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There are still 6 times more guns per person in the US than in Switzerland. Looking at the numbers also shows that Switzerland is far from being an outlier in a

by GuiA 7y ago

There are still 6 times more guns per person in the US than in Switzerland. Looking at the numbers also shows that Switzerland is far from being an outlier in any way, so I'm not sure why the Swiss system is more interesting than the Austrian system or Swedish system in that regard. There are just way too many guns in the US (i.e. "it's just way too easy to get a gun in the US"). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estimated_number_of_civilian_guns_per_capita_by_country https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estimated_number_of_civilian_g...

umvi 7y ago
The vast majority of those guns are sitting around harmlessly in gun collector's lockers. US has a mental illness problem. At some point, a societal sickness entered the country. A sickness of nihilism and hopelessness. A sickness where (mostly men) feel lonely and unloved and powerless to change their futures. A sickness where hatred for peers is harbored for years until it festers and explodes out in a violent way. Why does America have these kinds of people at such high frequencies compared to Switzerland?
- Mirioron 7y ago
  >A sickness where hatred for peers is harbored for years until it festers and explodes out in a violent way. Could part of the problem be bullying? I've watched a lot of American movies and any time a school is depicted it has some pretty awful bullying going on. I've not heard of anything remotely like it elsewhere. Sure, there's bullying, but most of it ends in name calling or sometimes fights, rather than this harassment that goes on for years.
- logfromblammo 7y ago
  It's because they are actually lonely and unloved and powerless, and also because they have been fed lies about America and their station in it since the moment they could first understand language. The mental illness occurs when their cognitive dissonance is strained to the breaking point. When someone realizes that they have labored their whole life, possibly at significant risk to life and limb, for the primary benefit of other people, who do not even return a minimum level of respect, a psychic pseudopod of rage reaches out, questing, for someone or something to blame. And it usually lands somewhere that is merely close, rather than deserving. They do not understand why their life has been considered disposable, and become determined to make their mark--even if it is to be a scorch mark or track mark--on the world. We are likely already familiar with some common modes of midlife crisis: buy a motorcycle, buy a sports car, buy a boat, get really into one's religion, volunteer for some charity, go back to school, etc. It may well be that when those sorts of outlets are financially unavailable, then "buy a gun, write a manifesto, and start the revolution" is one of the few that remain within reach. Or it may be that they just preferred that one from the start. Perhaps Switzerland is better at making people feel important, and is not exploitative to a point far beyond the breaking point?
- nabnob 7y ago
  I don't think it's mental illness alone, since these shootings are almost entirely perpretrated by men. Plenty of women are mentally ill, isolated or lonely, feel powerless, and yet they're not committing mass shootings. Almost all of the mass shootings were committed by men with a history of domestic abuse and violence. I think the real root cause is entitlement and not seeing other people as humans.
  - CDSlice 7y ago
    > Almost all of the mass shootings were committed by men with a history of domestic abuse and violence. I think the real root cause is entitlement and not seeing other people as humans. And what makes women immune to being entitled and not seeing other people as human? Personally I would explain the fact that most of these shootings are committed by men by the fact that men are generally speaking more likely to react in a physically violent way to stress than women are. That plus the fact that these shooters are an incredibly tiny portion of the population would explain why most shooters are men.
    - nabnob 7y ago
      I'd say that lashing out violently is a pretty good sign that a person doesn't have empathy for other people. And what's more entitled than thinking you have the right to end other people's lives? >Personally I would explain the fact that most of these shootings are committed by men by the fact that men are generally speaking more likely to react in a physically violent way to stress than women are. Men are not rabid dogs incapable of making their own decisions. If someone lashes out violently and murders a bunch of people, they're responsible for the choice to play god with other people's lives.
- linuxftw 7y ago
  > Why does America have these kinds of people at such high frequencies compared to Switzerland? Public schools.
  - AnimalMuppet 7y ago
    They don't have public schools in Switzerland? I'm skeptical. But maybe they have functional public schools...
- mnm1 7y ago
  I agree, but it's not a currently defined mental illness so we should be more clear on terminology. What you're talking about is a cultural issue. It's massive and real. It's not mental health, however. Fewer than 5% of shootings in the US are caused by people with mental health issues. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4318286/#!po=0.495050 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4318286/#!po=0....
  - CompanionCuuube 7y ago
    You said "caused by people with mental health issues" but what the evidence supports is only "caused by people with clinically-diagnosed mental health issues".

by GuiA 7y ago

umvi 7y ago

The vast majority of those guns are sitting around harmlessly in gun collector's lockers. US has a mental illness problem. At some point, a societal sickness entered the country. A sickness of nihilism and hopelessness. A sickness where (mostly men) feel lonely and unloved and powerless to change their futures. A sickness where hatred for peers is harbored for years until it festers and explodes out in a violent way. Why does America have these kinds of people at such high frequencies compared to Switzerland?

Mirioron 7y ago
>A sickness where hatred for peers is harbored for years until it festers and explodes out in a violent way. Could part of the problem be bullying? I've watched a lot of American movies and any time a school is depicted it has some pretty awful bullying going on. I've not heard of anything remotely like it elsewhere. Sure, there's bullying, but most of it ends in name calling or sometimes fights, rather than this harassment that goes on for years.
logfromblammo 7y ago
It's because they are actually lonely and unloved and powerless, and also because they have been fed lies about America and their station in it since the moment they could first understand language. The mental illness occurs when their cognitive dissonance is strained to the breaking point. When someone realizes that they have labored their whole life, possibly at significant risk to life and limb, for the primary benefit of other people, who do not even return a minimum level of respect, a psychic pseudopod of rage reaches out, questing, for someone or something to blame. And it usually lands somewhere that is merely close, rather than deserving. They do not understand why their life has been considered disposable, and become determined to make their mark--even if it is to be a scorch mark or track mark--on the world. We are likely already familiar with some common modes of midlife crisis: buy a motorcycle, buy a sports car, buy a boat, get really into one's religion, volunteer for some charity, go back to school, etc. It may well be that when those sorts of outlets are financially unavailable, then "buy a gun, write a manifesto, and start the revolution" is one of the few that remain within reach. Or it may be that they just preferred that one from the start. Perhaps Switzerland is better at making people feel important, and is not exploitative to a point far beyond the breaking point?
nabnob 7y ago
I don't think it's mental illness alone, since these shootings are almost entirely perpretrated by men. Plenty of women are mentally ill, isolated or lonely, feel powerless, and yet they're not committing mass shootings. Almost all of the mass shootings were committed by men with a history of domestic abuse and violence. I think the real root cause is entitlement and not seeing other people as humans.
- CDSlice 7y ago
  > Almost all of the mass shootings were committed by men with a history of domestic abuse and violence. I think the real root cause is entitlement and not seeing other people as humans. And what makes women immune to being entitled and not seeing other people as human? Personally I would explain the fact that most of these shootings are committed by men by the fact that men are generally speaking more likely to react in a physically violent way to stress than women are. That plus the fact that these shooters are an incredibly tiny portion of the population would explain why most shooters are men.
  - nabnob 7y ago
    I'd say that lashing out violently is a pretty good sign that a person doesn't have empathy for other people. And what's more entitled than thinking you have the right to end other people's lives? >Personally I would explain the fact that most of these shootings are committed by men by the fact that men are generally speaking more likely to react in a physically violent way to stress than women are. Men are not rabid dogs incapable of making their own decisions. If someone lashes out violently and murders a bunch of people, they're responsible for the choice to play god with other people's lives.
linuxftw 7y ago
> Why does America have these kinds of people at such high frequencies compared to Switzerland? Public schools.
- AnimalMuppet 7y ago
  They don't have public schools in Switzerland? I'm skeptical. But maybe they have functional public schools...
mnm1 7y ago
I agree, but it's not a currently defined mental illness so we should be more clear on terminology. What you're talking about is a cultural issue. It's massive and real. It's not mental health, however. Fewer than 5% of shootings in the US are caused by people with mental health issues. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4318286/#!po=0.495050 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4318286/#!po=0....
- CompanionCuuube 7y ago
  You said "caused by people with mental health issues" but what the evidence supports is only "caused by people with clinically-diagnosed mental health issues".