4 ms·

Specifically regarding people not trusting law enforcement, that's because in the U.S. police don't have a responsibility to protect individuals, just the commu

Specifically regarding people not trusting law enforcement, that's because in the U.S. police don't have a responsibility to protect individuals, just the community as a whole (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_v._District_of_Columbia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warren_v._District_of_Columbia). In addition, police often can't get to the scene of a crime in progress soon enough to prevent harm to the victims. As long as criminals are armed and able to commit crimes before the police can stop them, it seems reasonable that some citizens would choose to own guns in an attempt to protect themselves or their families.

sleavey 9y ago
In terms of police response time, is it so different to anywhere else in the world? Police services are underfunded in many countries but this doesn't seem to drive people to think that because they won't be helped in time they need firearms. As you say, people also feel the need to arm themselves because the criminals are armed, which to me has an obvious solution.
DanBC 9y ago
> that's because in the U.S. police don't have a responsibility to protect individuals That's also true of the UK, so it seems odd to mention it in a reply to someone from the UK.
- iBelieve 9y ago
  I'm not familiar with the situation in other countries, so only spoke of my knowledge of the US and the legal case I linked to, though it does make sense that that's also true in the UK and elsewhere. Still, I would think that the reasons I mentioned should be valid or invalid regardless of the situation in other countries.
  - DanBC 9y ago
    You're saying that the rural community needs guns to stay safe? Suicide kills more people than murder, and restricting access to means and methods is the first thing you should do to reduce the death rate. One of the reasons the rural youth suicide rate is so high (double that of urban 10 to 24 year olds) is because of the easy access to guns. "guns keep people safe" is, frankly, fucking stupid.
    - sarvinc 9y ago
      A few things. WRT suicides; are you for restricting access to anything used to cause suicide or just firearms? I’m just now reading this, take it with a grain of salt, but it’s safe to say that firearms are used to keep people safe https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?httpsredir=1&article=6938&context=jclc https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewconten... I usually try not to enter in to arguments where I know I won’t change my mind. I’m wasting the time of someone who disagrees with me but is willing to exchange ideas. “frankly, fucking stupid” reads like you’re not interested in hearing contrary evidence. It saddens me.

sleavey 9y ago

In terms of police response time, is it so different to anywhere else in the world? Police services are underfunded in many countries but this doesn't seem to drive people to think that because they won't be helped in time they need firearms. As you say, people also feel the need to arm themselves because the criminals are armed, which to me has an obvious solution.

DanBC 9y ago

> that's because in the U.S. police don't have a responsibility to protect individuals That's also true of the UK, so it seems odd to mention it in a reply to someone from the UK.

iBelieve 9y ago
I'm not familiar with the situation in other countries, so only spoke of my knowledge of the US and the legal case I linked to, though it does make sense that that's also true in the UK and elsewhere. Still, I would think that the reasons I mentioned should be valid or invalid regardless of the situation in other countries.
- DanBC 9y ago
  You're saying that the rural community needs guns to stay safe? Suicide kills more people than murder, and restricting access to means and methods is the first thing you should do to reduce the death rate. One of the reasons the rural youth suicide rate is so high (double that of urban 10 to 24 year olds) is because of the easy access to guns. "guns keep people safe" is, frankly, fucking stupid.
  - sarvinc 9y ago
    A few things. WRT suicides; are you for restricting access to anything used to cause suicide or just firearms? I’m just now reading this, take it with a grain of salt, but it’s safe to say that firearms are used to keep people safe https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?httpsredir=1&article=6938&context=jclc https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewconten... I usually try not to enter in to arguments where I know I won’t change my mind. I’m wasting the time of someone who disagrees with me but is willing to exchange ideas. “frankly, fucking stupid” reads like you’re not interested in hearing contrary evidence. It saddens me.