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Author Topic: The Newtown Tragedy  (Read 9473 times)

NFMike

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #50 on: December 18, 2012, 06:40:24 pm »

Whilst not suggesting that the Forum takes any formal stance and, using this topic as a prime example, could we forward a 'group' correspondence to the community of Newtown advising them that at this time, a number of members of Model Boat Mayhem Forum would like to them to know that our thoughts are with them?.
We could also send a message to an 'official body', stating that this subject was raised on our Forum, and that a group of like-minded contributors do feel moved to announce that we hope steps are put in place to reduce the possibility of something similar happening again.
My embolding.


While I believe that non-boating discussions are acceptable in 'Chit-chat' I think that any sort of 'group' action like this on non-boating matters would be wholly inappropriate. It would inescapably suggest that the forum has taken a formal stance.


If there are people that think transmitting their thoughts or whatever to complete strangers 3000 miles away will help, then they can and should do it themselves personally - it will likely be more effective than a somewhat impersonal message from 'a forum' anyway.

irishcarguy

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #51 on: December 18, 2012, 06:51:54 pm »

I fully agree with you Mike, we should never become a forum on a mission to right the wrongs of this world, there are more than enough sticking their nose in where they should not already. Mick B.
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Mick B.

Umi_Ryuzuki

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #52 on: December 18, 2012, 08:53:01 pm »

I guess what I find depressing is waking up one morning, and finding out that
some 20 year old madman on East coast, and a gunsmith on television represent me,
the people I know, and the rest of the United States...

I don't own a gun, I have never owned a gun, I have never seen a need to own a gun.
It's the local police that scare me, should I get pulled over for a traffic infraction, and they walk up
to my automobile with their hand on their gun... The police actually scare me a bit more than
any person on the street.

 {:-{

giovanni

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #53 on: December 18, 2012, 09:12:24 pm »

Most gun owners weapons cause injury to those people nearest.
My wife and I previously owned handguns for protection, when we traveled on business with large sums of cash. When my wife retired, we kept the gun in a locked tool box in the garage. The lawn mower kid stole our toolbox, with the gun, and was twirling the gun in front of his friends when it discharged and blew his finger off.
He did not mow our lawn after that.
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Giovanni

Colin Bishop

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #54 on: December 18, 2012, 09:13:20 pm »

A commendable idea Andy, but I agree with the others that is not for the Forum as a whole to take a position on this. personal expressions of sympathy may well be appreciated by those who have suffered from this tragedy but one thing is certain and that is that advice on gun control from a bunch of Brits would be regarded as offensive by all sections of American society.
 
There is a major cultural gulf between the UK (and probably much of the rest of Europe and many other countries) and the US on this issue. We find it quite incomprehensible that civilians would want to own weapons of mass slaughter while in the US, the majority of the population appear to regard it as being an inalienable right and perfectly normal. As has been pointed out above, the immediate reaction to the tragedy has been for citizens to buy more guns 'for their own protection'. Just how that is supposed to work in practice I simply can't imagine. If somebody shoots you then you are unlikely to be in a position to fetch your weapon and shoot back - you'll be dead!
 
Trigger happy untrained civilians with military weapons are a menace and are just as likely to shoot the innocent as the bad guys. There don't appear to be many, if any, recorded instances where interventions by heroic gun toting civilians have saved the day against deranged madmen with assault rifles but there seems to be some sort of inbuilt assumption that this is a realistic scenario. The record of supposedly trained law enforcement officers is not great in these situations either. When they open fire innocent individuals are rather prone to get hit.
 
Given the number of guns in circulation in the US and current attitudes, it seems impossible that any realistic curbs can be enacted, things have simply gone too far and the US will just have to live with regular tragedies on this scale however unpalatable that may be.
 
Something seems to have gone badly wrong in the American psyche and it may take generations before it can be resolved. People tend to think that Americans are just like us but 3,000 miles further West. They aren't, they are foreign with very different mindsets under the surface veneer. People also think that Russians are sort of East Europeans really, but they aren't either, they think in very different ways that we would not be very comfortable with.
 
It's a rough old world really.
 
Colin
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Tug-Kenny RIP

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #55 on: December 18, 2012, 09:15:45 pm »


Please, can we not talk of Guns and ownership any more, but return to the actual event and any further news.


ken
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ardarossan

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #56 on: December 18, 2012, 09:24:58 pm »

Please, can we not talk of Guns and ownership any more, but return to the actual event and any further news.


ken

Is there any point in repeating here what we can all see on the news anyway?

Andy
 
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Colin Bishop

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #57 on: December 18, 2012, 09:31:39 pm »

Ken,
 
I don't see what further news there will be. A lot of children are dead and the citizens of the town are understandably finding the attention of the US and world press intrusive and upsetting. They need to be left to come to terms with their terrible loss. There is little if anything we can do to assist in that process.
 
What this event has highlighted is the general attitude held by American citizens to holding military grade firearms and I think that a lot of people have found this to be alarming and unhealthy Given the position that America takes in effectively leading the Western nations I think that it is a concern for us all as it must colour the policies that they adopt. I used to think that the Americans were essentially the same as us but this, and a couple of visits over there has demonstrated that it isn't the case at all. They have a myth that America is a shining city upon a hill but I think they are deluding themselves.
 
Colin
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Tug-Kenny RIP

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Re: The Newtown Tragedy
« Reply #58 on: December 18, 2012, 09:36:06 pm »


       Thread closed out of respect for the Children of Newtown

                          Let the children Rest in Peace







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