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Why we need a Federal Assault Weapons Ban Law NOW

Woman left with 13 bullet holes after brother took her dancing at Colorado LGBTQ club

Story by Bevan Hurley, The Independent, Nov. 21, 2022

"Charlene Slaugh, 35, and her brother James Slaugh were preparing to leave Club Q on Saturday night when a gunman opened fire, killing five and wounding 25 others...Charlene was shot at least once in the abdomen and suffered a collapsed lung. She is recovering after undergoing surgery and faces a long recovery."

Two AR-15-style weapons were used in the attack.

Read the full story here:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/woman-left-with-13-bullet-holes-after-brother-took-her-dancing-at-colorado-lgbtq-club/ar-AA14naI2?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=61a0688fdfda475cbf6709eeebaf44bf
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2cool4school · 46-50, F
How’s that going to help the estimated 20 million rifles that are already in circulation in this US ??
As of 2020, there were about 20 million AR-15-style weapons in the country, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a trade association
windinhishair · 61-69, M
@2cool4school That's a good question, and the honest answer is that it won't be anything about those weapons. But it would prevent the sales of new assault weapons to people moving forward, so it will prevent some of the mass killings in the ongoing epidemic in the US.

You have to start somewhere. This is really a no-brainer decision.
2cool4school · 46-50, F
@windinhishair people who are interested in killing people will find a way to get their desired weapon. The value of the existing rifles will increase making people more interested in selling them and portion of the customers will likely be those intent on mass killing.
The US military is in the process of upgrading their rifles and going forward no civilians are going to be able to obtain (ideally) both the rifle and the ammunition caliber of the next gen rifles. Hopefully this will stop that kind of weapon from entering into the mass casualty event cycle. An active shooter is going to be limited to less rounds and non detachable magazines by the gun laws that are already present in California. If the entire country has the same gun laws as the most strict states then we can hopefully see a downward trend and that is going to take time to happen. It’s a “big ship” and nothing happens swiftly but the US never seems to be able to get everyone on the same page. One persons ban for public safety is another persons violation to their rights. I’m just not sure if their will ever be enough of a unified voice and mind to make the ban when people make arguments about how only the criminals and the criminally insane will have the access to the most deadly ways to kill as many people as possible. We learn as we go. Nobody is going to be able to get a hotel room over a mass group of people at an outdoor concert and amass a small arsenal again (ideally and hopefully) like they did in Las Vegas. Some people would say that we are trending down but loopholes are continually being found and determined demented people are going to do what they want to do if they are so inclined. You can’t get a drivers license if you are not determined to be mentally fit and unfortunately the same is not true about a firearm. I hope limits like Californias can be adopted in more states but not everyone is in favor sadly Until someone in their family is killed by a shooter most likely their minds won’t change. No matter how many school children alternative lifestyle people everyday people just shopping are killed nothing seems to be changing much. Sad as that is it’s our current reality. 😔
2cool4school · 46-50, F
You have to start somewhere. This is really a no-brainer decision

@windinhishair you’re right about a no brainer decision but for some reason and I think it’s one person’s ban for public safety is another persons attack on their given liberty. Idk but that’s what I feel right now.
2cool4school · 46-50, F
I’ve already made a post on how few actual active shooter events are stopped by “a good guy with a gun” so I don’t believe in the argument that only the criminals will have access to the most deadly weapons and people need to be able to defend themselves. You don’t need 30, 50, 100 round magazines to stop another person with the same. And the law enforcement agencies have them it’s their job to use them.
But I’ve been thinking about the general rules of gun usage like drawing your weapon first and that’s based in the frontier times and the “Wild West” of the US. It’s definitely time to have modern laws that fit the current culture and problems. I don’t think that a potential shooter is going to become a suicide bomber if they can’t get a hold of the kind of weaponry that they want to kill as many people as possible but there’s always a small percentage that might.
windinhishair · 61-69, M
@2cool4school Another overlooked aspect is the significant number of gun accidents that kill or maim people. My young son pointed a gun at his younger sister when he found a loaded gun in a relative's home we were visiting. We didn't think to ask if they had loaded weapons sitting around. She would have been a statistic if he had pulled the trigger. But unfortunately, many such accidents occur around our gun-crazed country.

You are correct that you don't need to shoot off hundreds of rounds in less than a minute for self-protection. Banning such weapons from general use will help reduce mass murders.
@2cool4school What it dose to the 20M 'rifles' is it makes them illegal. 'Responsible gun owners' don't want to break gun ownership laws. Why do Rgo's want to own/buy military type rifles? Because they can. Because they are legal. Because they want to protect themselves and their families from criminals who would use them. How do we put the cover back on Pandora's box and end the misery and pain that opening it caused?
2cool4school · 46-50, F
@windinhishair Wow that’s terrible and terrifying to experience I’m so sorry.
Personally I don’t understand why people don’t lock their firearms at least a trigger lock if not a gun safe.
I was always taught that it’s more likely that my gun would be used against me than me needing it to neutralize a threat. So better to be locked and unused than easily accessible (Every situation is definitely different but statistically speaking) .
Plenty of uneducated gun owners have their weapons stollen too they end up in the hands of people that don’t want to purchase legally. I’m so sorry that you had to deal with such a frightening experience. I don’t remember how old I was when I actually knew where my dads guns were but he was very clear about their danger from as far back as I can remember. Now that we have another generation around that has never ever seen a real gun we lock and hide every one. I don’t have children but I know my sister and her husband have asked people if they have child proofed their guns when visiting new houses. Just a fact of life now. Growing up my parents taught us to never touch a gun. But I know that there are just more around today.
(The guns in my childhood home were actually well hidden though we knew where they were and I never felt slightly interested in examining them or sharing their existence with friends)
Many of my friends used to ask my dad about if he’s ever used his gun against anyone and in 33 years he had to once. He’s a retired police captain who In the past 2 years (almost 20 years after he’s retired from law enforcement) has come close to being shot twice once at a high school football game and once in his own neighborhood. I can’t explain how hard it was for my family to watch the security camera video from a neighbors house when 3 previously convicted criminals tried to steal his vehicle in a crime of opportunity. They failed and while running off to their getaway vehicle, unsuccessful in figuring out how to put his vehicle into drive (as well as being high on meth) one of them thought it was a good idea to use a .223 AR-15 ghost gun to fire 2 shots at him after he chased their get away vehicle and threw a rock in attempt to mark it so it would be easier for police to spot. The shots went over his head and the heads of 3 neighbors that tried to help (one neighbor was successful in getting video of the event)
The shots went through a wall and lodged in the water heater of a house owned by a retired sheriffs deputy. Thankfully no one was injured. 3 hours later all 3 were apprehended and the ghost gun was recovered from a dumpster when the shooter took off running from the car stop and tried to hide in an apartment buildings garage. He was actually supposed to be sentenced for previous crimes and been in prison but was released by a judge for unknown reasons. But is now a felon in prison for several charges for several years. The other two were sentenced as accomplices. And got less time.
My dad grew up in a very pro gun family and around people that assume being in law enforcement means being pro gun but I know he’s not pro gun for most people. It always surprised me that most police officers aren’t more verbal about being for gun reform.
I believe you can be a responsible gun owner and not be in support of assault rifles. I just can’t imagine a situation where you need a 30 round magazine and I find the arguments for needing an AR-15 to be paranoid at best.
Still I’m not wise enough to know or foolish enough to believe that this gun problem will be solved in my lifetime. I really hope that I am wrong for the sake of the next generations.
2cool4school · 46-50, F
@softspokenman I understand making them illegal but I don’t see it taking them out of circulation at a high enough level to be effective. Plenty of responsible gun owners bought AR-15s during the pandemic and they have been selling them both back to gun stores and dealers according to a YouTube vid I saw because they realized that they didn’t actually need them. I think plenty of people wouldn’t turn their illegal assault weapon in unless they were actually facing incarceration. I’m not trying to argue for people owning them I’m just trying to be aware of why people feel the need. I feel like it comes down to the fact that people who want them feel entitled to own any sort of firearm they can because they believe that they have the freedom to no matter who else is enabled by that freedom. I do believe that it’s a mental health issue as far as how these mass casualty events happen and I cite the example of not being allowed to get a drivers license if you aren’t deemed mentally fit enough. This similar standard should be a minimum for firearms. I agree that ammunition should be tracked. The problem is that there are so many ways to get diverted weapons and not enough enforcement. The ATF is primarily responsible and the FBI and local and state police have so many other things to do. I’m not sure how but I feel things need a reboot but the opposition is always so strong that logic doesn’t ever seem to win out. One persons reform is an infringement upon another persons freedom. That’s all I can figure 😔
CorvusBlackthorne · 100+, M
@2cool4school
people who are interested in killing people will find a way to get their desired weapon.
Well. I'm certainly convinced. As they will attempt to find a way to obtain semi-automatic or automatic weapons in order to commit their crimes, we should simply give them an easy way to obtain them.
2cool4school · 46-50, F
Do but into many other conversations that you don’t fully grasp?? Is this just your style @CorvusBlackthorne ?? We don’t have to give them an easy way. So many ways exist already. You’re oversimplification and mistaken interpretation surprisingly demonstrates how little you understand my words. But that’s really more your problem than mine. Good luck with that. 😊☺️