My (NEW) thread on gun control

I am reposting this thread due to my original thread being removed because it had 2 words that i guess are extremely verbotten on ATS somewhere in it. So let me begin....

GUNS do not kill people. PEOPLE kill people. Period. If you take away the guns, people will use knives and swords, take away the knives and swords, people will use sticks and stones. I am so sick of hearing this "ban guns" bull$. You dont need a gun to kill alot of innocent people. Timothy Mcveigh remember? Dont get brain washed by the main stream media and the pundents trying to convince you other wise. ANY politician that talks about banning ANY type of gun is a traitor to their oathes to the constituition and should be charged with treason. Responsible gun owners dont go on shooting rampages. All this talk of getting rid of guns makes me weep for america, because it is the stupidest thing i have ever heard, if not the most dangerous. An armed citizenry and an informed citizenry is a governments worse enemy. Especially a governemt that is showing more and more that it DOES NOT have the citizenries best interest at heart. A govt that is showing more and more that it is more interested in maintaining the satus quo than it is in representing the populace. A govt that is more controlled by lobbyists than the the populace. Gun control will do nothing to stop the violence in todays society. A bigger focus on mental health may not either. Prescribing pills who side ffects increase mental disorders instead of decreasing them will not help. When someone gets it into their minds to do these atrocious acts, there is nothing that is going to prevent them from doing it. It sickens me that people do not understand this. The only way to stop this is for people to get informed and get involved. Im not advocating any particular form involvment, apparently you cant advocate that on ATS anymore. Anyways, even if you had to get vetted by some sort of therapist, there will always be some psycho that is such a good actor that they are going to slip through. And how many times have we heard a serial killers neighbor saying he ws a good person? The only reason TPTB want our guns (any and all of them), is dis arm us. But it wont work, there will always be a black market, there will always be criminals with guns, and there will always be responsible people standing up for the constitution. I will leave you with some quotes from the past about the 2nd amendment

"I ask, Sir, what is the militia? It is the whole people. To disarm the people is the best and most effectual way to enslave them."
George Mason
Co-author of the Second Amendment
during Virginia's Convention to Ratify the Constitution, 1788

"And that the said Constitution be never construed to authorize Congress to infringe the just liberty of the Press, or the rights of Conscience; or to prevent the people of the United States, who are peaceable citizens, from keeping their own arms; …"
Samuel Adams
quoted in the Philadelphia Independent Gazetteer, August 20, 1789, "Propositions submitted to the Convention of this State"

Firearms stand next in importance to the constitution itself. They are the American people's liberty teeth and keystone under independence … from the hour the Pilgrims landed to the present day, events, occurences and tendencies prove that to ensure peace security and happiness, the rifle and pistol are equally indispensable … the very atmosphere of firearms anywhere restrains evil interference — they deserve a place of honor with all that's good."
George Washington
First President of the United States

To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
Richard Henry Lee
American Statesman, 1788

The constitutions of most of our States assert that all power is inherent in the people; that … it is their right and duty to be at all times armed; … "
Thomas Jefferson

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reply to post by itbenickp


Lots of people love to bitch and complain...

Few people love to act.

I see dozens of threads every day on ATS about this, but we are preaching to mainly like-minded people.

How many of us have posted a YouTube video? Started a FaceBook petition? Or even take the time to start a conversation with their friends once in a while and bring up the subject...?

I have seen threads get 200+ flags, which means there are 200+ separate accounts that all agree that something is an issue.

If all 200 of those people got off the forum for just 5 minutes and posted something on another site where people don't share our same views, we would be actually affecting public opinion, instead of just complaining to fellow ATS'ers.

One candle can light 1000 others...

reply to post by itbenickp


The problem with sites like ATS is you are either preaching to the choir or at deaf ears... It gets really boring after awhile. You can look at the username or avatar and know if it is worth reading or not.

I will say, I agree with your post.

reply to post by YouAreLiedTo


dozens though? Really? But i guess i am bitching and complaing, its my right. But its the debate that is getting me so riled up. Becasue people are just not realizing that banning guns or not banning guns isnt the issue. The will to act is the most important part of gun violence. End of story. And alot of people just are not including that in their arguements....

reply to post by itbenickp


I wonder how many lives have been saved, by a loss of temper and no gun to grab [I'm not talking about the US]
10,000 GUN SHOT DEATHS A YEAR IN THE US. More, much more than Canada and the Western Europe put together....by a mile. The argument for keeping your guns in America is extremely tiresome, selfish and yes paranoid.
Even more bizarre is that a huge proportion of the gun lobby a devout Christians, IT Simply doesn't gel.

In one sense you are right, "Guns don't kill people", but people with guns do kill people and people without guns
CANT. The sooner you lose your obsession with guns the better in my honest opinion.

reply to post by rigel4


Our obsession with guns is what got us our freedom in the first place, and it is our obesession with guns that will keep our freedom if TPTB decide they want total control. GUNS are not the rpoblem, they are a tool. Nothing more. People will find whatever there is to inflict as much damage as possible. People will always find a way to enact their plans of mass murder. Guns arent the only way people commit these crimes.

My friends and family are tired of hearing about it. I talk about it all the time. I have family who own guns and agree with me, but they have not sent any emails or been outspoken about it on facebook. Some people are sheep. We need leaders to bring out the data and counter the silly talking points. I think there are plenty of capable folks out there, they just need a kick in the bum.

Originally posted by itbenickp
I am reposting this thread due to my original thread being removed because it had 2 words that i guess are extremely verbotten on ATS somewhere in it. So let me begin....

IMPORTANT: Using Content From Other Websites on ATS
MOD NOTE: Posting work written by others

edit on Mon Dec 31 2012 by DontTreadOnMe because: (no reason given)

And then you post what you do with "quotes", no external tags and then post those link at the bottom? I don't know what your game is but you're walking a pretty thin line.

From your deleted post:

Originally posted by itbenickp
I just had a thread removed because it had 2 words in it: sign petitions.
Are you freaking kidding me?? Because of 2 words!?!?!?!

No, they're not kidding you. Asking people to sign petitions, whether they're specifically yours or just as a general suggestion, is basically solicitation. If I was a mod I would've removed it too. You want to solicit something, go to Facebook.

How bout you send me a message asking me to change it, and reminding me of the T&C? NO, you arbitrarily just delete it. Is this happening a lot now?

Unfortunately yes. While mods are concentrating on removing posts that are blatant violations of the T's and C's, something a 2nd grader should be able to get a handle on, it takes time away that they could be spending on actually moderating threads so they don't get off topic, degenerate into pissing matches, etc......

I've been here for 6 years and have never had anything deleted, 404'd, removed, or whatever, and I've said some pretty suspect things here. I'm still waiting for my door to kicked down. I "get away with it" because they know me and they know I follow the rules, I contribute quality content and add to the overall integrity of the board. ( Well, 8 days out of 10 at least). The same reason the staff gives me leeway is the same reason most posters don't like me too well: I have a way of cutting through the BS. I deny ignorance and I'm not that overly concerned about whether I offend people or not on certain topics. Like this one. Besides which, when I have a stick up my butt and cross paths with people, it drives content. It keeps conversations going and while some people might want to argue and get off topic, I'm the steady Eddie that keeps it all real. Staff see's that. I might not be the consummate professional all the time, but I tend to be good for business. Yes, mine is a hard hand to hold.

I'm the kind of poster they feel guilty for liking.

I was gone for awhile, and i come back and ATS is NOT the site i was so fond of a few years ago.

Why? Because you're not getting your way? Grow up. Of course the site has changed. Membership has grown and the world around us has changed. The staff here recognizes that and acclimates itself to those changes. That's why it's more relevant now then ever before. Might I suggest you stand on the other side of mirror and see things the way they do for a few hours, and you might see why they do what they do. They're running a business that you're taking personally. That's the bottom line.

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And then this thread..........an extremely fancy way to solicit via the old "Call to Arms" standby. Sometimes I wonder if you're on the right site man. You just don't seem to get it.

reply to post by Taupin Desciple


The stuff from let me begin to the quotes was all me. I cant remember where i got the quotes, i posted them on my fb a few days ago. It is not a call to arms, its more just trying to get people to understand that guns are not the problem. if someone is that bent on harming people they will find a way. ANd the reason i was gone for so long is i didnt have internet for like 8 months because i got fired from my job, and internet wasnt a necessaity, neither was all the other extravagences that i got rid off, TV, car, phone, things of that nature. So to presume i left becasue i wasnt getting my way..... anyways, you didnt even comment on the meat of my post. And you imply that your comments dont get deleted cuz the mods know you. Are you trying to imply yourpart of some good ole boys network? Thats how it sounded to me. Sometimes you wonder about me? Errmmm how often do you think about me? How often have you read my threads or posts? You imply a some sort of familiarity to me...