From Davy Crockett to Dirty Harry, guns tied to U.S. identity

BreakingStaind

In my honest opinion, american people should be well-informed about keeping a firearm inside their own houses without harming anyone.

In exact words: no mag inserted, no bullet already putted inside the gun and completely secured in a place that NONE will know. For the respect of american people because it's not my intention to say anything bad...and most peole don't really care about home security and they prefer to leave a gun in the desk. Just saying.

In any case, a further and more strict controls over firearms could be a good idea, I think...

Most people don't understand that the shooter in the recent tragedy had to be skilled and knowledgeable with guns. Even if he had a high capacity magazine w/ 30 to 50 rounds he had to reload several times. What seems like a smiple task of reloading can be quite difficult under intense presure (drop clip, grab new clip, ensure clip is inserted correctly and tight fitting, send bolt foward). One victim had 11 rounds found inside of him...

So I'll say it... GDKP, PKP...

I'm all for making gun laws more strict by making it harder to own them. Not for taking them away from responsible adults. The right to own a gun is part of what makes America, America. People who are dead set on killing others will use what is readily available. When I return to America I will purchase and register a weapon or two. I will keep them secured behind lock and key, each weapon with gun lock, and ammunition seperated. I will even teach my daughter when she is old enough that guns are not a toy and to be respected.

No for taking away guns.

Yes for increased measures to purchase/own a gun.

Yes for increased penalties of having an unregistered gun, high capacity magazine, home made full auto conversions, etc.

In my honest opinion, american people should be well-informed about keeping a firearm inside their own houses without harming anyone.

In exact words: no mag inserted, no bullet already putted inside the gun and completely secured in a place that NONE will know. For the respect of american people because it's not my intention to say anything bad...and most peole don't really care about home security and they prefer to leave a gun in the desk. Just saying.

In any case, a further and more strict controls over firearms could be a good idea, I think...

Macho is a major part of American gun culture. It likely the most important part. Bushmaster, makers of the semi-automatic rifle that figured at Sandy Hook have really pushed this. Now pulled from their website was a statement that you could assert or get your masculinity back by owning a Bushmaster gun. All their guns--target, varmint, big game, protection--look like military assault rifles. I find this pathetic. These guns are overbuilt and cosmeticized. What is funny is that because military rifles are so uncomfortable to shoot generations of gun enthusiasts have sporterized these old war horses. There is (or was) cottage industry devoted to this. A target rifle looking like a military assault rife strikes me as especially idiotic. If you look at sporting rifles, those with walnut stocks and bolt actions, you see they are gems of simplicity and grace. They are not that far removed from Davy Crockett's "Old Besty." Only they do not do much as macho fantasy guns.

With two wars going on you can always enlist and get the real thing the macho types who see Dirty Harry as an ideal won't do that. The sick ones, and there are a great many as the news has shown, will put on military style duds and kill innocent people. The lone shooter as mass murderer is an old American problem. It is now getting worse.

In the movies there is always a Dirty Harry to set things right. It is not that easy in real life. There are simply not enough cops in the right places to stop a determined mass murderer or assassin. John F. Kennedy assassination with a mail order rifle is a case in point.

If ever a country needed gun control it is the U.S.

Korlacan Khanthavilay, good info.

Keep in mind that the Clinton (1994) assault weapons ban did nothing to curb gun violence. It was higher when the ban was in effect vs now. Criminals don't care about gun laws. It only hurts the law abiding citizen only....

NRA said it well below..

"We simply live in a world were there are psychopaths that want to harm innocent people, there is not alot we can do about it. They can conjure up infinite ways using a huge assortment of readily available materials to do alot of harm to people. What would have been the difference of this guy walking into the classroom with molotov cocktails or a IED, people make those things in third world countries without electricity.

The true failure here is on the school district and it complete lack of security. They are the ones to take all the blame. That is truly the only thing that could have been done different and for those little angels to still be alive. The school where we all drop off our precious cargo should have complete control over the safety of our children. If we cant keep the Psycho's locked up for whatever reason, then they need to be completely locked out, by whatever means necessary. We lock our money in a vault, and our precious valubles in a safe, but we keep our most irreplaceable treasures behind wooden doors with windows that can be broken, and no one on site that can do anything to protect them but cry and hide. There is better security at our major sporting events then at schools."

Kabukilover. Japan is a tiny island that's secluded,and surrounded by water. Smaller than California. If America was that size then it would MIGHT, I say might be a different ball game. Like I said on above my post that's irrellevent. There are just too many guns out here. A point of no return. I would like to also add that the Asian(Chinese,Japanese,) mentality is very different compared to westerners. They take better care of their kids too..

@ kabukilover: Yes, but Japan is a society based on conformity and place. The US has morphed into a society where, as Frungy put it rather well, certain weapons (and nobody would hunt elephant with a .223 - that works for up to coyotes and nothing more) have become a status symbol of a person's ability to be powerful; to be a threat to others. The old "God didn't create all men equal but Sam Colt evened the playing field" cliche. That kind of attitude at least antisocial, and probably borderline psycohtic in it's own right. So what do you do about that? Especially in the US?

And here we are in Japan. We have rotten mental health care. There are plenty of violent games, films, mangas and whatnot around. But gun crime is not a pressing issue. That is because it is not easy to get a gun here. The US needs strict gun laws like every other modern industrial democracy.

It's not just mental health care,but there needs to be regulations on violent video games,television,and the internet...

The US is not some monolithic culture and a small subculture of gun obsessed rednecks do not represent the entire country. Most people are just sick of the constant public massacres. Even people I know that are pretty big gun enthusiasts admit we need some better regulation. Even the NRA has admitted there will probably be more regulation.

The gun obsession in the last decade along with all the trumped up rumors that "Obama is going to take all the guns" was fomented by the NRA. The bulk of the NRA's funding does not come from individuals. It comes from gun manufacturers. The NRA turns around and gives political groups like ALEC huge amounts of money and sit on their board that writes gun law proposals their affiliated politicians then try to pass in different states. This is how we ended up with crazy law like "stand your ground" and others that loosened gun ownership and lowered the bar for things like conceal-carry in public. So much of the current gun obsessed culture has been directly funded by the gun companies. People run out and buy more guns after rumors they will all be seized come out and the ability to use them in public is less restricted. Right now any moron can carry a gun in public, they don't have to prove they have any clue about safety or proper use.

The issues in the US also involve the lack of access to mental health care. All heath care has been held hostage by private industry who are making huge profits while fewer and fewer people can access or afford needed health care. When this happens with people with serious mental illness we end up with people shooting up schools and movie theaters. I think there will be change. People in general are fed up and more are starting to realize the involvement of the gun industry in the public discourse and how they have manipulated the public conversation for far too long.

What we need to do is have a armed guard at schools. Like an air marshal, but a school marshal. We guard money at banks. Why not guard our children. These whackos attack schools because they are a gun free zone......

FAIL. All that would do is guarantee who the first person killed is going to be. Or do you expect the armed guard to have his weapon drawn and pointed at every person who enters the building until they've been given a pat-down search?

The same 5.56 ammo in an AR-15 is used in many hunting rifles. Same with the 7.62 for an AK-47. Why? Cause we need it to knock down larger animals like elk, moose, bears, etc.

NATO 5.56 ammo is a military standard round designed to kill human beings. .223 Remington rounds (virtually identical to NATO 5.56) were designed for the AR-15 rifle, which was accepted into the military as the M-16 - whose purpose is to kill human beings. Anybody using it for something else is just trying to "prove" that it's not military ammunition. Gun manufacturers who make AR-15 clones promoted the manufacture of "varmint rifles" using the same round so that manufacturers of the rounds whould have greater demand and the price per round would go down. Anybody using NATO 5.56 or .223 Remington ammunition to hunt bear or elk is likely to only wound the animal. When hunting large game, NATO 5.56 or .223 Remington are not the ammo of choice.

Czech Republic. Can own as many guns as you want, just like in the US. Have some of the lowest gun homicides around. On par with Belgium and Canada. Tell me...why is that?

It's also pretty obvious Athletes has never gone hunting. The same 5.56 ammo in an AR-15 is used in many hunting rifles. Same with the 7.62 for an AK-47. Why? Cause we need it to knock down larger animals like elk, moose, bears, etc. Only difference between some hunting rifles and an AK-47 or AR-15. Magazine size. Most hunters are only going with a small like 10 round magazine. No need to make the gun heavier. Although, higher capacity mags are available.

I think it's all an education issue. You have to go through education to get a car, yet we have zero education to get a gun. You do have to go through hunter's safety course to hunt, but not to own the gun. That's where Czech Republic is different from the US. They have age restrictions, some health/mental checks, and a lot of education.

Pro Gun Lobbyists declared that they have rights to bear the Guns. American Kids have right to grow up without the fear of being slaughtered. For Recreation or defense purpose, there is no need for using high powered semi automatic butchers like AK 15 or AR 15. That Guns may be useful for killing Elephants or Whales. However they are protected species therefore there are absolutely no need for using them.

As a Civilian, I never imagine about using 50 bullets or 100 bullets accommodated magazine. If that magazines and Guns are stolen by Lunatics, there will be more and more tragedies. Even the Guns can not be banned fully, the Magazine should be banned strictly.

What we need to do is have a armed guard at schools. Like an air marshal, but a school marshal. We guard money at banks. Why not guard our children.

I actually suggest a machine gun nest at the school gate. That'll do it. Maybe a Howitzer as well, set up somewhere on the school oval next to the mortar team that really should be there too. Actually, probably a Patriot missile installation on each campus will be wise. Because, you know, you can never have too many guns. For defense of course.

Here's the deal,and the folks that are from America here will know what I'm talking about. First off gun restrictions won't do diddly. Also trying to compare us to Australia, or the UK is stupid.What may worked for Aussie,and the UK won't work here There's way too many guns here ( 300 million plus) ,and gun confiscation AINT GONNA HAPPEN. Right now my local gun shop can't even keep up with sales. It's nuts.

What we need to do is have a armed guard at schools. Like an air marshal, but a school marshal. We guard money at banks. Why not guard our children. These whackos attack schools because they are a gun free zone......

Every time Obama says the word "gun" - 10,000 new weapons are sold in America. No one trusts the politicians - and especially Obama - to go for "sensible" gun regulations.

Ahh, so it's all Obama's fault...

I wonder what "sensible" regulations look like. The only sensible one would be an immediate ban on military grade weaponry and ammunition and proper licencing.

It must be how people felt when the carrying of swords, rapiers, epees etc., in public was banned in Europe.

You can get used to wearing a gun. (South Africans here may want to comment.)

Removal of them makes a person feel naked and defenceless for a while.

i once heard from a friend of a friend that not having a gun on is like not wearing a seatbelt driving.

When Americans begin to preach about "their right to bear firearms", it looks out like a dick measure contest in kindergarden.

i once heard from a friend of a friend that not having a gun on is like not wearing a seatbelt driving.

So next time there is a mass shooting in the US (and there will be a next time) go the the relevant JT thread and type in "GDKP, PKP". The rest of us can discuss the insanity of gun law in the USA.

Indeed.

Every time Obama says the word "gun" - 10,000 new weapons are sold in America. No one trusts the politicians - and especially Obama - to go for "sensible" gun regulations. Like it or not, guns are central to American culture and that will not easily change even after what happened in Connecticut. It is the second right in the Bill of Rights to the American Constitution. Guns cannot be banned without amending the Constitution - and good luck with that. However, guns can be regulated more sensibly. The problem is gun owners don't trust the government to be sensible about it; this is especially true every time the UK and Australia are mentioned as examples. America is too politically polarized and those on the left and right have zero trust in the other side. All Americans can see that the country is spending itself into oblivion and no one in government is trying to do anything about it. Any new laws will be mostly ineffective and will not be retroactive to ban those semi-automatic weapons that are already out there. America should put more emphasis on mental health issues and the Hollywood culture of violence.

AylerDec. 20, 2012 - 09:55PM JST

Violent propoganda? Did the 95% ITALIAN cast who directed, wrote, edited, scored and acted in these films have some kind of hidden agenda you are privy to?

The hidden agenda was they want to sell more cigars and Guns to US market. It is a marketing for Gun and Cigars. Both Kill the consumers. Cigar is slow. Gun is very fast.

Still, this doesn't sound too bad....

THE NATION WITH LESS THAN 350 MILLIONS PEOPLE HAVE 310 GUNS RIGHT NOW.

I missed the MILLIONS behind 310 for that sentence. The correct one should be

THE NATION WITH LESS THAN 350 MILLIONS PEOPLE HAVE 310 MILLIONS GUNS RIGHT NOW.

Whether you are agree with me or not, Obama and Congress is getting touch for stricter GUN control now. It is a turning point for countless loss of innocent lives.

While I believe that the gun violence in America is terrible and I don't think most people really need guns, it's just too late for strict gun control. Pandora's box has been opened and they (Americans) are going to have a difficult if not impossible time closing it up again. Whatever measures they take, I doubt it will have any real impact on the problem. That is, of course, assuming that they don't take drastic measures.

gelendestrasseDec. 21, 2012 - 06:51AM JST Chilling? Rather melodramatic. If you were a kid in the 50s, 60s or even 70s, especially in a rural community, chances are that is exactly what you would have had. I got my first shotgun at 6, a .22 at 10 and a .30-06 at 12. My grandfather made my gun rack for me. There weren't any locks on the guns or anything

Why did you own those guns though? I'm betting you used them semi-regularly for hunting, to kill vermin (foxes, rabbits, etc) and that in your mind the guns were tools associated with chores, rather like a dustpan and broom... the only difference was that once you finished up with a gun you had to come home, strip it, clean it, oil it and then put it away... so they definitely weren't "just for fun".

On the other hand I see way too many young gun owners showing off their pistol to their friends, and boasting about how if anyone causes trouble they'll "bust a cap in their ass", etc. The gun has moved from being a tool to achieve a definite task to becoming a status symbol and purely for the purpose of killing people. This is at the core of the problem.

I find it ironic that in most U.S. States you have to "demonstrate cause" if you want to carry a knife over 5 inches... but you can carry a handgun without showing cause. It's idiotic.

Here is something fun. If you hunt with a semi-automatic assault-style rifle you are limited a magazine of five bullets. But you are hunting people you can have a high capacity magazine.

Chilling? Rather melodramatic. If you were a kid in the 50s, 60s or even 70s, especially in a rural community, chances are that is exactly what you would have had. I got my first shotgun at 6, a .22 at 10 and a .30-06 at 12. My grandfather made my gun rack for me. There weren't any locks on the guns or anything, people just didn't go around shooting people. In many school districts in Pennsylvania the opening day of deer season is school holiday. When I was a kid just about every school district except for the city ones were off.

Of course the people suspected of being psychotic were involuntarily locked up and you didn't have violence 24/7 on TV, the movies, and computer games. But now the psychos have rights to be free and the entertainment industry has 1st amendment rights to make money pandering to the lowest common denominator.

Things have changed a lot but banning firearms isn't going to roll back the clock on violence. Guns haven't changed much - society has. Because of this a kid owning firearms is "chilling?" Well, I guess that's what you'd expect from the Washington Post.

Interesting article in today's Washington Post about the firearms museum located in the NRA's Headquarters. The paper included a chilling photo of a museum mock-up of a "young boy's bedroom, circa the mid 1950's". Four rifles in a gun rack on the wall, smaller child-sized guns on another wall, and a gun enthusiast magazine on the bed. Even considering this is representing a time during the height of the cold war and the fear of the "Red Menace", the sight of so many guns in a child's bedroom is sobering.

By the way, there was nothing in the NRA firearms museum about massacres caused by them.

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/at-nra-museum-a-mix-of-sadness-and-defiance/2012/12/19/00b785d8-49f8-11e2-ad54-580638ede391_story.html

Mass shooting, talk about, mourn. Repeat.

There is as much of a chance of successfully banning guns in the US as there was in banning alcohol. Many guns (and most ammunition) are easily concealable and hard to detect. Add the second amendment and the idea that a gun ban in the US would work is impractical. It's pie-in-the-sky.

The "people kill people" argument basically makes it that people who intend to own and use firearms are the ones needing regulation. So I don't see how this argument works against gun control.

I don't know why people in modern industrialised countries even need rifles to hunt... if it's for a trophy then I'm against that on ethical grounds, if it's for food... go to a shop.

I am also in sympathy with hunters and target shooters. We have them in Japan. For this sort of shooting you do not need subnosed pistols and semi-automatic rifles with long magazines. I also have sympathy with collectors of antique firearms to some extent. A severe regulation of guns in the US is overdue. As is intelligent education about guns. One thing everybody should know is that a gun in the house is more likely to kill an inhabitant than an intruder.

It's pretty sad to think an 11 year-old boy feels the need to carry a gun to school because he fears for his life. I can only picture more American kids feeling the same way in the future; a very bleak future indeed. Sorry, but I totally disagree with gun lovers who feel that arming everyone to the teeth with guns is the answer. More guns is not the answer.

realdollDec. 20, 2012 - 12:26PM JST Frungy, anyone with an average intelligence and will can make a high capacity magazine (bent sheet metal and spring) and millions of Americans already make their own bullets.. the answer has nothing to do with guns or ammunition. It's the psychopath.

Have you ever made ammunition? I sat with a friend of mine who was making custom rounds for his sniper rifle (he's an army sniper and was preparing for a competition). It took HOURS for just a couple of dozen rounds! He explained what he was doing as he did it, and there's a long list of stuff you can do wrong that will end up with your gun jamming, the bullet not firing straight, the bullet ruining the gun or even blowing up inside the gun and blowing your own hand off. Not to mention that you're dealing with explosive compounds and that buying any of these compounds in large quantities would get you a visit from you friendly neighbourhood bomb squad.

Do you have a better suggestion? The problem with just saying, "Don't give guns to psychopaths" is that psychopaths aren't the problem, they already have a rap sheet a mile long (poor impulse control). The problem is sociopaths... and on psychological tests people like cops and astronauts show up as sociopaths (their personality profile is very close to that of a serial killer). This isn't the tests being faulty, it has to do with how personality manifests in different environments.

In a week America will have moved on... waiting for the next sickening mass murder for them to shout and rant about. Every time one of these tragic incidents happens we get the same speeches, the same excuses... then nothing.

America is sleepwalking towards a nightmare it can't wake from.

t's NOT the gun. It's the idiots using it. Pencils don't cause misspellings, you do. Forks don't make you fat Inanimate objects do NOTHING without some force causing it to do so. It doesn't matter how much you wish it were so, or how hard you try to will it to be... a firearm will NOT fire without interaction from some conscience being.

You could have simply typed, "guns don't kill people, people kill people" and saved a lot of typing speed. Alternatively you could abbreviate it to an acronym: "GDKP, PKP". Then everyone would know everything about your argument.

So next time there is a mass shooting in the US (and there will be a next time) go the the relevant JT thread and type in "GDKP, PKP". The rest of us can discuss the insanity of gun law in the USA.

I am an American that favors the responsible use of firearms for hunting and recreation. But military weapons and most handguns have no place in a home for any reason. It is unlikely that even after this recent tragedy that there will be much real change to firearms laws in America and that is sad. Too much money is act stake for people to do the responsible thing. If a firearms ban was passed I would not be up in arms about it as it is up to the people to decide that.

I will say this though. In the past 15 years I have lived in Japan. I have never felt danger in my home or fear of going down a dark alley in a big city here. Something I would never do in LA New York or any other big city in the states. I even leave my door unlocked at night sometimes here. That is unheard of in the USA. So gun control does work in many degrees. I feel sad for those that lost loved ones do to gun violence. I hope they can find a voice and do something to keep guns out of the hands of those that would use them for violence and murder. If that means I can't have one anymore as well, while I would be disappointed, it is a small price to pay to save a life.

When I was a boy, I was a FAN of Clint Eastwood. I like his chewing cigar from left to right and pulling gun to shoot the opponent. It was a boyhood dream of becoming THE MAN WITH NO NAME who is so manly and lone rider. The sound track made me chilled from toe to forehead a long the spine. When I grow up, I realized that it was a violent propaganda. In the Fistful of dollars and A few dollars more, he killed truck load of men.

Violent propoganda? Did the 95% ITALIAN cast who directed, wrote, edited, scored and acted in these films have some kind of hidden agenda you are privy to?

Still, this doesn't sound too bad....

THE NATION WITH LESS THAN 350 MILLIONS PEOPLE HAVE 310 GUNS RIGHT NOW.

@Okinawamike

An extremely good point !

It's NOT the gun. It's the idiots using it. Pencils don't cause misspellings, you do. Forks don't make you fat Inanimate objects do NOTHING without some force causing it to do so. It doesn't matter how much you wish it were so, or how hard you try to will it to be... a firearm will NOT fire without interaction from some conscience being.

What do you think guns are for? What were they designed to do?

The UK and Australia both enacted their strict gun control laws after mass murders. In Australia it was after some maniac dusted of 35 people, in the UK it was after a disgruntled scoutmaster killed something like 26 children in Scotland. In the UK the outrage was overwhelming and the anti-gun legislation swift and severe. In both countries gun related crimes have gone down and there has been no mass killings on the order of Sandy Hook. In the US 30,000 people die because of gun violence. An American child's chance of being killed with a gun is 13 times higher than a child in any other industrial democracy.

Please spare us, dear posters the BS about curing mental health problems, knives and axes, and how guns don't kill people...blah...blah and about auto accidents. Speaking of which, did you know that since the 1950s a smaller percentage of Americans die in care accidents due to a concentrated effort on regulation and safety. Here in Japan--if you want an appropriate analogy--drunk drivers used to be excused when they had accidents (Oh sorry Your Honor I was drunk) and then the tide turned and you know what happens if you drink drunk today. America needs the same sort of gun regulations that we have here in Japan, the UK, Europe and Canada has.

One reason I like living in Japan I can be fairly certain that I will not be blown away with short barreled automatic pistol or an assault rifle.

Also, there is a far cry between the real and fictional Davy Crockett and the fictional jerkoff fantasy character Dirty Harry. Davy Crockett used a single shot muzzle loading flintlock rifle that took a time to load and had to be loaded carefully. Quite different from an assault rifle. You really had to think about what you were doing before you pulled the trigger. And disgusting as the Dirty Harry series is, at least the character uses a revolver and says things like, "Make my day" before actually shooting someone.

While I am at it please spare us the rubbish about a well armed populace being able to stop mass shootings. It has never happened. The gunman in the Gilford (sp?) shooting in Arizona was stopped by two old unarmed men when he stopped to reload.

the SECOND AMENDMENT of 1791

Yeah, and in 1791 they were using flintlock rifles and pistols that took two or three minutes to load. Now they use automatic assault weapons that can pump out a thousand rounds in three minutes. Possibly, just possibly, the second amendment of 1791 is no longer relevant in today's society.

a firearm will NOT fire without interaction from some conscience being.

A firearm will not fire if you don't have one, will it? My favorite pro-gun comment is, I need a gun for protection - from other people with guns. That is the most stooopid thing I have ever heard! I agree that it is not the gun and that it is the idiot using it, so you need to ban guns so the idiots can't get one, right?

It's NOT the gun. It's the idiots using it. Pencils don't cause misspellings, you do. Forks don't make you fat Inanimate objects do NOTHING without some force causing it to do so. It doesn't matter how much you wish it were so, or how hard you try to will it to be... a firearm will NOT fire without interaction from some conscience being.

When I was a boy, I was a FAN of Clint Eastwood. I like his chewing cigar from left to right and pulling gun to shoot the opponent. It was a boyhood dream of becoming THE MAN WITH NO NAME who is so manly and lone rider. The sound track made me chilled from toe to forehead a long the spine.

When I grow up, I realized that it was a violent propaganda. In the Fistful of dollars and A few dollars more, he killed truck load of men. THE NATION WITH LESS THAN 350 MILLIONS PEOPLE HAVE 310 GUNS RIGHT NOW. It is so extreme and violent like my boyhood mentality. Even Gun laws have introduced, it is impossible to recollect all of the guns have sold.

This hysteria over guns is from people who, I don’t know, are foolish enough to believe that if you took all the axes away from people, there would be no more ax murders

Ahem....isn't that EXACTLY what would happen?! Isn't that EXACTLY the point?! I don't understand this non-sensical reverse logic these people use.

The problem is absolutely that guns are an enormous part of the way the US sees itself. It's integral to the culture. An appalingly high number of US TV shows have guns in them. So do their movies.

A psychopath with a knife might kill a half dozen people at best in a crowded place - a psychopath with a gun will kill dozens, as we have seen many times before. Guns allow easy killing as well as mass killing.

Wake up people. It's the guns.

I just don't see how its possible to remove all the guns even there was a ban put in place, or tighter controls. From the UK which has stringent controls you can see with Dunblane and the case in 2010 in Northumbria (I refuse to name these men and let their names live on), gun control does not stop a determined and intelligent person from committing mass murder.

If someone is bent on mass murder, high tax on bullets wont stop them. The only way I can see to make things any safer is to put better mental health care more easily available, and making it a hell of a lot easier to have someone put in secure care.

realdoll

To my knowledge the ones who make their own bullets makes RIFLE bullets not hand gun bullets.

Just tax hand gun bullets and casing to the max like tabacco and have ATF strictly regulate trafficing of these items like tabacco and/or alcohol. Any offenders marketing moonshine bullets will be slapped with tax evasion and asset frozen. Maintain a low tax on rifle bullets to keep hunters happy.

Firearms were further romanticized in the American consciousness as pioneers expanded the nation’s frontier and relied on guns to defend their land from Indians,

Who's land?

Frungy, anyone with an average intelligence and will can make a high capacity magazine (bent sheet metal and spring) and millions of Americans already make their own bullets.. the answer has nothing to do with guns or ammunition. It's the psychopath.

“There isn’t a single law that they could enact right now that could prevent this from happening again,” he said.

Yes there is. Simply limit ammunition. 10 rounds (for all your guns, not for each!). If the attacker has only 10 rounds of ammunition then the maximum deathtoll (if they're a perfect shot) is 10 people (and most likely MUCH lower).

Mathematically this works. In a simple scenario where there are 100 civilians (10 of whom are armed) and 1 crazed gunman, then the gunman can only kill a maximum of 10 people, and then he's unarmed and will be shot or clubbed to death by the remaining 90 people.

In the current scenario where the gunman could walk in with 1000 rounds of ammunition (that sounds like a lot, but most people go through that in a morning at the shooting range), and kill all 100 people by just firing randomly. The suppressing fire would keep the gun owners heads down since the crazed gunman doesn't need to aim, just to spray the area.

Nope, the answer IS SIMPLE. Limit ammunition. It's an easy restriction, it doesn't interfere with the right to bear arms or any other existing legislation, and so it would be the logical choice. It would take some time to take effect, since doubtless tons of people have thousands of rounds stockpiled, but even under perfect conditions (low humidity, cool, etc) rounds have a shelf life of around 30 years. After that it becomes increasingly unreliable.

Yes, this isn't an INSTANT answer, but it is a simple and do-able answer.

Americans kill more Americans than terrorists or any war every has, would that be right? Cant these people see that something is wrong? The attitude, "I need a gun to protect myself", in their own country must be a sad indictment on that country as a whole. Isnt that admitting that their country is more dangerous than any other?

I`m a middle-aged guy, and I still love playing computer games (yes, shooting games included) but I could never in my wildest dreams imagine owning a gun.

Look at countries like Australia, England, NZ etc with strict gun laws and compare how many gun related deaths there are to America's tally. Point being, gun control works. It's all political though due to money donated from the NRA and their affiliates to the government campaigners, etc but... yeah, wont get into that.

It is no surprise that guns are a part of USA culture . . .because the SECOND AMENDMENT of 1791 has entrenched in the American Constitution the RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS . . . .Americans are almost breast-fed this entitlement from the get-go.