Gun fanatics putting own spin on tragedy

The letter, "An armed citizenry would have prevented massacre," , appearing less than 48 hours after the tragedy at Virginia Tech, is both extremely disturbing and predictable.

[lee]

Oh yeah, i'm sure the victims were thinking 'glad there's not a teacher or student that has a weapon to take out the shooter with, we'll at least die honorably'. Sitting ducks they were.Gun free zones at work.

[Hunter]

Its time for colleges to provide mandatory weapons for each professor in each classroom.

[traditionalist]

Surely all of us who read the AC-T could pool our resources and find a job for Ted that will allow him to be put in situations of great danger where he can use his powers of persuasion.
As a member of the lunatic fringe, I will be happy to preorder a video of the results to take with me to a second world country.
By-the-way..I am already in a country that not only belongs to me, but provides for my right to have a gun so I can protect people like Ted who curses the very people who afforded him the right to do that.

[CSS]

Let me ask you a question, Ted. In fact, let's set up a hypothetical situation. You're in a class full of people at a university. Let's say that there are 30 people in that room. A predator with a gun walks through the door. He shoots the professor, kills him. He then takes the remainder of the people in the room and lines them up against a wall. He then walks up to the first person and shots them in the head. Now ... let me allow you to change the scenario. We can freeze-frame this situation while you make a decision. Your decision is this: You can put a gun into the hands of one student or a professor in that room, or you can leave things exactly the way they are. What are you going to do? Come on now, let's have it. Which way do you want it? Do you want the predator to be the only one in the room with a gun? Or would you like to have at least the fighting chance that would result if one, maybe two of your classmates had a firearm.

Lookin' forward to you reasoned reply..........

[fortressman]

Another liberal with his head in his posterior! You, Ted Remington, are not only vomiting "insane litany", but you also have a bad case of the runs.

"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."

- Albert Einstein

[Alekas]

Oh please, Ted, the anti-gunners were at least as quick in their response to the kilings, as if one gun law would have disuaded an individual who had no issue with laws against murder. Thus, your outrage rings hollow and more than just a bit one-sided.

There is nothing laws with gun laws that make sense but, again, the only people who would follow them are folks who are not looking to target their fellow citizens.

[ncbengal]

Ever notice that the favorite targets for these lunatics are GUN FREE ZONES? I wonder if Cho knew that this was a GUN FREE ZONE, in which case he would probably would not have carried his guns there. Yeah.

And that's how gun control works.

[yona]

I have an invitation for the letter writer and his ilk: Pick up your weapons and take them to a country that will welcome you. But be warned. No first or second world country is going to accept you. And in those that do, you will find that the people do not speak English, you cannot drink the water and there are no seats on the toilets.

Ted I am in the country, which by its own constution allows me to own a firearm for my own protection, and the defence of this country.

Maybe, Ted, you need to move to one of those liberal countries which curtails personal freedom. I suggest France.

[Johnny loong]

Ted sounds like he likes the cherry kool aid.

[jimtash]

I'd love to move to Switzerland where there's probably a fully automatic rifle in every household ISSUED by the Swiss government to its citizens. And I can assure you that the Swiss live a hell of a lot better than we do here, drinking water and all.

[stereoman]

I've heard similar inappropriate comments from any number of gun enthusiasts who insist that the killings could have been prevented had other youth been allowed to carry concealed weapons. I think it's a mistake to draw any kind of conclusions about firearms from this tragedy. The young man was sick, demented, an aberration. We shouldn't try to draw any lessons from his actions except as they pertain to his illness.

[Chases_Mom]

I believe in the right to bear arms, and I certainly don't wish to surrender my firearm. We all know even if guns were outlawed, the criminals will always get around it as they do now.
Students carrying weapons isn't answer either as some are not mature enough to handle an altercation without violence. I wouldn't have a problem with teachers possessing a firearm as we live in a society where this has become too commonplace. However, even if the professors had a gun Monday, odds are it would have been locked up (as it rightfully should have been) and they would not have had the time to get it before the shooting started. We have laws in place that should have prevented this kid from purchasing a gun, yet those are not enforced. Companies are all too eager to make that sale, with little regard as to what their product will be used. As horrific as this tragedy was, I'd not like it at all if my child was on a campus where any who wished could pack a pistol. They are college students but not yet mature adults and that would be an invitation to other violence, IMO.
People are killing, the guns aren't walking out and pulling their own triggers.

[bernard b carman]

Perhaps Mr. Remington is correct! Perhaps those of us who wish to live as FREE men and women need to seek out another place on this planet for those of us to live who bought the lie that "America is the land of the free"!

Then folks like him can continue turning this once great nation into the socialist/communist country that it is quickly becoming.

[timpeck]

GUN FREE ZONE:

http://snipurl.com/1h6bj

[vet]

Chases Mom does not think students are mature enough to carry guns.Maturity comes with a reason to be mature and most military combatants are the age of students.
Why give professors guns and then lock them up? That would be like cops with guns back at the station or in the car and guns can be bought at any flea market or out of the newspaper.You are right about the guns themselves because people are the ones who are responsible.

[bernard b carman]

A point of considersation for "Chases_Mom": Please consider that none of the legislation passed banning anything prevents those who wish to obtain anything from doing so.
Case in point: DRUGS. Several recreational drugs are illegal, but that doesn't stop anyone from getting them. Also, consider prohibition in the 20's — did it stop people from obtaining alcohol? The answer is not only, "no," but it also served to foster organized crime.
The same is true with guns. When Congress passes a gun control law, it only serves to take weapons out of the hands of regular Americans who could help prevent such haneous crimes, and leaves them in the hands of criminals. You've probably heard this before from the "gun fanatics and their ilk", as Mr. Reminton puts it, and you will continue to hear it because it's the truth. I'm not sure if I would neatly fit into his category, as I do not even own a gun, but I speak on behalf of Americans who have the right to do so.
Responsibility goes along with many aspects of our lives — gun ownership is but one. Unfortunately, we are living in a very frail America, unknown by its founders, where the masses are indoctrinated into the "let the authorities handle crisis" mindset. This teaching fosters such tragedies as 9/11, the Katrina rescue fiasco, and the unchecked violence of the V-Tech shootings.

[Andrew White]

Ted,
It didn't seem to be more than 24 hours before our president was being asked questions about gun control by the media as well.
There are two sides to this debate that are working equally hard to win.
Disarming the populace doesn't work given the examples of England, France, Mexico, et al.
Guns don't jump up and start shooting on their own either.
Characterizing guns as toys is indicative of how you see your freedoms as an inalienable right that cannot be eroded or revoked, but history proves otherwise. Freedoms must be preserved by the threat and sometimes the use of force. This includes freedom of the press that allows this paper to function and freedom of speech which allows you to express your opinions.
The act at VT was the act of a coward who knew he was walking into an area where he would be the only one with a weapon. Everyone had fists, probably many had pepper spray, and everyone had a large book or two. He sought an unlevel situation, in terms of the force continuum. Had there been a law that didn't infringe on the right to bear arms on college campuses, he would had to have allowed for the possibility of an armed staff member, student, or faculty member.
This is not second guessing, it's been said for a long time by the pro gun crowd.
I'm going this week to get a concealed carry permit that I've been meaning to get for years now because I know that the police can't be everywhere, and because I know that my safety is ultimately my responsibility.
Hopefully, you realize this as well and are making choices based on realistic expectations.
Andrew White

[Alekas]

Chases_Mom wrote:

We have laws in place that should have prevented this kid from purchasing a gun, yet those are not enforced. Companies are all too eager to make that sale, with little regard as to what their product will be used.

Actually, there was no law in place - at least not in VA - to prevent this guy from making his purchase. The person who made the sale did what was required of him and went on with the transaction.

[David C]

Europe, has strict gun-control laws and because of them, suffered under the likes of Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini.

WHEREAS, in America, we have the right to bear arms, and we have been free ever since.

...

Peace to the families of those who were killed.

Of course, the ANTI-GUN NUTS will use this very tragic incident to promote their political viewpoint..

MESSAGE to the ANTI-GUN NUTS:

Hitler believed in gun control....where do you stand???

...

[1911-govt]

stereoman wrote:

I've heard similar inappropriate comments from any number of gun enthusiasts who insist that the killings could have been prevented had other youth been allowed to carry concealed weapons. I think it's a mistake to draw any kind of conclusions about firearms from this tragedy. The young man was sick, demented, an aberration. We shouldn't try to draw any lessons from his actions except as they pertain to his illness.

As you occasionally do, you said something meaningful. We should not be looking at this as a vehicle to limit freedoms. The actions of a nut should not dictate policy for the majority.

We cannot allow ourselves, as a society, to live in fear. Knee-jerk reactions, on either side, tend to be poorly thought out and often wrong-minded.

Let the dust settle, and then discuss what might prevent this in the future.

Thank God this kid didn't have access to explosives or hazardous chemicals, or the carnage would have been far worse. What if he had burned one of the older dorms (without sprinklers) and killed a couple hundred students. Would the left be begging for bans on bic lighters? Or the right acvocating every student carry an extinguisher?