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Violent people are violent people. If they didn't have access to those kinds of tools the fallout would be much less. To suggest that American criminals are somehow more dangerous than any other nation is just untrue.
The comparison was USA vs UK vs Europe
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It’s not the tool. You’re implying guns make people more violent. During the civil war in Rwanda in 1994, millions were killed via machete. September 11 victims were killed via airline jet.
Cause is not the tool but the person holding the tool
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I'm not implying guns make people more violent at all. I'm saying that guns dramatically increase the detrimental outcomes of violent people. As do knives for that matter. What do you need a machete for, you're not living in an area of thick rainforest, so it's impractical to own one.
If someone didn't have a weapon they'd be less likely to be able to cause as much harm.
I agree it's not only the tool, it's the person holding that tool. So don't give them that tool so freely? I have a zero chance of killing anyone with a gun, when I don't have a gun in my hands, that chance increases the moment you hold one. Certain people shouldn't have access to guns, or machetes (which are still crazy unnecessary in any of the areas listed above)
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How do you determine fitness or eligibility?
Felons cannot vote or own a gun in USA. The problem is felons tend to ignore gun laws.
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Felons tend to ignore most laws. If they're going to break into my house and attempt to steal a gun, then they aren't going to get one. But should they break into yours, then they could walk out of there with a gun. The simple fact that one was available increases the chance that it does fall into the wrong hands. How many stories do you hear of children shooting their parents by accident? No gun no shooting accident.
As for fitness and eligibility. There are some measures in which you could feasibly employ to prevent the wrong people being able to lawfully acquire those weapons. Such as much more stringent vetting. Example not just anyone can go and work in the nuclear industry, they vet you thoroughly. Yes it's a long and expensive process, but perhaps more stringent vetting would help towards limiting gun ownership to a group of people who understand the responsibility they have as gun owners and not people who refer to guns as "gats" and hold their pistols sideways. They don't have the maturity required to own a gun as I'm sure you'd agree.
I personally believe weapons education would be far far more effective as a form of gun control than the ideas that are synonymous with the phrase gun control. I'm not calling for a ban on guns, I'm calling for a way in which to prevent the wrong people getting the wrong weapons.
The problem is then about trying to mitigate those same wrong people from unlawfully acquiring those weapons and if a weapon is in a home and the home owners not there... Then they can feasibly force access and steal that weapon.
Just an idea but perhaps secure community locations for storage, like a community armoury of some fashion? You want access to your gun for sport, go and check it out use it and check it back into a secure armoury, where it will be kept secure preventing the possibility of someone breaking into your home for a weapon that's not there. You could argue that that just provides one singular place for them to target... But I feel a community armoury would and should have much much higher level of security than the average persons home.
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We agree criminals ignore laws especially violent criminals. As long as violent criminals with guns or machetes exist, law abiding citizens and legal residents need firearms including lethal bullets for protection. Police or professionals cannot be everywhere especially during the commission of a crime.
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Japan has almost zero violent crime
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Japan has a vastly different culture to the US.
If some of the US populace took respect lessons from Japan, they'd have a lot less violent crime too.
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It’s not only culture.
Japan is homogeneous and high IQ country.
Japan is not a diverse melting pot
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Are you implying that the US has a lower IQ than Japan?
You're right it's not really a diverse mix of cultures so let's look back at the UK again. Do shootings occur? Yes. But they're are much much rarer than in the US because guns are not easily accessible. If you can't get a gun you can't do any shooting.
I would like to clarify, I'm not anti gun, I actually think you should be allowed to own whatever you choose to own within a framework of reason. And I can't see it as reasonable that an untrained civilian needs access to high end weaponry. The only modicum of anti gun I have is that I am anti the wrong people having the wrong guns.
Children as an example should not have guns, they should also not have access to their parents guns. And I don't mean "Timmy you're not allowed to touch that" I mean physically incapable of opening the locked container that stores the weapon. Although you have listed unhinged adults with severe mental issues as problems with shootings there is also the undeniable issue that children are taking their parents guns to school with them and doing the shootings themselves. That can't be allowed to happen.
I'm pro responsible gun ownership and I unfortunately believe that there is a large majority of the US population who are unfit to own weapons, despite what rights they may believe they're entitled to.
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USA has lower IQ than Japan
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IQ and propensity for violence are inversely related
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Honestly can't say I personally disagree with that statement. But I don't believe that people are born with low IQ. And it's on the education system to teach them responsibilities and respectful behaviours. If you can teach that effectively, I think violence will drop and the majority of gun owners will be able to carry on without a minority ruining everything for everyone else.
That being said, sadly there's no IQ test for ownership of anything. The problem with as you pointed out in a different reply about felons and gun usages, because guns are easier to get hold of they have less obstacles to overcome to enact violence. If every home in America (I know not all of them do) had a gun, it just means that although felons aren't allowed to own one... They still have access via theft (and that's not exactly something they won't do) or any other illegal acquisition. If guns were less available they'd have less ability to get one (by any means) and therefore less ability to use one.
I understand the arguement about ownership for protection but you can't ignore the fact that widespread gun access gives the wrong people the wrong weaponry.
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Which is why we need widespread access for everyone including the good guys. Deter fire with fire.
Intelligence is hereditary. Some people are born smart. Some are born less smart. Most people converge between 95 and 100.
Humans are not a blank slate. Twins separated at birth have debunked the blank slate. So has Steven Pinker.
Affirmative action doesn’t make people smarter.
IQ and intelligence is a bell curve.
In America there is one demographic, about 14% that is low IQ and responsible for almost all violent crimes including homicides. A trend since 1960 despite numerous government assistance programs
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