@pj

My point was that making something illegal doesn't stop it from happening. Also, millions of people shoot guns every week in the US without incident, so making an activity illegal because one wacko decides to kill a bunch of people while he is doing that activity is nonsensical.

@Pat

Of course that it can't prevent some wacko from going on a rampage but it may at least minimize the chance of someone accidentally "unwinding" too much in their backyard, especially after a beer or two.

I'm not sure about millions of people shooting guns in their backyards and their neighbors watching over the fence and being happy about it, even in the US.

It is probably different on vast rural properties, but what's the problem with limiting shooting in a densely populated area to well-regulated gun ranges where safety can be assured more reasonably than in your backyard?

It is illegal to build a tree house in your backyard without a permit, but shooting guns is OK? C'mon ...

@pj

In Texas local jurisdictions can regulate when and where firearms are discharged. I don't know what the rules are where that guy was but from the video in the news coverage it looked like it wasn't a densely populated area.

Even in places that are friendly to gun owners they generally have restrictions that prohibit the discharge of firearms within a certain distance of occupied buildings.

And law enforcement in those jurisdictions take gun safety very seriously and anyone who's negligent with a firearm gets in trouble.

Everyone's all concerned about this one guy who killed a few people, but what about those guys in the 202 area code who just killed over a million Americans? Why isn't anybody talking about that?

@pj

Also, gun safety 101 says that you don't handle firearms when you are impaired which includes being drunk or angry. So someone '... accidentally "unwinding" too much in their backyard, especially after a beer or two' is not possible when following basic gun safety protocols.

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@Pat I'm not against guns. I'm against the notion that you need a gun in order to protect yourself from wackos with guns.
It is always a lonely person with issues on a rampage. There is no good reason to allow the discharge of firearms in residential areas. Get to a firing range and mingle with other responsible gun owners. What's the problem with that?
And you'll have to explain to me the mass murderers from area code 202.

@pj

>"There is no good reason to allow the discharge of firearms in residential areas."

If you're nearest neighbor is a quarter mile away it's not a problem, just use common sense and follow the law.

>"And you'll have to explain to me the mass murderers from area code 202."

I said, ..."what about those guys in the 202 area code who just killed over a million Americans? Why isn't anybody talking about that?"

This link explains some of it...
qoto.org/@Pat/1096902644306466

@Pat Well, it becomes a problem when that neighbour walks to my property and start shooting and my only option is to return fire.
And even if I would not go as far as call them murderers, I tend to agree with you that the reason why politicians don't do enough in both cases is because they are serving some "higher" purpose set by their big pharma and gun lobby donors instead of serving the people who elected them.

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