[Qlova]

The majority of this sort of crime mentioned is gang related and the majority of gangs also have firearms. People from outside of the UK believe that just because firearms are illegal, people don't have them, when actually this is completely wrong. There are a lot of shootings across the UK, even where I live up north and I wouldn't say I live in a terrible area, but I know people who carry knives and guns.

Making them legal would make them easier to be obtained and the problem would just spiral and would get out of control, like it has in the states. Gang related crime would worsen, therefore having a knock on effect and causing an increase in robberies, assaults etc.


@"Dismas" People don't blame cars when there are accidents, but they blame guns when there is a shooting.

Cars are made to drive. Guns are made to kill.

Also, trying to fix millions of "mentally ill" minds is definitely a harder task than restricting gun laws.

I don't particularly disagree with any of your points here. With the exception to the "cars are made to drive". Yes, they are, but they are also very lethal. Many guns will never be used in a homicide or aimed at another human being. Many guns are made for hunting game, not people. The point Dismas was making, is they are inanimate objects until we do something with them (which I'm sure you understood, but I mention this to clarify).

But yes. I doubt we will find an imaginary perfect solution in this thread, but I was certainly curious to see people's perceptions. And I agree, there is a fair amount of gun crime, despite strict laws. Adding access to guns where crime is already bad, will only increase the crime, I suspect.

I understand what you are saying and I get that people use guns for recreational use and to hunt game (which is still taking a life do not forget), but I totally disagree with the gun/car comparison. In my eyes, a gun is a weapon and they are used to cause harm, whether this be homicide, in self defence or hunting.

The majority of this sort of crime mentioned is gang related and the majority of gangs also have firearms. People from outside of the UK believe that just because firearms are illegal, people don't have them, when actually this is completely wrong. There are a lot of shootings across the UK, even where I live up north and I wouldn't say I live in a terrible area, but I know people who carry knives and guns.

Making them legal would make them easier to be obtained and the problem would just spiral and would get out of control, like it has in the states. Gang related crime would worsen, therefore having a knock on effect and causing an increase in robberies, assaults etc.


@"Dismas" People don't blame cars when there are accidents, but they blame guns when there is a shooting.

Cars are made to drive. Guns are made to kill.

Also, trying to fix millions of "mentally ill" minds is definitely a harder task than restricting gun laws.

Guns are made to fire a projectile at an increased velocity. It's up to the operator where the gun is pointed. I hunt deer/boar (good meat) and I shoot targets for recreation. If it came to it, I'd use them for self-defense. They're not just for taking human lives. Taking away the firearms of law-abiding citizens, because other people feel defenseless or misuse them is inherently silly. Making 300+ million firearms suddenly disappear isn't realistically possible. We have the 2nd ammendment because England wanted to disarm us.

The only people that will retain arms in the event of a ban, are the criminals. As you've said, they're illegal in the UK and people still have them. When guns were banned in the UK, not that many people owned them, either. Imagine what will happen in the US, where practically everyone has a firearm?

It may be difficult to raise your kids properly, deal with mental illness, and rehabilitate criminals. But, by doing so we'd be attacking the sickness itself, and not the symptoms. I'm not talking about the easiest option, I'm talking about the most efficient, and with the concept of liberty in mind.

The problem is that there are millions of people with guns and it is unknown how many of these people are mentally ill or unstable.

You don't need a gun to commit a horrible crime but the easy access to guns makes it a go-to option so maybe stricter gun regulations would help, because if you are just wanting a gun for hunting you would not have a problem with it. This combined with help on mental illness may help. But, like you said most people already own a firearm so this might be pointless.

But yes I agree with your last point. It will take a long time but something has to be done sooner rather than later.