That was extremely deep!! There are a lot of different things that you touch on which make lots of sense. Because America is such a diverse society, it will be difficult if not impossible for everyone to agree on certain things, in this case firearms and protection.

However do you really think a few firearms would protect you from the American government if they really wanted to get at you? The american army machine is like nothing the world has ever seen. With troops and equipment on at least 6 of the 7 continents (not too sure about Antarctica) and the amount of spending that goes into the military complex, if the government really wanted fully oppress its people, I don't think citizens with their firearms could do a damn thing.

That being said, if you are concerned with the government infringing on your rights and enslaving more and more of its citizens daily, I can definitely see the case where the public feels the need to protect itself through weapons.

So if I am understanding most of the responses on this thread correctly, the right to owning a weapon is more of a safety precaution against the government rather than against your neighbor? I can understand that, but these mass shootings aren't coming at the hands of the government, they are coming at the hands of individuals acting on the own accord.

I don't think there is an easy solution, but I am glad we are having a discussion about it. Getting to the root of the problem is very important. Like most people in this thread I agree that guns are not the root of the problem but they are a symptom, curing the symptoms does help but it does not address the underlying issue.