I believe that there should be restrictions on hand guns and maybe even semi automatic firearms. I am an avid firearms shooter and owner but I could see semi auto firearms getting to the wrong hands.
when i lived in ukraine, it was VERY difficult to get a hand gun. A rifle for hunting, not as hard. But you still had to get a license for hunting, copy of your background from the cops. Then you can get a rifle. For handguns its even harder. You have to have a copy of your background check, have to go through a psychological evaluation by a doctor (psychologist, duh), have a safe at home. No carrying in public period, and had to be kept in the safe at home. We had a cop stop by several times to make sure it was kept in a safe (but that's most likely because of me, a child, being in a household) Funny part is, my dad didn't even have live rounds. He had blanks and some kinda gas bullets, to just scare people off. Another fun fact if you DO have live rounds your first shot in the clip has to be a blank to scare off. Then you can shoot. I lived in ny (not the city) and obviously, they have very strict laws as well. Have to get a license for a hand gun and all that jazz this is the only thing i like about az. You can just carry that shit, almost everywhere you go. There was a guy here when obama came last year, had 2 handguns on him an ar-15 and something else. Just chillin talking about gun rights outside. Obviously, it was completely legal. nowadays, you don't even need a permit to conceal it. I personally don't know how i fell about that particular part, but whatever.
I invite you all to read about one of the most dengerous-err, I mean, peaceful countries in the world. It goes by the name of Switzerland, and there are a LOT of gun owners there. Gun politics in Switzerland - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I agree that there should, of course, be some controls over gun ownership, but they should be limited to felons who have committed violent crimes,those with a history of abuse, or those deemed mentally incapable of owning a gun. Do I own guns? You bet I do, in all shapes and sizes. I own what many would consider a "sniper rifle", blackpowder muzzleloaders, entry-style shotguns, hunting shotguns, small-game rimfires, and even a 9mm semi-auto handgun (GASP!). You can bet that anyone who threatens my life or the lives of my loved ones will be acted upon, and I doubt that they will want to play after hearing me rack a shell. Responsible, widespread gun ownership is without a doubt the best crime-deterrent there is.
Dude, I can respect you asking your questions here, but become educated before you do so. You sound like the gun-hating liberal media when you confuse "assault rifle" with "machine gun" An assault rifle is usually characterized and represented as an AR-style rifle in a semi-automatic configuration. The main benefit of this type of rifle is rounds are cheap and plentiful (military 5.56), magazines are dirt cheap, and they are a very accurate weapon out of the box. If TEOTWAWKI comes along, I guarantee you I would want my AR-15 to ensure I had the same hardware configuration as the military (again, plentiful rounds and magazines) A "machine gun" is NOT an assault rifle. A machine gun is usually characterized as a fully automatic firearm such as an UZI or MP-5 sub-machine gun. They are not only VERY hard to obtain in just a few states (ATF form 4, tax stamps, background checks, months of processing, etc.), but are also VERY expensive by comparison because civilians can only own fully automatic machine guns manufactured prior to 1986 when the laws went into effect. It would probably be $10,000 and higher to own one today, and the restrictions around civilian ownership make it such a pain in the ass that it's usually not worth the only real benefit which is you being able to unload a 30-round magazine a few seconds faster.
Anyone over the age of 18 and has no criminal records should be able to own and carry a weapon such as a hand gun. IMO>
While I agree that maybe that particular hardware is a bit much for any civilian to own, remember that it has nothing to do with the activity or the location. Random violence knows no borders. It doesn't recognize gender or race. It doesn't care what time of day it is, or how fancy the gates are around your million-dollar community. And it certainly doesn't care if you're walking the dog. You don't get in your car and not buckle up because you "feel safe" that day, do you? Shit happens. You're either trained and ready for it, or you're not. Just like a seat belt, there is no middle ground.
I know nobody who has been shot. I don't think I even know anybody who knows somebody who's been shot. I've never seen a gun in my life except in a policeman's holster. I feel safe walking around without a gun. So for me, I think it would be fairly paranoid for me to feel like I have to protect myself with a gun, seeing as many more people drown in the sea here, and I don't wear a lifejacket when I go for a swim. And honestly, I would rather live in a country where the odds (statitics-wise) of being murdered are very low and not feel the need to carry a gun, than live in a country where the odds of me getting murdered are much higher, even knowing that I can protect myself with a gun. And I'm not bashing America here. You have your culture and ideologies, and we have ours. I respect yours and I know the reasoning behind your liberal gun laws, for instance the argument of your country being hard to invade with so many guns around. But personally, I don't feel like those arguments weigh up against the amount of murders with firearms your country experiences. Realistically, it's much safer to walk around here without a gun, than it is to walk around America with a gun. I don't know if anyone has posted these statistics yet or not. They are the amount of murders with firearms per country. You can view them as a total or per capita. America, as a prosperous nation, ranks in these statistics among poor, very unstable, third world countries. No, but in 2009, 720 people here died from traffic accidents. In that same year, 171 people were murdered. Most of those were criminals themselves.
I feel like your more likely to be shot if your pointing a gun at someone, no? I guess I'd rather be robbed then end up in a standoff. I'm talking about concealed handguns on the street. Using a gun to protect your home is a different story.
So you are saying you are going to be randomly showing off, and pointing your gun at people? You're right. You dont need a gun.