we mandate child-safety caps on tylenol but we can't mandate that every gun is sold with a child safety lock, because that annoys the legal gun owners who know they would never leave their gun where a child could find it, or where someone could take it without their knowledge.

sure, a bad parent can leave anything dangerous around. but by requiring child-safety measures on potentially lethal items (cars, drugs), we send the message that your vigilance is required. but we can never do that with guns, because that is inconvenient for responsible gun owners.

obviously the kid got what he deserved for being the child of irresponsible parents, and for living a society that values easy access to weapons above all else.

I don't know the details of this case, they seem to still be sketchy. But I predict that the answer is that NO LAWS COULD HAVE PREVENTED IT.

Interesting that it seems that there are never any laws that can prevent gun violence. It just can't be done. So we just keep on burying the victims, Virginia Tech, the Utah mall, the Omaha mall, the Christian missionaries in Colorado, a little four-year old boy in Philadelphia. Can't wait to see what happens in 2008!

If only he'd been armed. No wait, HE WAS. Maybe someone could have shot it out of his little hand and saved him.

As usual, you are completely clueless about the facts when discussing this issue.

It IS mandated that guns are sold with safety locks.


Tell me...what law could have. Go ahead. You seem to imply you believe a law requiring safety locks would. Well, as I pointed out, that law exists. So not only are you wrong about the facts, you're wrong about your assumptions. Why do you continue to display your ignorance by demonstrating how little you understand this subject.

If you REALLY wanted to do something USEFUL and constructive about problems related to guns, your first step should be to EDUCATE yourself on the topic instead of just spouting off the first emotional knee jerk reaction to every story.

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that. -George Carlin

A basic gun safety primer with purchase might have helped. That or mandatory intelligence testing for new gun owners.

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A song that says it all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqITJFGyq4s

Gosh, you're so emotional about my lack of research. Why bother, when my "ignorance" is giving you all an opportunity to spread your own brand of misinformation?

Pennsylvania state law requires every gun to be sold with a child-safety lock. But there are no standards for the locks. The law does not require gun owners to actually use the locks to secure their weapons. Is there no room for improvement here? Would it improve public safety if we removed even this law?

Please suggest something from your greater wisdom on the issue that would even slow down the access of children to guns in the home that you would support. The only thing you and the gun lobby suggests is that irresponsible people shouldn't own guns. Gosh, please enlighten us as to how we can make this happen! Your expertise is essential here! Maybe YOU can prevent the next small child from having his head blown off!

It's true, the ongoing bloodshed and the endless knee-jerk defense of the status quo by the one-track-mind gun cronies does engender some emotion. Guess that's why the polls are showing even in PA there is growing support for responsible gun control. Does that make you emotional?

What misinformation did I spread? Please point out what was factually inaccurate in my post. You posted out and out incorrect, inaccurate information. You do it continuously, and you base your opinions on it.

What does that even mean? What standards do you need? Are there any examples of any child safety locks that are inadequate due to a lack of standards?



How about gun safety education in public schools. The NRA has been lobbying for that for years. In fact, they fund their own educational efforts to teach children what to do if they find a gun using Eddie the Eagle to get the message to children that if they find a gun they should "Stop...don't touch it...leave the room...find an adult and tell them about it".

Yes, it makes me upset that idiots who are clueless about the existing laws, want to pass new laws. Unfortunately, there's no shortage of them. I am not a knee jerk reactionist defending the status quo. I will entertain any well thought out, intelligent ideas regarding gun safety and reducing gun violence. Try coming up with one. First, learn what the current laws are before making stuff up and spreading misinformation on the internet. Then I won't react negatively.

It's ludicrous that you are acting all high and mighty when you're the one who I just proved is making up what you post without any recognition of the facts and accusing me of being reactionary to your ideas. You spread misinformation, make baseless accusations, and wonder why I react to it?

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Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that. -George Carlin

So your solution is the NRA-sponsored "Eddie the Eagle" program? Seriously?

I guess if the little four-year old boy had lived long enough to make it to school, he might have made an important new friend!



You should be happy I keep posting so that you can keep spreading your NRA-sponsored propaganda. But go on insulting me. It just shows the total moral bankruptcy of your position. If you know so much about the issue, you would think you could come up with some constructive suggestions to stem the endless tide of bloodshed. But you never do. Just insults and "Eddie the Eagle" and crossfire. No wonder the rest of the civilized world thinks we are a bunch of animals.

Actually, he has made some very constructive ideas, including PROSECUTING TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW ILLEGAL GUN OWNERS.

THis gun was illegal, why is that so hard for you to understand?

There is only one thing gun-control people can do to change my opinion. Find me stats of how many crimes are being commited by LEGAL gun owners. Until then, I will view the view of "banning guns" the same way I view "banning drugs" as a complete failure and a waste of over 100 billion $'s spent the last 25 years.

And I find your usage of "NRA propoganda" to be funny considering the NRA always presents their arguments with FACTS, while gun control presents their arguments with "theories" . And as history is proving, a lot of Democratic "theories" are falling on their face, hard.

How do you require someone to lock something? Do you mean penalties for someone getting hurt from a gun that wasn't appropriately locked?

And to be honest, I doubt I have any problem with the gun owner being charged with involuntary manslaughter. Again, use existing laws already on the books.

And I have no problem passing a law that says certain laws have to be handed out with purchase of every gun. Star buyer laws. Negligence laws of someone getting hurt from improper storage, etc.

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Czar of the 26th Ward.

The parent can also educate the child, if the parent wasnt a loser.
I have a 3 year old and he has more respect for my gun then I could ever hoped to imagine at his age. Granted, he has only seen it a couple times, on the way in or out from the range. He knows never to touch it, just like he knows that the fireplace is hot, and (all the locked up) cleaning supplies are chemicals that will hurt him.

Kids are smarter then parents think. My cop friend comes over with a gun in his holster and my kid flips out until he takes the gun off and puts it on the top shelf of the closet.

Its simply about parenting and creating a healthy fear of dangerous objects in and around the home whether it is a gun, chemicals, medicine, an outlet, etc.

This guy was a bad parent. He was a convicted drug dealer in possession of a handgun. He's already not allowed to have guns. Simply him having the gun was a crime. When his kid got shot, he threw the gun out the window (so maybe some other kid could get ahold of it). They're still looking for the magazine (which presumably still has several rounds in it). I can't imagine a more irresponsible person unless he handed kids guns and said "go play." A convicted felon drug dealer in possession of an illegal gun is irresponsible with it. What a shock!

In this case, I'd indict Lynne Abraham for manslaughter and here's why:

In 2004 the perp (or father, whatever) was convicted of drug dealing while, as best I can tell, in possession of a firearm. Under PA law, that's a 5 year manadatory minimum. The guy was sentenced to 11 to 23 months in County. If the DA appealed the sentence like she was supposed to to ensure the 5 year mandatory minimum, the perp would have been in jail instead of negligently killing his own kid.

For my own guns, they have three places to be: on my person, in my direct control (like at a shooting range) or in a locked safe. No exceptions. Whether kids are around or not. When I clean my guns, no functional ammo is permitted in the same room. No exceptions. It really doesn't take much to be responsible, but convicted felons seem to have a hard time with that. Go figure.

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