[EphelDuath666]

That we live in a world of instant communication, push-button universal moral outrage and goldfish memory is probably the greatest hindrance to effecting real change, be it in gun law, environmental issues, whatever.

this sums up my opinion on the world pretty much. Rather well put indeed.

I , like probably most other reasonable people, am not saying that guns should be banned or whatever. There's plenty of occassions where they are or may be a necessity. My grandpa was a hunter and had several rifles. Might not be my cup of tea but I never pissed on him for it.
But yeah, one obviously needs to differ and this whole incident in America is a whole different story.

First of all, if the kid did have Asperger's syndrome then why on earth hasn't that been dealt with before anything else? And then secondly one also has to wonder how he could have had access to 2 handguns and one semi-automatic assault rifle. Apparently at the age of 20 you can't legally buy them in Connecticut just yet. So his mother either didn't do a really good job locking them up...or, and that's what is an option too, she actually gave them to him as a gift which on the other hand is legal. Which is quite odd too.
And in any case, even if people say "well, he would have killed people anyways, no matter what." then I say that I'm sure there would have been a possibility to at least minimize the casualties without having 20 dead kids now just by taking the 'right' measures in the first place.

And I'm generally speaking, not just about America. Shit like this happens everywhere, alas. It's just that when it happens to little kids it rubs you the wrong way a lot more.

[Octillus]

Before we are all on each others throats can we at least agree that it should be easier to get mental health care than it is to buy guns? Anybody? Start from there ok? You know, something besides pure rhetoric?

I'm with you. Ronald Reagan was a fucking demon.

Sorry to interject. Just heard one of my schoolmates was stabbed to death last night, only to be found dead outside the front door by his mother this morning.
R.I.P Dale. You were a good 'un.

[EphelDuath666]

Sorry to interject. Just heard one of my schoolmates was stabbed to death last night, only to be found dead outside the front door by his mother this morning.
R.I.P Dale. You were a good 'un.

sorry to hear that, Steph

Sorry to interject. Just heard one of my schoolmates was stabbed to death last night, only to be found dead outside the front door by his mother this morning.
R.I.P Dale. You were a good 'un.

*hugs for Steph*

Sorry to interject. Just heard one of my schoolmates was stabbed to death last night, only to be found dead outside the front door by his mother this morning.
R.I.P Dale. You were a good 'un.

sorry to hear that, Steph

Cheers guys. He's from a big family (we used to all play together when we were kids) and they broke the news this morning. Regardless of what the BBC says, we all know what's gone on. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-20748761

Such a shame, what's happening to the world?

[djskrimp]

Sorry to interject. Just heard one of my schoolmates was stabbed to death last night, only to be found dead outside the front door by his mother this morning.
R.I.P Dale. You were a good 'un.

(((bairhug))))

Sorry to interject. Just heard one of my schoolmates was stabbed to death last night, only to be found dead outside the front door by his mother this morning.
R.I.P Dale. You were a good 'un.

I'm sorry Steph Best thoughts your way.

Oh the gun control debate, I think firearms being completely outlawed is 1) unrealistic and 2) not fully necessary. I don't hunt, for example, but I understand that people do responsibly. Guns can be used responsibly. I think what the main issue is in this country with gun control is that it's just so easy and open. Seriously, what use does someone have for something like an AK-47? I understand a simple hunting rifle or a small handgun, but the kinds of guns people can have in this country is just insane and feeds drug lords down south (I'm speaking as living close to the border, and my girlfriend is from El Paso). We don't need to outlaw guns; we need to drastically change our laws around guns. My two cents on that.

I do fully agree, though, that the issue here doesn't just boil down to guns. How we treat people, especially mentally ill people, is where we really need to, as a country, look. The media too sensationalizes it, and we as a society eat it up. Those two areas I think are where we need to work on fixing.

And above all of that and all the issues around it, the most important thing is that this is a tragedy. I can't fathom what these families are going through, and my thoughts and prayers, for what it's worth, go out to them.

I must admit guilt to the knee-jerk, "fuck you" reaction, as I know people who own guns who aren't homicidal jerks; still, control is a necessity that cannot be ignored. The same with mental health - I know quite a few people who've been disadvantaged by the system that's meant to help them.

My condolences, Steph.

I think we can all agree, however, that the Westboro Baptist Church are the scum of the earth:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/16/westboro-baptist-church-picket-connecticut-school-shooting_n_2312186.html

This wee bit of drama may seem trivial to some.... but I need to vent.

So.... every other year my 13 year old cousin celebrates Christmas with her dad, rather than with her mum (my aunt) and the rest of us. This year her dad doesn't have any place to live in this part of the country, and he just divorced his wife. So, naturally my cousin asks my mum if she and her dad can celebrate Christmas eve with us. There is NO good reason to say no. We all like her dad, and it's been roughly a decade since he divorced my aunt. That way, everybody would have been happy. He and his then wife and stepdaughter even joined us a couple of years ago. Yet, for some reason my mum said no.
The fuck mum?!
And whenever me or my sister tries confronting mum with it to make her change her mind, she just keeps saying it worked out, because my cousin and her dad got to spend Christmas eve with his ex-wife and her daughter, who my cousin doesn't get along with. My cousin, of course, does not want to say anything, fearing she'll upset her dad. So, basically she has to spend Christmas with her dad's ex-wife and her stepsister, because mum doesn't think her dad (who is practically me an my sister's uncle) should celebrate Christmas with us for some shitty narrow minded conservative reason.

My mum is not very familiar with the concept "family stand up for each other", so if I as much as mention it, she just screams "shut up" at me. Merry Christmas, eh?

Christmas comes to remind us just how f****d up our families are.

[djskrimp]

Christmas comes to remind us just how f****d up our families are.

Which is why, barring the kids not being here (boo! ) I celebrate with the family I choose, not the one I was born into.

[Keeker]

My family's only moderately afflicted so I'll probably have a pretty decent Christmas.

Anybody want a nice recipe for a 'light' Christmas Pudding?

Just unpacked the food shop...perhaps my husband and I choosing to have Xmas alone was a bad idea...might have to invite some random strangers to help is get through this lot!