We're blaming all the wrong people when we should be blaming government.
In the aftermath of the tragic shootings in Connecticut everyone is playing the blame game. On the left they are blaming guns. On the right they are blaming the mental health system. Some people on both sides are blaming violent video games and movies. I think they are all missing the mark.…
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26 - El Bicho
Any luck on finding anything that points to Lanza's fear of government, or was that actually speculation?
27 - troll
@18 - and China and The US are the two top military spenders...hmmm...evidence for a couple of pet theories?
28 - Kenn Jacobine
Dave,
I absolutely agree. One other thing I would add is the militarization of our society. Seems I can't watch any programming here in Qatar from America without seeing the glorification of the troops and all thing military. When the government sets the example that it is justified to settle differences with violence that trickles down to the citizenry.
29 - Glenn Contrarian
Dave -
Deano, the counterargument is that those societies have never had the tradition of individual liberty which we have. They have less to be taken away so a few more infringements of their rights don't stand out nearly so much. We have more to lose and are losing it faster and it's hard to miss.
I would argue that the Brits have had a tradition of individual liberty for much longer than we've had - they outlawed slavery long before we did, and their press is much less likely to toe the government line if their headlines are any indication. And then there's their famously raucous parliamentary meetings - all this in a nation where the capital city has more surveillance cameras per capita than anywhere else on the planet.
And then there's Australia - are you really going to say that they've less of a tradition of individual liberty than we have? I think our resident Aussie would have something to say about that.
Dave, what you're doing is flailing for excuses, anything to keep the blame from where it belongs - on the easy access to high-powered and high-capacity firearms.
The old saw that "guns don't kill people, people kill people" makes the argument that guns are just tools...but that's like saying that if we put Ferraris and Maseratis in the hands of young men, they're no more likely to drive any faster than if they were relegated to Fords and Kias.
30 - Dr Dreadful
Glenn, that's a pretty good analogy. I've never had the privilege of sitting behind the wheel of a Ferrari, but I can easily imagine that driving one around in a 30mph speed limit zone must be excruciating. They're designed for speeds far higher than anything legally permitted in most countries, and the desire to see what they can do must be very strong.
Now then: I have handled an AK-47, and I'm here to tell you that those things are powerful. Firing single shots from one into a brush-covered hillside, which was all we could safely do, isn't exactly satisfying.