There seems to be an awful lot of shootings recently

[Rosa Luxemburg]

shootings en masse, shooting many policemen. I know shootings occur every day in the US but mass shootings seems to be the thing at the moment. Columbine seemed devasting when it happened but recently in the news it doesn't seem to have any impact? What is going on?

[WorseBeforeBetter]

1. Huh?

"Columbine seemed devasting when it happened but recently in the news it doesn't seem to have any impact?"

[Christian30]

2. It's actually fairly predictable

Economic bad times plus warmer weather plus massive layoffs with no end in sight = mass murder.

If you look back at other so-called crime wave, they nearly always occur in this sort of environment. If the stimulus puts people back to work, then crime will be reduced.

[billyoc]

3. Yeah, it's played out.

Like pet rocks.

[madokie]

4. The combination of hard times

loosing everything with nothing to look forward to and an idiot on the teevee or radio egging you on to do something, anything as long as its stupid and with that I can see how its happening. This hate tv and radio bull shit needs to be stopped.

[proud2BlibKansan]

7. Glenn Beck needs to be shut up

and shut down. :hi:

[ColbertWatcher]

10. No, he can keep talking, he just needs to be held accountable and get educated. n/t

[madokie]

13. I've no personal experience with listening or watching him but from what I read here

you are right on. I make it a point to bring it to anyones attention who I encounter who listen to that garbage that I don't like it and think it is unamerican. When I go into a business and they have any of that shit on I say this has got to go in as big a voice as I can. My wife tells me someone is going to shoot me if I don't calm down but I remind her that I'm only doing what any good red blooded American should be doing.
:hug::hi:

[dysfunctional press]

17. doesn't your tv have a channel changer? or an off switch?

:shrug:

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. I don't listen to him

My concern is he is inciting people to be violent.

[dysfunctional press]

22. if you don't listen to him, how do you know the totality of what hesays...?

personally, i don't believe in censorship. i don't think that it solves anything.

[proud2BlibKansan]

24. Because I read sites like media matters and crooks and liars and DU

Good grief. What a stupid question. You honestly think I am not entitled to an opinion about Glenn Beck unless I listen to the totality of what he says??

He is promoting violence. He needs to be taken off the air.

[dysfunctional press]

31. what specific acts of violence has he promoted?

if there's evidence that he's broken the law, why hasn't he been charged? :shrug:

censorship doesn't work.

[proud2BlibKansan]

34. Glenn Beck appears to be going further and further away from reality

"Glenn Beck appears to be going further and further away from reality and further towards justifying violence carried out on a mass scale."

http://www.phillyimc.org/en/glenn-beck-becoming-increasingly-unstable

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/04/01/beck-march-to-fascism/

He is encouraging his listeners to buy guns. He and Chuck Norris are encouraging secession and staged rallies across the country a few weeks ago. They are planning more on April 15.

I think there is a huge difference between censorship and shutting down violent and dangerous hate speech. But if you think he should have the right to continue inciting the crazies, then maybe you should do some research on Rwanda and the role hate radio played in that genocide.

[dysfunctional press]

38. so basically- you're saying that he hasn't called for any actual violent acts.

you do realize that he has every right to legal free speech, right?

are you saying that you're for political censorship?

and btw- this ain't rwanda- but if you're making a claim- it's your responsibility to do the research to support it. that's how it works.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

40. Beck goes OTT

Although he is entitled to his opinion, I think he tries to escalate things.

[bdamomma]

36. right wing heads just fueling the fire, instead of repairing the damage

they just want to cause more by spewing this stuff out to their viewers, and the viewers believe them, how sick.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

28. I agree

[spinbaby]

35. Exactly

Take recession and high unemployment, add record gun sales and hate radio.

What could possibly go wrong?

[liberal N proud]

5. More idiots buying guns

Bound to happen. No one is safe anywhere from these crazies who have decided they need to "protect themselves."

[virginia mountainman]

12. Well thanks for the slander.....

Of a significant number of DU Members, WOW..

[Junkdrawer]

20. LOL...Looks like Cinderella just found a shoe that fits...

:rofl:

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. Some gun nuts think Obama is going to take their guns away

I read a few years ago (sorry can't remember the piece) that every time a Democrat follows a Republican in the WH, there is an increase in gun violence. So this false idea that Obama is going to take guns away is a rumor that comes up every time a Dem takes the WH from a Repub.

[aikoaiko]

8. Mostly "gun nuts" worry about partial gun bans on popular self-defense, recreational firearms

Such a ban President Obama has said he supports.

[jody]

11. aikoaiko, I grow so weary of anyone having to keep posting that well know fact. Are some DUers

intentionally ignoring posts like yours or are they just comprehension-challenged?

[proud2BlibKansan]

14. And many of us have no problem with that

Plus it differs sharply from the rumor that Obama wants to take all guns away.

[aikoaiko]

16. People aren't buying guns because they think Obama is going to scoop them out of their homes.

That would make no sense if you believed that because you would be wasting your money. They are buying guns and ammo now because of the gun bans I described.

[proud2BlibKansan]

19. The guy who killed the cops in Pittsburgh

bought guns because he thought Obama was going to take his guns away.

[aikoaiko]

23. most of the time "taking guns away" is a shorthand for not being able to buy due to a ban

Sure, there are a few wackos who think Obama is going to go door to door, but by and large, the gun buying spree is due to the professed interest of our president working to reauthorize the AWB.

[proud2BlibKansan]

25. Proof these people are insane

Banning assault weapons doesn't mean Obama is taking all their guns away.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

29. He agreed and explained it to you.

[aikoaiko]

32. If a President proposed banning all future criticism of the Presidency, would he be taking speech

....your free speech away?

[proud2BlibKansan]

33. Not the same at all.

And a strawman.

[aikoaiko]

39. no, its an analogy and analogies show the similarities between ultimately different things...

...to make a point.

How is the right to keep and bear arms different from other civil rights that my analogy wouldn't apply?

[benEzra]

42. Banning the most popular civilian rifles in America isn't banning popular guns?

H.R.1022, had it passed, would not only have banned the new manufacture of the most popular civilian rifles in the nation, it would have banned spare parts for them, would have sharply curtailed the supply of replacement magazines, would have made it a felony to change the stock and whatnot, ad nauseaum.

That sort of ban is just as much a ban as a ban on books published after a certain date, or a ban on elective abortions after a certain date, and just as unacceptable.

I would also point out that the Moral Majority never wanted to ban all books, just the ones they disapproved of, and that Operation Rescue et al don't want to outlaw all abortion, just those not necessary to save the life of the mother. Does that make it OK?

BTW, I don't believe that President Obama is foolish enough to try to resurrect the "assault weapon" fraud, even if the repubs at the Brady Campaign would like to believe otherwise.

[benEzra]

43. The issue has *NEVER* been about banning *all* guns...

any more than the abortion debate is about banning *all* abortion, or censorship/First Amendment debates are about banning *all* books or speech.

The gun controversy is about proposals to ban the most popular guns ("assault weapons," and handguns), NOT all guns.

No one seriously believes that the gun-control lobby want to outlaw flintlocks or lever-actions (though they probably want pump-actions and large-caliber bolt-actions), and Sarah Brady herself bought a bolt-action rifle for her son as a present one year. The problem is, a lot of gun-control supporters are stuck in the 1950's and think that bolt-action rifles and skeet guns are what gun owners are concerned about, rather than 9mm's and modern-looking carbines.

[ColbertWatcher]

9. ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=5394216&mesg_id=5394216

[Rosa Luxemburg]

30. Thanks!

[ColbertWatcher]

41. You're welcome. n/t

[Arugula Latte]

15. I recently had a discussion with DUers who claimed these things happen in other countries as well

Yeah -- Once every two decades or so! In the U.S., it's become a regular and frequent occurrence.

Disgusting. This country is sick.

[upi402]

21. just wait until the delusional Rupublicants start to hurt

Those babies will act out all kindza cayzee.

[KoKo]

26. Nah....just folks "letting off steam." If those folks in nursing homes and traler parks had armed

themselves, there wouldn't have been any problems. And, who knows what was wrong with the police in PA ...maybe they just weren't trigger happy enough.

:sarcasm:

[-..__...]

27. Intersting thread, this one...

so... what's the solution?

More restrictions on our 1st amendment rights and/or 2nd amendment rights?

[Pithy]

44. We are told

exactly what the American mainstream media wants us to be told. Surrender your guns peacefully so that this kind of thing won't happen anymore.

Think.

[FudaFuda]

37. Bad month, but homicide is actually way down compared to 15-16 years ago

Found this on wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_violence_in_the_United_States It only goes up to 2004, but AFAIK the downward trend continues.