CNN Vote: Assault Weapons Ban

[Guest]

I personally do not own or need to own assault weapons.

I don't think that most people have a need to. A lot of people should not have access to assault weapons or any weapons for that matter.....

But here are the facts...

1. The NRA is extremist but so are anti gun freaks...you must fight fire with fire. Unfortunately in this country we have too much partisinship and you have to take an extreme view to allow any room for negotiating.

2. Michael Moore does a great job in Roger & Me depicting the greed of GM. I think he was right. He also held a "mock" funeral for a guy who needed a pancreas transplant but his HMO refused him. Ultimately they paid for his transplant. BRAVO!

However, In bowling for columbine he says that the reason a 6 YO girl is shot in school is because the mother of the boy who shot her was forced to work in a "Workfare" program and wasn't there to send her kid to school personally??? What a crock! His uncle brought the gun in the house! Moore says this in his film and still blaims the "facist gov't". He also says that other countries have as many guns but less murders.
He wonders why?
I'll tell you why because of all the drugs. He also never once says what % of murders are committed with legally obtained weapons as opposed to street weapons.
Of course not, that would ruin his film.

3. (Probably still related to #2)
The anti-gun freaks like Rosie O'Donnell, Michael Moore, and others are liberals. They must stay along there party lines. Therefore they cannot (without coming acrross lefty lines) blame the criminals. No, They have to take away our rights! They are a bunch of idiots.

....and that is why need an extremist organisation like the NRA defending our rights. If not them....who?


On another note:

Crack Cocaine is illegal, abortion was illegal until the seventies, marijuana, and opiates are illegal....of course the best example - prohibition.

I guess if they ban guns the bad guys won't have any?

 

[Varmint Hunter]

59% for lifting vs 41% for extending, with 374k votes cast.

I just added my vote and emailed ALL of my shooting buddies from all over the country.

Don't just vote, email your buddies.

After we beat the antis 2 to 1, CNN will conveiniently lose the poll results. They certainly won't put the results on the nightly news, but its better than having the results go against us.

VH

[ 07-01-2004: Message edited by: Varmint Hunter ]

 

[Imortal Wombat]

Dear Mr Meathead, get over yourself.

Dave King, I agree with what you said, i am not anit-anything that can kill over 200yards, i was talking full blown automatic assault style weapons like M60's M16's Tech 9's etc, but on the other hand, its not the guns, its the "nut behind the but" that is the problem. Even if these weapons are banned, the people who want them for reasons other than Legitamet ones will still be able to get the guns. This is the case in Australia, where to my knowlege all handguns other than target pistols have been banned, however people are still shot with illegal handguns on a fairly regular basis.

I would also like to apoligise to anyone who was offended, as my post before was not ment to offend or enrage, mearly to help myself become more informed on this subject.

 

[John Burns]

John M.

I am glad the founders of our country did not agree with you on owning the assault weapons of the day.

The second amendment is only about arms suitable for militia use. (Assault weapons)

There is nothing in our constitution about hunting guns.

 

[4ked Horn]

Vote is still 59-41 as of Thurs evening.

I'm with John B on his above post. Sporting guns are loads of fun when you want to use your guns 99.9999% of the time. They give us things to compete with and tinker with and study and show off to our friends and as gifts to the youths in our lives. They are a very important part of the relationship and spending of time with others. Guns are a many faceted subject.

BUT...

I believe that a guns primary worth, it's significance of purpose is it's ability to aid in a defensive act.

A $5000.00 hunting rifle may be a wonderful investment in the quest for knoledge and achievement and comaraderie but when the walls shake and the enemy advances where is its heart? What exactly will it do for you?

Most of us here know exactly what our bolt guns will do for us when we need them most. They would serve comfortably in the role of long range defence. This also means that they will not work well in close quarters defence. That is why we have shotguns and pistols and ASSAULT WEAPONS. The weapons that are best for staging an assault are also the weapons that are best suited for defending against one. And I do mean punks climbing in your bedroom window on a dark night as well as those currently in the news that threaten to do harm to malls and office buildings located just a few blocks from your neighborhood.

Assault weapons came to the rescue in the conflict in california between the two bank robbers with body armor. Those weapons , given to the police by a private gun store owner, defeated assault weapons used illeagally by criminals.

Should we own "hunting rifles" that shoot a long distance? Yes.

Should we own weapons that shoot many rounds in a reliable manner in rapid succession? Hell yes!

Notice that I didn't use the word "allowed" one single time. This is because punks, criminals and terrorists don't ask permission to have guns and peacefull, civilized humans shouldn't have to.

There you have it. Words from the big chair.

 

[Guest]

John Burns,
I never said that I was against owning assault weapons. I believe that we should own whatever gun we want.

I said that I personally did not have a need or desire for one. BUT, I fully agree with the right of someone to have one. If the need ever arose where I felt I need one, I want the right to purchase one.

I was also simply stating my opinion when I said that most people do not need them. And yes, there are people that should not own a weapon. I never said I support legislation to ban them. I do think that convicted felons should not be permitted to own weapons.

I tell you, I do not have a problem filling out the yellow sheet when I purchase a long gun, but I do think it ridiculus that I have to jump through hoops to get a pistol. It should be the same thing. The yellow should suffice for ALL weapons.

 

[gonehuntingagain]

Why do I like my so-called assault weapon? Because it is accurate, even at a distance, and fun. It is cheap to shoot as well. It is great for shooting small game, like the rock chucks that 4ked Horn, Dave in Idaho and I were shooting a couple of weeks ago - all with our "assault weapons".
The people that want these firearms banned is mostly because of cosmetic reasons - they look menacing. Such as a bayonet lug. OK, how many murders have been committed by someone with a bayonet? Does a pistol grip make it more deadly than any other rifle? Such things like having a "flash suppressor", which in itself is BS since the M16A2 that I had in the Marines was a compensator, not a flash suppressor - but I cannot thread the end of my barrel to intall one unless it is permanately attached.
What the gun control advocates do not realize is that PEOPLE kill, not guns - they are merely a tool. Someone has to aquire the gun, then aquire the ammunition, then load the gun....I think you can see where I am going with this.
The original AWB bill would have made many more firearms evil, such as the M1 garand, my Remington 742 (it has a detachable clip), and many more. The road that this is leading down is the same road that England and Austrailia have already followed. This is not a road that I am willing to follow.

Freedom isn't Free!

 

[Guest]

Some people just don't get it.

1) The Government is supposed to serve the people, not the other way around.

2) The 2cnd Amendment was written for the sole purpose of reminding those working for the Government of point number 1 (see above).

3) Anyone who has no need for an assault weapon does not understand Power, and how quickly it can be abused, and how quickly it can change hands. I would recommend a History class, and try to pay attention this time. If you can't read, just take a vacation in Central America, and visit all the Nations in that region, Bona Fortuna.

4) The lady that said a 12 gauge is better for home defense than a rifle, there is no helping you, turn in all your guns to your government immediately, the world will be a safer place.

 

[Brent]

We all "need" (to possess) the rifles for which "they" think we have no need for, period... the more the better, the more ammo the better. There's a reason they don't want us to have them, and it's not crime either. How scared do you think the world would be of a US invasion if we were unarmed, especially of our battle rifles? Tis the only reason we remain free ya know. It ain't cause they respect us on their own, it's their fear of us US citizens plain and simple.

If Bush was truely interested in protecting our freedom in the way ANY President should be, he'd issue everyone (within reason) a state of the art full auto assult rifle, and "at least" each household a Barrett full auto 50 BMG and teach the little tikes in grade school what they're for during history class, and how and when to use them.

Yeah, invade us now! And how much crime would we have then for them liberal communists to "use" to push us into a one world government. Watch the news, you see them trying to hand power to the UN at every step. Hell, what's on the news right now, just another one of the Dems bright ideas. Should give us a closer look at what they have planned for us, sheeple.

 

[gonehuntingagain]

One thing that I forgot to add to my post - it is NOT about "need". We don't need sports cars that can do 180 mph, we don't need multi-million dollar homes, etc. It is about the very core of our freedoms that were guaranteed to us by something that other countries do not have - The Constitution and the Bill of Rights. That is what, ultimately, this fight is about.

 

[[email protected]]

Hi folks - I am a political progressive. In 1992 my oldest son was gunned down in LA as he was (foolishly) trying to intervene in a robbery. That event got me thinking about guns and the Second Amendment.

My conclusions: The Second Amendment gives each individual the right to own firearms of any kind. We would be insane to give up this right. We cannot let it be curtailed. Given the sort of world that we live in now, I do not see any viable alternative. When I consider anyone attacking my wife, my children, my friends, pacifism is not an answer.

An observation: We are bombarded daily with warnings about terrorists. At the same time, there is this strong sentiment against even responsible gun ownership. It would appear that both Republicans and Democrats want us helpless and perpetually frightened. Owning a firearm, training with it, knowing how to use it if it becomes necessary - that is the way back from servile fear and dependency.

 

[Brent]

Mondo11,

I agree and admire your strength to remain a clear thinker after your family's very unfortunate loss. If Sara Brady had only been so intelligent we'd probably be far from where we are today.

GHA,

I'll have to disagree on the "need" issue, but I do understand your point clearly. If others only understood why they also "need" an assault rifle and not just have a right to it that some feel is questionable, they would be far less likely to give away what Men and Women have have payed for with their lives, for us, to ensure we keep. Our forefathers saw it as "need", and protected it for us because it was just such, not because we fell in love with the smell of gun powder or some other silly desire of ours.

 

[gonehuntingagain]

Mondo11,
Sorry to hear of your loss, and like Brent, I thank you for a clear train of thought. Most people do not have the strength to do so after such a tragedy.

Brent,

You have no idea how much I would like to have a 50BMG, a 'real' assault weapon, and a metric butt-ton of ammo!

 

[Guest]

Brent, S1 and others....

One point I'm trying to make is that even if someone feels they do not need an assault weapon that should not influence their decision about other peoples rights.

If only people who felt they "needed" to own one came out in support of our right to "have" one. We would loose!

It important in this country to respect other people's rights even if we don't have a requirement at that time. Maybe one day if Osama get out of hand I'll need more guns. Should that day come, or if I feel it's coming I don't want be be restricted from buying whatever weapon I need.

I am not a rebublican or a democrat. In fact I can't stand the Dems and I think the Reps try too much to be like the dems.
I am a Libetarian....NOT A LIBERAL!
they are not even close to the same thing!

For those who do not know, the Libertarian party was started by Tom Jefferson. We believe in total "New Hampshire style" freedom! Own whatever gun you want, full auto, whatever. Minimal gov't is desired. "WE THE PEOPLE" are the gov't....that's it.

Back to my point, It is important for people to understand the need to accept and give me my freedoms and I'll give you yours!