is paying $229 billion per year to deal with the costs of gun related deaths and injuries. http://www.businessinsider.com/gun-violence-costs-america-more-than-229-billion-every-year-2015-4 That's over $1800 per taxpayer every year to subsidize people who get their jollies from owning guns. But beyond the economic cost, there's also the human cost in wholly innocent lives destroyed by guns. That's the societal cost I'm highlighting with this thread.

As I made clear in the opening post, I'm realistic enough to acknowledge that eliminating all guns in the United States is not an option. I'm not even advocating an effort to stop the sale of new guns. I'm simply saying that our society needs to make some changes to ensure guns are distributed, stored, and used more safely. Stop the senseless deaths of innocents.

To be blunt, I consider it the responsibility of gun owners to develop and implement measures to reduce these costs and prevent needless gun deaths. It's a problem they are creating, so should take responsibility for solving it. However, gun owners and the gun industry have failed to control themselves. If gun owners irresponsibly will not advocate for gun safety regulations, then the burden falls on the rest of us.

I'm tired of everyone turning away from these innocent deaths, and forgetting the high cost our society pays to subsidize guns. No more subsidy for gun owners. Open your eyes to the true costs of your hobby.

People who own guns get $1800 a year from the government? Where do I sign up for this? This is even better than the Obama phone!

No, moron, the PP didn't say gun owners "get $1800 a year from the government" - that's the annual cost to taxpayers incurred as a result of irresponsible gun ownership.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop using children to push an obnoxious, freedom-killing political agenda.

You figure out how to stop killing children then. If you want to own guns, you need to figure out how to keep them safe. Clean up your own mess.

That's an easy one, concentrate on parental skills. Mandatory annual parenting skills training and testing. Random drug testing of all parents. Random home inspections of all parents. Three strikes and you lose legal rights to your kids and they go to foster care.

Sounds good. You call Noah's mom, or Jett's dad, and tell them what terrible parents they are. Have the NRA help you make those calls, and maybe some of the Republicans in Congress too.

Well your basic premise is gun owners need better training and oversight of how they store/handle guns. All I'm saying is why stop there? Why not have more training and oversight of all things that cause deaths to innocents? The list of which is many more than just guns.

Or do you not want that because it may personally impact your freedoms? Which screams you're not really concerned for the innocents.

Not the PP you are responding to, but given there are other dangerous things out there too and yes, education would help but why deflect and point at everything else while not doing ANYTHING? Start with guns.