Do you think guns should be illegal in America?

[heroftimes]

No they should not be made illegal... After all, it's not guns but people that kill people. If you don't believe in that rationale then you should also be in favor of making pens illegal -- so that bad laws cannot be written! 

just playing devils advocate here, but I think every citizen should be entitled to nuclear weapons, its not the nuclear weapons that kill people, its the person who pushes the button.  How much firepower is too much?

[marciaenglish]

Drugs are illegal!  What good has that done? 

[erinelise2]

Norway has some of the most restrictive gun laws out there. One year ago that nut job over there shot and killed 77 people.  Now if we could find a way to outlaw the crazy, sick killer types - that might work.

[sdecaro558]

Should they be illegal?  Absolutely not.  Should there be more strict laws involved?  Absolutely.  Guns should never be banned - people do own them for sport and hunting and that's fine - but there should definitely be more strict controls at a federal level on who can buy and own guns.

[Phx0808]

No I don't. Only the criminals will have guns.

[ccandpam]

No, I don't think that they should be banned. That would violate our constitutional right to bear arms. The reason that we have a right to bear arms is to protect ourselves from the government. If war broke out here we would need to defend ourselves.

[Tresbn00]

No...I don't believe that guns should be against the law in the United States. So many cheeky cliches can be spewed...if we outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns...guns don't kill people-people kill people and so on.  I don't own a gun but believe that it is one of the few rights that has stayed intact since our constitution was born.  We have seen so many of these rights and civil liberties trounced on with the last couple decade's worth of presidents.  If people want to kill people they will find a way with guns or without.  What happens after we outlaw guns?  Do we keep tightening laws until it is illegal to use plastic flatware(tic).

[jaymz462]

Assault weapons should be.  There's a big difference between having handgun for "protection" and having a weapon that can mow down people in seconds.

[95langy]

I think that'll bring more abuse to to the law. Just look at marijuana. It's banned for now *besides medical recipients* (to the extent of my updated information), but there are many out there getting away with it. Outlawing it will not change a lot. It's sad to see that despite all efforts, there's always a crack or loop.

[southernhorizons]

I see we are once again being lectured by Mexican President Filipe Calderon "Because of the Aurora, Colorado tragedy, the American Congress must review its mistaken legislation on guns. It’s doing damage to us all,”.  I suppose he wants us to adopt the tough Mexican laws that prevent law abiding citizens from owning guns yet still allowing criminals to possess all that they want.  At this same time we have Obama and Hillary Clinton trying to force us through the UN Small Arms Treaty (Hillary has already committed the US to it) -- and who is the head of this committee -- none other than Iran...

Hillary Clinton will sign the treaty in another day or two and it takes precedence over our constitution so effectively eliminates the second amendment.  The right to bear arms is going down the tubes and the American people don't even know it's happening.  Once it's signed by the President that's it.

It can't legally take precedence over our Constitution just because Hillary and Obama sign it. The only way it is legal is if Congress approves it. Not that the corrupt government won't try to enforce it like it's legal.

[southernhorizons]

No, but I do think the assault weapons should be closely monitored, and when you see an individual buying a lot of ammo guns it should be looked into.

What constitutes an "assault weapon?" they are no different except in looks than any other rifle, and in fact a lot less powerful than many hunting rifles. It is not the weapon that's the problem, it is the losers wh use them for murder. And what do you consider a lot of ammo? 6000 rounds isn't that much. Anyone that goes to the range a lot could burn that up in a few weekends. I've personally used a couple hundred at one time, in less than an hour, just in my backyard shooting targets with my brother in law. If I hadn't run out, I would've used more than that. So no one has the right to tell me I'm buying too much. and no one has the right to tell me I can't have the guns I want, just bcause they look bad. (I don't have an AR-style rifle yet, but I would like to get one sometime!)

[southernhorizons]

They are prohibited in Great Brittian, do you think they should be here in the U.S.A?

"So far, the UK has banned all automatic and semi-automatic firearms with the exception of .22 rifles, all handguns except for antique black powder pistols and they have heavily restricted pump action shotguns to the point where they are essentially banned. The only permitted guns are bolt action rifles, which are very hard to qualify for, and break action single or double barrel shotguns.
 
After both the 1988 and 1997 firearms acts, gun crime has risen to higher levels than it had before the gun bans and never gone below the level it was at before the bans. That's right, after the gun control laws come in to play gun crime gets worse.

If guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns."
-- http://www.everything2.com/title/If+guns+are+outlawed%252C+only+outlaws+will+have+guns

Falcon, I agree. That saying is so true! I almost had to laugh when I read an article in a local newspaper about how many of the guns crimes in our state were done by out of state people. We have such restrictive gun aws, that those people would rather come here for easy targets, instead of their own states where they know that a lot of people can probably defend themselves.

[Hurricanekiz]

I would think thats what they are aiming for.

[falcon9]

They are prohibited in Great Brittian, do you think they should be here in the U.S.A?

"So far, the UK has banned all automatic and semi-automatic firearms with the exception of .22 rifles, all handguns except for antique black powder pistols and they have heavily restricted pump action shotguns to the point where they are essentially banned. The only permitted guns are bolt action rifles, which are very hard to qualify for, and break action single or double barrel shotguns.
 
After both the 1988 and 1997 firearms acts, gun crime has risen to higher levels than it had before the gun bans and never gone below the level it was at before the bans. That's right, after the gun control laws come in to play gun crime gets worse.

If guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns."
-- http://www.everything2.com/title/If+guns+are+outlawed%252C+only+outlaws+will+have+guns

Falcon, I agree. That saying is so true!

If we're agreed on this point, civilization must be precariously-close to colapse.

I almost had to laugh when I read an article in a local newspaper about how many of the guns crimes in our state were done by out of state people. We have such restrictive gun aws, that those people would rather come here for easy targets, instead of their own states where they know that a lot of people can probably defend themselves.

"If guns kill people, I can blame mis-spelled words on my pencil."
-- Bobcat Goldthwait

[schoolvan]

No I don't think guns should be illegal you have the right to bear arms. besides it's the people doing the damage not the gun.