Turkey asked:

34 yr old clean, male. Clean meaning autopsy clean and no drugs or alochol. Found in woods, fully dressed, gunshot to back of head behind left ear. Male was right handed. Found laying on wawded up blanket and hat folded under head. Laying on back. Left hand to his side, right hand on his stomache. 21a bobcat gun on right side close to waist. The gun was his fiances mother’s gun. She kicked him out of house that morning. Found out later he was keeping tabs on people for police. No check for gsr, no check at fiance’s house just four blocks away. No check into why the fiance threw out her matress or why she kept the gun loaded under her pillow. The male served the Army for 22 months, quick with his feet and hands, etc. Please try not to be rude but I would like your opinion if this was someone you knew and knew they wouldn’t do such a thing and the police did not investigate and won’t do anymore, what would you do?

Mike P asked:

Just reading about this horrible “Santa shooter” in California.

Every time there’s a massacre people cop out and use the excuse that a knife/screwdriver/car etc could kill people as well.

Am I the only one who’d much rather go up in a crowded room against a maniac with a Swiss Army Knife than an Armalite?

As a resident alien (from Australia) I came here understanding the difference in gun culture in the USA and have done my best not to make too many waves, but seeing shooting after shooting (particularly in schools) I’m starting to wonder how long until the penny drops and people realise that the ready availability of the world’s most efficient portable killing implement is somehow connected to the high frequency of massacres in The United States.

I don’t advocate a blanket ban (or a total ban on semi automatics as we have in Australia), but as an outsider coming in, the situation and desensitization to firearms here is borderline frightning.

The question is – what to do? There’s clearly a problem.
I agree with people who say it isn’t the guns but the people using them – but that’s my whole point. If people are going to do this sort of thing is it wise to give them such easy access to the tools?

If spelling mistakes caused by pencils caused multiple fatalities I’d want some sort of tough regulation into their use too.