LAT: Man kills 2 Edison co-workers before turning gun on self

[spin]

62. Since I enjoy shooting handguns, a limit of one is totally unacceptable...

Handguns can be used for many different purposes. The handgun that a person might carry concealed might not work for target shooting at distance. The .44 magnum handgun which a hunter uses might be inappropriate for home defense or for concealed carry.

Most shooters initially find the recoil of a large caliber handgun difficult to master and start with the much milder .22 cal. Once they have learned the basics of shooting, the move up to the larger calibers. However, they still enjoy shooting the .22 caliber handgun they own as it is inexpensive, accurate and enjoyable. When I go to the range, I usually start with 50 rounds of .22 caliber and then start shooting the handguns in other calibers that I have brought along.

I don't know if you have any background in shooting, but if you do, I doubt that it is extensive. That's not meant as an insult. I often make comments on internet forums which I think are logical and well thought out. I often learn that my comments are rather foolish from the replies of people with far more experience in the area that I am discussing.

A large percentage of the violence caused by firearms in our current society is caused by the total failure of our War on Drugs. Members of drug gangs often have wars over turf and the sale of illegal drugs allows them to obtain the weapons they use.

Gang

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Current numbers

In the United States in 2006 there were approximately 785,000 active street gang members, according to the National Youth Gang Center.[13]

Los Angeles County is considered the Gang Capital of America, with an estimated 120,000 (41,000 in the City) gang members[14] although Chicago actually has a higher rate of gang membership per capita than Los Angeles. Also, the state of Illinois has a higher rate of gang membership (8-11 gang members per 1,000 population) than California (5-7 gang members per 1,000 population).[15] There were at least 30,000 gangs and 800,000 gang members active across the USA in 2007.[16][17] About 900,000 gang members lived "within local communities across the country," and about 147,000 were in U.S. prisons or jails in 2009.[18] By 1999, Hispanics accounted for 47% of all gang members, Blacks 31%, Whites 13%, and Asians 6%.[19]

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Gang violence

Gang violence refers to mostly those illegal and non-political acts of violence perpetrated by gangs against innocent people, property, or other gangs.[47] Throughout history, such acts have been committed by gangs at all levels of organization.[48] Nearly every major city was ravaged by gang violence at some point in its history.[49] Modern gangs introduced new acts of violence, which may also function as a rite of passage for new gang members.[50]

58 percent of L.A.’s murders were gang-related in 2006.[51] Reports of gang-related homicides are concentrated mostly in the largest cities in the United States, where there are long-standing and persistent gang problems and a greater number of documented gang members—most of whom are identified by law enforcement.[52]...emphasis added
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gang#Gang_violence

How exactly would your ideas of limiting the number of firearms that I can own and increasing taxes on gun owners reduce gang violence? I feel that we need to legalize some drugs and to target the members of violent drug gangs and treat them as terrorists (which they are). I feel that this would have far more impact on reducing gun violence than your approach which is to attack honest gun owners with limits and taxes.