I respectfuly disagree Ryan. the right to own a gun is important. I understand that the world has changed a lot since the constitution was written, but people are the same. We as humans have a right to defend our selves against those who would do us harm. My house was broken into last year, if we had been home should my husband have done nothing to protect me? Criminals will find guns. They buy them on the street. Do you really think crime would go down if guns couldnt be owned by law abiding citizens? If a criminal knows he has a gun and you dont, do you expect him to be nice when taking your wallet? Guns give us the ability to keep our families safe. But that doesnt mean that all parents lock away guns? Sadly no. Personally I think that parents need to teach kids about guns so that accidents invonving guns would go down.

Surely we can all agree that being in possession of 6,000 rounds of ammunition is unnecessary and that the constitutional rights of U.S. citizens as interpreted today are outmoded vestiges of an era when armed militias were sometimes all that stood between anarchy and a functioning society.

In Switzerland for example, all households have an automatic weapon locked up since their army is largely a citizen army. However, Switzerland does not have an equivalent of a well-funded NRA lobbying for lax laws. Consequently, incidences of armed violence pale in comparison to the U.S.

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that the gun culture that's celebrated into this country is looked upon by most other nations as an odd American quirk that yields dire consequences time after time and no-one outside of your country quite gets that. The fact that applications for gun permits soared in Colorado following the recent shootings is a head-scratcher that most us have a hard time understanding.

Interesting - I have to agree with the European view on this one. I realize that I'm FAR outnumbered by my countrymen on this one, but I really don't see the point of having firearms in a civilized society. I see that right as largely outdated.

I agree somewhat with the view that the possession of arms can serve as a deterrent, but the question that I keep coming back to is: at what cost? Seems to me that, for every case where a potential assailant is deterred because someone has a firearm, there must be five where someone is unjustly harmed because of the presence of a firearm in a household.

Interesting - I have to agree with the European view on this one. I realize that I'm FAR outnumbered by my countrymen on this one, but I really don't see the point of having firearms in a civilized society. I see that right as largely outdated.

I agree somewhat with the view that the possession of arms can serve as a deterrent, but the question that I keep coming back to is: at what cost? Seems to me that, for every case where a potential assailant is deterred because someone has a firearm, there must be five where someone is unjustly harmed because of the presence of a firearm in a household.

Thank you Ryan for posting this. I wholeheartedly disagree that we need guns to protect ourselves. Research and the Department of Justice shows that owning a gun does not protect you and actually puts you in more danger. I teach self defense to women. It is a myth that guns make us safer. Look at other countries and the restrictive gun laws and the rate of accidental deaths by guns. Last year a 3 yr old shot herself, died, because her parent had a weapon in the car. I know a gun owner may say, "It wasn't owning the gun that killed the 3 yr old. It was negligence of not locking it up." That argument is weak. If it is around, it will be used to harm others. The smartest thing we can do as a society is teach how to physically defend ourselves with our own body and our voice. Self defense should be taught along with PE in public schools. The other fact is that most violence occurs with someone you knowm not strangers. Teaching people to have strong personal boundaries and stand up for their rights, their human rights, not their gun rights, is where we need to go if we are serious about creating a just and peaceful society.

Recent Sihk temple shooting draws me back to this conversation on HARNU. They are calling this a hate crime as of now. A graph showing casualties of gun violence over the past ten years in the US would be really eye-opening. Is it just me or has it been escalating? Today, another act of terrorism by Americans. Reminds me of this excellent book: http://www.addictedtowar.com/book.html. Great resource for high school students studying history. Of course, it was written by a Canadian, :) Go Canada!

I do agree that we should have gun reform, however the goverment has no right to take away my ability to bear arms. our founding fathers were clear that the ability to protect your family, house, and business are apart of the american dream. it is a right, and one that I will fight to protect. bad people do bad things, some times with guns, some times with bombs and sometimes just with words. as long as we are imperfect people there will be bad things that happen to good people. Guns are not the issue at the root, i think we just want a way to feel safe. Switzerland also has one of the bedt stats on guns, i believe because the military is all milisha and they are all issued guns by their goverment. with rules and restrictions people can own guns and the criminals know it and have less gun violence becauase of it. all around the world its like that. the more possibility of people with guns the less gun crimes in that area. Guns are not the problem, hate it.