There was a shooting in near Scranton Pa that may have changed my mind about guns.

[Soapbox Killer]

LINK TO STORY

***Please be warned. I am not linking to the video as it is possibly the worst video I have ever saw. You don't "need" to see it to comprehend this discussion***


Long story not as long this argument turned to a deadly shooting over snow shoveling which in itself was stupid. The problem I am having right now is there is a very clear video with perfect audio out there that shows the entire event. ( I will not link so please don't ask) It was sent to me without provocation or explanation by one of my Navy buddies so i didn't know what i was looking at till the end. Even after I was waiting for the credits or "gag" to be revealed.


I grew up in North Philly and people getting shot has almost been a way of life in some places. I have seen some shit in my day. I also served in US Navy and was actively deployed during a few missions that you have probably never heard of and wasn't covered on the news back in the late 90's/ early 2000's but what I saw in that video has shaken me. I own guns. I'm safe. I'm trained. My kids can not get to my stuff but I just don't know any more. I might just be overreacting cause as a black man with children I am compelled to be protective of my kingdom but this shit. I can't un-see. We have to do something about this.

Everybody is ok to own a gun.... until they're not. I'm not saying take away all the guns but I can't watch that shit and continue to think as I have before.




Sorry Y'all

 

[Tawpgun]

This is what conservatives fail to grasp about the gun arguement.

No guns don't kill people. People kill people.

But guns make it STUPID easy to do so. And to inflict more damage on MORE people. It's a huge force multiplier. It makes it TOO easy to take a life in the heat of the moment. This also includes the gun owners life in cases of suicide.

 

[Soapbox Killer]

This is what conservatives fail to grasp about the gun arguement.

No guns don't kill people. People kill people.

But guns make it STUPID easy to do so. And to inflict more damage on MORE people. It's a huge force multiplier. It makes it TOO easy to take a life in the heat of the moment. This also includes the gun owners life in cases of suicide.

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Multiplier is a good term. This didn't have to end with 3 dead people including the shooter taking his own life. Like what the fuck.


I was having such a good night too.

 

[Deleted member 12028]

You aren't saying it. But take away all the guns.

 

[Lulu]

I saw the video yesterday because it was cicrcling around Twitter. Had me fucked up.

 

[Ryuelli]

This is what conservatives fail to grasp about the gun arguement.

No guns don't kill people. People kill people.

But guns make it STUPID easy to do so. And to inflict more damage on MORE people. It's a huge force multiplier. It makes it TOO easy to take a life in the heat of the moment. This also includes the gun owners life in cases of suicide.

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On the same day as Sandy Hook there was a school stabbing in China. The death count speaks for itself.

Chenpeng Village Primary School stabbing - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[RustyNails]

We should honestly take away every gun in America. 2nd amendment is for armed, well regulated militias which we dont need any more.

 

[Mahonay]

Fuck guns and fuck gun culture.

Thank you sharing OP.

 

[Deleted member 68874]

I saw the video of this incident and its horrifying.

I feel awful for the victims and their families.

 

[Steel]

This is what conservatives fail to grasp about the gun arguement.

No guns don't kill people. People kill people.

But guns make it STUPID easy to do so. And to inflict more damage on MORE people. It's a huge force multiplier. It makes it TOO easy to take a life in the heat of the moment. This also includes the gun owners life in cases of suicide.

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Yup. Cases of people actually successfully defending themselves with guns are vanishingly small compared to the variety of ways people end up dead to guns.

A person might be fine with a gun in this instant in time, but people aren't the same from week to week, better yet year to year. We have dark moments, which a gun can make much darker.

 

[Nepenthe]

I think part of the end goal of a safer society would be for the reduction if not outright elimination of firearms. But you would have to figure out ways to simultaneously deescalate all of society, because minorities aren't going to want to further submit to conditions wherein they feel even more ripe for racial terrorism, and white people won't give them up because they're scared of everything in general. I guess the method to achieve that instead would be to create a safer society in general by investing in things like healthcare, infrastructure, better wages, defunded police etc. so that eventually the population won't feel the need to have guns and willingly turn them in. But helping people is communism so, you know....

Option C! Just move to a saner country. /s

 

[SapientWolf]

People aren't perfectly rational robots. Uncontrollable rage is exactly what it sounds like. There are so many news stories with this narrative that we're numb to it. Strange as it may sound, not owning a firearm is a way to protect yourself from... yourself.

 

[Lobster Roll]

Normalization of gun ownership in the US is the weirdest thing to me. Moments like these are sadly far, far more common than the pipe dream scenario of hearing a burglar break in, accessing your safe that only you know the code to, loading it with the bullets that are always maintained separately, giving a fair warning to the burglar, and shooting them in center mass thus saving your family.

 

[Giant Panda]

There are more guns than people in the US. And most gun owners will not vote for politicians that promise to take away people's guns. I fear the most you'll ever get out of this country on gun control is tinkering around the edges.

 

[lint2015]

I'm not saying take away all the guns but I can't watch that shit and continue to think as I have before.

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Contrary to popular belief they didn't take away all the guns here in Australia. But they made it so that you could only own a gun if you had a good reason to, with strict rules on their transport and storage.

It's called gun control.

 

[Xterrian]

Yay my hometown....

The more I grow older the more I advocate for tighter gun control. At first I just thought getting rid of assault rifles would be enough. But the more shootings I hear about the more I fail to see even handguns help.

Like okay you want them for self defense. Usually, it gets boiled down to "what if the other dude has a gun." And well, you start seeing the problem when you need a gun to protect yourself from other guns.

I don't know. I was always bothered by how someone who goes over the edge and easily buy a weapon that can kill incredibly quick and at a distance. I don't buy the "well they would've gotten one even if they were illegal anyway."

Are there people in that category? Sure. But for cases like these, and I imagine most shooting occurrences, where there's not days or weeks of planning, the accessibility directly led to the lives loss.

I'm rambling at this point but yeah. People kill people, but you can't regulate them. You can however, regulate the tools available to people that may facilitate any homicidal ideas they have.

 

[Soapbox Killer]

I saw the video yesterday because it was cicrcling around Twitter. Had me fucked up.

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I saw the video of this incident and its horrifying.

I feel awful for the victims and their families.

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Thank you for sharing your feeling on the video. I sometimes think because of how I think that I take stuff like this to heart far to easy. I do not comment or have discussions on any mass populated social media network so there was no one to bounce this off outside of my wife and I already know what she thinks. I just had to make a stiff drink and chill for a sec cause this is like heavy on my soul right now.


It is probably the worst video I have ever seen.

Fuck guns and fuck gun culture.

Thank you sharing OP.

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Man I'm just trying to purge my brain of this evil.

 

[DOT_mjo]

In a civilized society, there is no need for firearms of any kind. Unfortunately, we don't live in one so I understand why people carry firearms even though I could never bring myself to carry one.

 

[Foot]

You aren't saying it. But take away all the guns.

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Yeah. Right on.

 

[Deleted member 20892]

I stumbled on that on the front page of reddit it was horrific

 

[Jakenbakin]

Take their guns.

I don't know how we get to that point but I will approve of any responsible initiative that gets us closer to that goal.

 

[echoshifting]

Tbh I feel this video should be required viewing for American citizens. All the videos, all the photos. Everyone here should really, really know what American gun culture costs. It is monstrous and far too abstract for most. I see that Twitter and YouTube are now doing their best to scrub the video. A shame.

I am passionately opposed to all gun ownership. Fuck your guns, if I could take them I would.

 

[SteveWinwood]

please take 99%* of guns

people shouldnt want to own guns, you just increase the chance of injury and death to everyone around you by owning them. the chances of them saving you from anything are relatively so incredibly miniscule

it makes me upset when people want to have firearms, we failed as a society attaching them to masculinity and not being able to make people feel safe

*there are legitimate uses especially in many rural settings but those can be, and should be, highly regulated and dont need to be handguns or some kind of weird "not assault rifle" but actually an assault rifle

 

[TheMadTitan]

I think part of the end goal of a safer society would be for the reduction if not outright elimination of firearms. But you would have to figure out ways to simultaneously deescalate all of society, because minorities aren't going to want to further submit to conditions wherein they feel even more ripe for racial terrorism, and white people won't give them up because they're scared of everything in general. I guess the method to achieve that instead would be to create a safer society in general by investing in things like healthcare, infrastructure, better wages, defunded police etc. so that eventually the population won't feel the need to have guns and willingly turn them in. But helping people is communism so, you know....

Option C! Just move to a saner country. /s

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This, so much this.

Remove the desire to own guns in the first place and the numbers will fall on their own and eventually get to a point where we can do the "no guns" without pushback.

As it stands now, it's far too pervasive in society for it to be politically viable, with or without the NRA.

 

[Japanmanx3]

Someone sent me the video. Felt sick while watching it.

 

[Midramble]

Firearms are not uniquely effective for defense. I believe firearms should be regulated to only manual action long barrels for hunters and rural living as is done in a lot of the rest of the world.

 

[Red Comet]

This video ruined my night when I saw it. I agree with that sentiment, OP, about everybody being okay to own a gun until they're not. Takes one bad snap for something like this to happen. Not saying that everybody who owns a gun has it in them to snap like that, but it's impossible to weed out those who do.

 

[Deleted member 15737]

So sad. Such a stupid reason for a loss of life.

Did we really get someone talking about Chinese knife crimes in this thread?

 

[Nida]

Not going to watch the video. The article says he retrieved another gun to shoot them again. Were they dead or still alive?

Mentioned in another thread, but this is why I try to be as non-confrontational as possible. An elderly gentleman was stabbed to death over what is rumored to be an argument over a handicapped parking spot here recently.

 

[Red Comet]

Not going to watch the video. The article says he retrieved another gun to shoot them again. Were they dead or still alive?

Mentioned in another thread, but this is why I try to be as non-confrontational as possible. An elderly gentleman was stabbed to death over what is rumored to be an argument over a handicapped parking spot here recently.

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They were dying at that point. He went up to them, said something, and executed them. Do not watch.

 

[colorblindmode]

I watched this video and felt the same way as OP. I've been very, not necessarily pro guns, but pro hunting game. I grew up in a very rural part of North Carolina and live in an even more rural part of South Carolina. Hunting is a very big deal here.

But, one doesn't need an AR15 to hunt deer. Or a handgun. Or whatever other batshit insane weapons people have.

This video changed my mind from accepting guns as a reality to wanting guns to be removed in 99% of instances.

 

[Deleted member 5865]

That video....people are fucking INSANE

Tbh I feel this video should be required viewing for American citizens. All the videos, all the photos. Everyone here should really, really know what American gun culture costs. It is monstrous and far too abstract for most. I see that Twitter and YouTube are now doing their best to scrub the video. A shame.

I am passionately opposed to all gun ownership. Fuck your guns, if I could take them I would.

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Agreed. It's not so graphic that it'd leave disturbing imagery in your mind but its clear enough to be a haunting reminder about what a nut with a gun can do. Like, im reminded of the fact that someone can just up and take your life off bullshit with a press of a button

 

[Nida]

They were dying at that point. He went up to them, said something, and executed them. Do not watch.

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Lovely. Yeah, no chance I'd watch it. I love horror and action movies, but any actual violence makes me want to throw up.

 

[falcondoc]

fuck guns

 

[Steel]

There are more guns than people in the US. And most gun owners will not vote for politicians that promise to take away people's guns. I fear the most you'll ever get out of this country on gun control is tinkering around the edges.

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Kinda misleading since the vast majority of those guns are hoarded by gun collectors. 22% of Americans own a gun. That being said, yeah, it's a difficult to tackle issue, first step would be getting better gun control in the first place, yeah.

 

[antonz]

Guns offer an incredible amount of power in split moment decisions that many people face daily. Most are unarmed so maybe someone tosses out a fuck you or a middle finger get flashed but then there are those moments where someone does have a gun and their reaction is to immediately go to it.

Its similar in suicide situations. More often than not it is a cry for help. However Guns immediately escalate the situation. Once that trigger is pulled there is very likely no going back.

 

[Kasey]

Fantasy: you use your gun to bring down a terrorist/criminal thug who is trying to rob the diner you go to every day, in a precise John Wick-like fashion, saving the lives of 50 people.

Reality: you try to shoot your neighbor's yapping dog and catch your wife instead and end up shooting yourself in the panic to get her to the hospital

 

[Muitnorts]

I live in the UK which is far from perfect but honestly if gun ownership was widespread like it is in the US I'd be fucking terrified most days.
It's hard to imagine growing up and living somewhere that normalises untrained citizens having such powerful weapons. One trigger pull and a life is gone. And obviously that requires and encourages law enforcement to be fully armed.

I genuinely understand people's reasons for wanting to have a weapon given that everyone else does. I don't blame people for keeping a gun when every other fucker has one. But NO ONE should have one if not required for livestock or something. And no one should have assault rifles.
Everyone would be better off if strict gun control measures took hold. Sadly far too many are against it.

 

[Brinbe]

holy shit the psychos defending that on that abc comments section yikessssssss

 

[Lobster Roll]

Tbh I feel this video should be required viewing for American citizens. All the videos, all the photos. Everyone here should really, really know what American gun culture costs. It is monstrous and far too abstract for most. I see that Twitter and YouTube are now doing their best to scrub the video. A shame.

I am passionately opposed to all gun ownership. Fuck your guns, if I could take them I would.

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Yup. It's shit like this why when my SO lets their temper get the best of them and talk back to a stranger that has shit to say my immediate reaction is, "alright please stop we need to leave ASAP".

Also, I fully expect GunEra to be absent from this thread.

 

[Deleted member 4461]

It's such a waste. The video makes me so angry, and so sad... That couple didn't deserve to die.

The fantasy about being a good guy with a gun never holds up in reality. But you look at something like this and you'll probably worry about your family. Probably wonder how you'd handle that split second situation. And then you buy your own gun.

This is such a tragedy.

holy shit the psychos defending that on that abc comments section yikessssssss

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News comment sections are for total fucking sociopaths. Genuinely.

 

[Deleted member 5865]

holy shit the psychos defending that on that abc comments section yikessssssss

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Comments like that are on reddit too
I guess the fantasy of ending some jerk's life in some passionate blaze of glory is too good to pass up. I mean, that fantasy ends with prison time or suicide, but its still worth it to some folks I guess

 

[echoshifting]

Comments like that are on reddit too
I guess the fantasy of ending some jerk's life in some passionate blaze of glory is too good to pass up. I mean, that fantasy ends with prison time or suicide, but its still worth it to some folks I guess

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All they are accomplishing is the presentation of further evidence that people should not be able to own guns.

 

[bionic77]

That video is super fucked up. Someone sent it to me without telling me that it shows a double murder with full audio. Wish I did not see it.

I will say that this was not in Scranton. It was in Plains, which is just outside of Wilkes Barre. Its only like 20 minutes south of Scranton but that is a different city.

I agree though in general with the premise that this is why people should not have guns. This was an argument with neighbors that turned into a double murder. Anger was running high before he went to get his gun but that poor kid would still have his parents if he didn't have those guns in his house.

 

[Deleted member 5745]

Not going to watch the video. The article says he retrieved another gun to shoot them again. Were they dead or still alive?

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Still alive, as far as I could tell. He went back to get a rifle to finish them off. Senseless.

It's sad that I'm so desensitized to this shit.

 

[Kendrid]

Not going to watch the video. The article says he retrieved another gun to shoot them again. Were they dead or still alive?

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Still alive and talking to their son. He came back with a larger gun and finished them off. Then went into his house and we hear one last bang.
I've seen a lot of gore and shooting on the net but that was the worst. That was engraved cold blooded murder.

 

[blackhawk163]

They were dying at that point. He went up to them, said something, and executed them. Do not watch.

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He told her 'you should've kept your mouth shut you stupid bitch' before executing her then walking over to her husband and telling him 'a pussy huh?' then executing him too.


Simply horrible.

 

[Deleted member 21709]

You growing up thinking that shootings were almost a way of life is the first red flag about why guns need to be banned. Outsider's perspective of course, I grew up in a practically gun free country.

 

[T-800]

I only saw this yesterday. I"m Australian btw.

Please watch all of it.

 

[Lost Lemurian]

My dad keeps urging me to get a gun for home protection and this is why I keep saying "no".

Anger, sadness, and fear don't mix well with guns, and there's just too many ways for things to get tragically out of hand.

Thank you, OP, for cementing my decision: no guns in the house.