Gastro Gnome - Eat Better Wherever

Oregon gun law proposal...20 rounds/month

In another generation or two there won’t be brick and mortar schools like there are today. We’re working on a plan that will be obsolete in 30 or 40 years. Gun control will need a new face then.
 
The story of people leaving the crappy setting within one State meanwhile, bringing the same political crap to the new location... to build the same adverse setting last escaped.
 
Kids have a reason to be afraid, and to want to do something about it. But gun control laws like this one are not it. It's like Fin has said, it's a cop out.

I think it's fair to say that A LOT of schools have some kids in attendance that are legitimately scary. I wish I could talk in more detail and provide specific examples from my school, but ethically and legally, I can't. But access to firearms isn't what makes these kids the unstable, frightening people that they are, it's their home lives. At my school, more and more kids are coming from pretty damn traumatic home lives. Then, take a kid who may be already prone to mental instability and give him a high dose of trauma at home, then you really have a recipe for disaster. Schools don't have the resources to make up for or overcome the problems that start at home. We don't have mental health professionals and support staff available to identify and actually help students who are struggling, and who might become a threat to the safety of the school. That would cost a lot of money, and people don't want to pay. So they propose laws to restrict the inanimate objects, instead of addressing the real problems. It's a cop out, but cop outs are easy.

Good to hear from an educator on the matter.

Oregon, despite relatively high gun ownership rates, has a pretty low firearm homicide rate. So a kid's chances of being killed by a gun in Oregon are pretty slim. Of course, we aren't talking about real risk. We're talking about perceived risk. And seeing a bunch of kids on TV running for their lives from a school shooter is terrifying and ratchets up the perceived risk.

Your comments on addressing problems at home are well taken. I'd add that there is an element of nihilistic thinking to many, if not most of these school shootings. I realize this is a very secular forum and most folks here don't have much regard for faith, but I think the "make your own meaning" self-fulfilment gospel being spread will have more disastrous consequences in the future. "Oh but religion... terrorists...the crusades..." blah blah. Sure, people will find any reason to justify murder/war etc. But materialism provides no objective meaning and no justification to continue living or not take a life. Once a kid or adult becomes so miserable and decides their life is worthless and has no meaning, suddenly other people's lives are worthless as well.
 
Kids have a reason to be afraid, and to want to do something about it. But gun control laws like this one are not it. It's like Fin has said, it's a cop out.

I think it's fair to say that A LOT of schools have some kids in attendance that are legitimately scary. I wish I could talk in more detail and provide specific examples from my school, but ethically and legally, I can't. But access to firearms isn't what makes these kids the unstable, frightening people that they are, it's their home lives. At my school, more and more kids are coming from pretty damn traumatic home lives. Then, take a kid who may be already prone to mental instability and give him a high dose of trauma at home, then you really have a recipe for disaster. Schools don't have the resources to make up for or overcome the problems that start at home. We don't have mental health professionals and support staff available to identify and actually help students who are struggling, and who might become a threat to the safety of the school. That would cost a lot of money, and people don't want to pay. So they propose laws to restrict the inanimate objects, instead of addressing the real problems. It's a cop out, but cop outs are easy.

True, and very well stated
 
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