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From: hosking@convex.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: McDonald's (San Diego) Massacre - (nf)
Message-ID: <34900023@convex.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 22-Jul-84 02:10:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: convex.34900023
Posted: Sun Jul 22 02:10:00 1984
Date-Received: Mon, 23-Jul-84 06:30:11 EDT
References: <859@pucc-h.UUCP>
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Nf-ID: #R:pucc-h:-85900:convex:34900023:000:2755
Nf-From: convex!hosking    Jul 22 01:10:00 1984

#R:pucc-h:-85900:convex:34900023:000:2755
convex!hosking    Jul 22 01:10:00 1984

>	Twenty people dead.  Twelve wounded.
>
>	Thank you the National Rifle Association for vigorously campaigning
>	to make handguns, rifles, and such available to everyone who needs
>	them for such useful work.  Too bad your executive committee wasn't
>	having brunch there...


Unfortunately, very few people seem to realize that the primary problem
here is not that the man had access to firearms, but that he was suffering
from mental illness.  Banning guns is NOT the answer to this problem.  If
guns had not been available, he probably would have found some other way to
vent his anger - explosives, poisons, homemade flamethrowers or some such.
Anyone who really wanted to could easily find a way to do the same sort of
damage without guns or any other regulated/illegal item.  In just a few
seconds, I've thought of half a dozen ways to cause equivalent damage with
readily available items.  I'm sure anyone who gave it any serious thought
could easily come up with dozens more.

The real issue is that too few people are willing to accept mental illness
as a disease and treat it as such.  If we can help people BEFORE their
problems reach the point of no return, we'd be a lot better off.

As for the condemnation of the NRA, I think that's largely undeserved.  I
recently took an NRA sponsored marksmanship course.  Prior to that, I had
essentially no exposure to the NRA, except through the media.  Based on the
media reports, I had my doubts about the NRA, though they quickly vanished
when I realized that the NRA people I met were VERY concerned with
the issue of gun safety.  They spend a great deal of time talking about
safety issues, and practice what they preach.  I only wish the rest of the
population would take gun safety as seriously as the local club does.

Although it's hard to accept it sometimes, a gun is nothing more or less
than a tool.  Like any other tool, it can be abused.  Baseball bats can and
have been used to kill people, but nobody's suggested imprisoning the local
Little League team for possession of dangerous weapons.  In many ways, a
chainsaw can be more deadly than a pistol, yet you don't need a license to
buy or use one.  Electricity kills many people a year, yet we spend billions
on new power plants.

I don't own a gun, nor do I plan to buy one.  At the same time, I recognize
that there are legitimate reasons for people to have them, including
defense of life and property.  I think it's much more effective to try to
solve the real problem instead of finding the nearest scapegoat.  It's no
more effective to ban guns than it is to try to solve alcoholism problems
by raising the drinking age.  You may mask the problem that way, but you
won't cure it.

					Doug Hosking
					allegra!convex!hosking