I think it will take another two generations for this issue to resolve, or atleast greatly diminish. We didn't have these events when I was a kid. Guns were very prevalent where I grew up - we could go out with .22s and shoot up cans and such anytime. Most of us also went through gun safety courses (I grew up on a military base until I hit high school, when we moved into the town adjacent to the base). Of course, we didn't run around with guns while on the base. My dad was an avid hunter as were all of his buddies. One of my sisters was a competitive sharpshooter. Guns were readily accessible.
These kids today who are students at these schools where these shootings have and will occur, and in schools where active shooter safety drills are the norm, will grow up and be leaders in the future. Their view will be vastly different than the view we see today and I believe they will not have any fear or resistance to address these issues head-on. The current HS and college generation are still exposed to gangsta rap riddled with gun images/glorification and parents who are 2A stalwarts, but that will change with the generation after (IMHO).
As for this moment in time, more security in schools is the easiest/most immediate answer since there's no reasonable path to legislation, or atleast legislation that will be effective. While new gun owners increase, I suspect more of the newer gun owners are very supportive of stricter gun laws (like my mother who now owns a handgun at the age of 86 for security).
Unfortunately, for now, we will just continue to vent anger and frustration across the political divide and post emotional messages on social media and places like ST. Call each other names. Not take a scientific look at the data available in order to enact actions that will effectively minimize these horrible events. We will direct people to vote tribally, etc. You know, the easy, lazy way to address serious issues while not changing anything. Pretending that if only one political party had control (as in CA) it would all magically change.
I'd be for a constitutional amendment, which is what I believe will be ultimately required. Again, I may be dead by the time this happens, but I believe it will. Getting illegal guns out of circulation will also take a very, very long time.
I have two kids who are now 20 and 23 yrs old. They have not been exposed to guns but have friends (one has a boyfriend who is in the Marine Corps) who own and use guns regularly. Girl friends in their early 20s who own handguns and have been through gun safety training. I'm not opposed to my girls taking gun safety courses and shooting at a gun range but we are not comfortable having guns in our home. Of their friends / boyfriends with whom I've broached this topic, all are strongly supportive of very strict gun laws, including mandatory training, certification, etc. (For the record, this would be approx 15 kids and an even split between Dems/Pubs/Independents for what that's worth). They don't seem to view the NRA as the enemy as the NRA programs were involved in their safety training (I don't know how this works, exactly) and there does not seem to be any connection with mass killing and actual members of the NRA. IF the NRA survives the next generation or two, it's likely to be run by far more moderate leaders than we see today - again, IMHO. (I highly doubt the NRA survives.) I would strongly support a government department responsible for gun registration, training, certification, regulatory enforcement, etc. Like we use the FAA for pilot license management/oversight. Maybe expand the ATF?
I also don't believe comparisons between the US and other countries is useful on this particular topic. The country is so large, has been ingrained with guns from the founding, has the 2A, and is very diverse. And the dynamic of specific school shootings is generally a new phenomenon. Like immigration, not one single action is going to make a difference, it will require a series of actions taken simultaneously to make a real change - harder to purchase guns and ammo, red flag laws, liability, etc etc.
I remain skeptical in the short term but very optimistic in the longer term.
These kids today who are students at these schools where these shootings have and will occur, and in schools where active shooter safety drills are the norm, will grow up and be leaders in the future. Their view will be vastly different than the view we see today and I believe they will not have any fear or resistance to address these issues head-on. The current HS and college generation are still exposed to gangsta rap riddled with gun images/glorification and parents who are 2A stalwarts, but that will change with the generation after (IMHO).
As for this moment in time, more security in schools is the easiest/most immediate answer since there's no reasonable path to legislation, or atleast legislation that will be effective. While new gun owners increase, I suspect more of the newer gun owners are very supportive of stricter gun laws (like my mother who now owns a handgun at the age of 86 for security).
Unfortunately, for now, we will just continue to vent anger and frustration across the political divide and post emotional messages on social media and places like ST. Call each other names. Not take a scientific look at the data available in order to enact actions that will effectively minimize these horrible events. We will direct people to vote tribally, etc. You know, the easy, lazy way to address serious issues while not changing anything. Pretending that if only one political party had control (as in CA) it would all magically change.
I'd be for a constitutional amendment, which is what I believe will be ultimately required. Again, I may be dead by the time this happens, but I believe it will. Getting illegal guns out of circulation will also take a very, very long time.
I have two kids who are now 20 and 23 yrs old. They have not been exposed to guns but have friends (one has a boyfriend who is in the Marine Corps) who own and use guns regularly. Girl friends in their early 20s who own handguns and have been through gun safety training. I'm not opposed to my girls taking gun safety courses and shooting at a gun range but we are not comfortable having guns in our home. Of their friends / boyfriends with whom I've broached this topic, all are strongly supportive of very strict gun laws, including mandatory training, certification, etc. (For the record, this would be approx 15 kids and an even split between Dems/Pubs/Independents for what that's worth). They don't seem to view the NRA as the enemy as the NRA programs were involved in their safety training (I don't know how this works, exactly) and there does not seem to be any connection with mass killing and actual members of the NRA. IF the NRA survives the next generation or two, it's likely to be run by far more moderate leaders than we see today - again, IMHO. (I highly doubt the NRA survives.) I would strongly support a government department responsible for gun registration, training, certification, regulatory enforcement, etc. Like we use the FAA for pilot license management/oversight. Maybe expand the ATF?
I also don't believe comparisons between the US and other countries is useful on this particular topic. The country is so large, has been ingrained with guns from the founding, has the 2A, and is very diverse. And the dynamic of specific school shootings is generally a new phenomenon. Like immigration, not one single action is going to make a difference, it will require a series of actions taken simultaneously to make a real change - harder to purchase guns and ammo, red flag laws, liability, etc etc.
I remain skeptical in the short term but very optimistic in the longer term.