Just wondered if anyone knew the exact annual figure of people killed by guns in the UK? I'm pretty sure it's very high as a percentage out of 60 million. America is 300 million to give an idea of proportion.
I just think there are so many incidents that should simply not be happening to innocent people here in the UK but they are ignored because of so many hypocritical manipulations by conflicting groups of people. When yet another cult, high school killing spree occurs I feel it gives even more excuse to ignore the problems in this country and transferr onto the US to make us feel better. Sad. I feel this World is in total reverse.
Very depressed.

E J, London, UK

Alan in London,
Your figures for gun crime in the UK are from 6 and 7 years ago. The rate of gun and knife related murders on innocent people has multiplied greatly since then. I can't tell you how many crime scenes I've walked past in Camden and Kentish Town where the incident was fatal in the last 3 years. Very frightening and even more disturbing that people seem to be so de-sensitized to it that they simply don't care.
We really are not much better than the US in terms of crime. Also, we are a tiny country and the chances of escaping from these kind of incidents is much more reduced than the US which is huge in comparison and therefore more spread out geographically.

E J, London, UK

It's easy to explain why we need the guns in the US. We need guns because there a lot of people here who will break into your house and rob, rape, or murder you. By the time you call the police, it will be too late. Maybe you don't have the same problems over in Europe, but here we do.

Claudia, Atlanta, USA

Quote: According to the racist attitudes, it is not newsworthy - let them just kill themselves. It is not that they dont happen, its that white people dont care!

US rascist - never, its the land of the free (white, Christian preferably Protestant)

Timur, London,

Obama has just blown it as far as I'm concerned by his explicit support for the rights of Americans to possess guns. He's quoted as stating, “I think there is an individual right to bear arms, but it’s subject to common sense regulation; like background checks".

Really! Such criteria fully qualified the student killer to own a gun before committing the murders. No point in banning a gun after the facts.

I would have supported Obama in the presidential election. Regrettably, that quote indicates that he's no better than the cowboy occupying the post at the moment. Shame, I had great hopes for fundamental changes for the better in supporting Obama.

Edward Willhoft, Epsom, UK

Could somebody explain the need for somebody who is not in law enforcement or the military to have a gun?

I understand that there is a Consitutional right to bear arms but that merely explains why there is the greater availability of guns in the United States and not why civilians need a gun.

I do not deny that there are problems with violent crime in other parts of the world. Here in the UK it is becoming a prevalent problem. However we have strict gun control here and very few shootings. The violent crime we do have amounts to stabbings and violent assaults - and horrific as these crimes are, a perpetrator can only assault one person at a time using a knife or his fist. The use of a gun allows for many more casualties as demonstrated in the school massacres

I acknowledge that there are many more factors to consider (too many to list here) but i believe if you removed the means then you would reduce the risk tenfold.

Sarah, Sheffield,

The right to bear arms is supposedly to protect citizens from government.
But who is going to protect citizens from citizens?

Robin Bather, Metepec, Mexico

FOR Corriveau, Quebec, Canada - are you completely naive?
The only stories reoprted in the press are of white killing whites. No one cares about black killings. According to the racist attitudes, it is not newsworthy - let them just kill themselves. It is not that they dont happen, its that white people dont care!

Douglas Fur, Nutwood, USA

It amazes me how many Americans write in to defend their insane gun culture.
In an average year, Americans shoot ten times as many Americans as bin Laden and all his terrorists have killed in their entire lives.
Is the NRA financed by bin Laden?

Dave Morgan, Portree, United Kingdom

You're all missing the point:
1.WHY THE AWARD WINNING STUDENT WAS PERSCRIBED PSYCHOTROPIC MEDICINE?
2.WHY IS PERSON ON PSYCHOTROPIC MEDICINE IS ALOUD TO BUY A GUN?
And of course the newspapers are not aloud to name the antidepressant he was taking - the pharmasuticals magnats know how to protect themselfs!

victoria smirnoff, London, UK

Regardless of how many school shootings there are, myself and millions of other Americans will fight and die for the right to bear arms. And its NOT because we don't care about our children. We don't expect or need the world to understand. Keep pointing fingers all you like.

Matt, Texas, USA

I live here in the gun toting U.S.A. and I ain't skeered. There is, however, no excuse for this man's behavior and that includes being off or on some sort of drug, prescribed or illegal.
Remember, it's not guns that kill only, but also knives, fists, clubs, rocks and other sorts of weapons wielded by people venting some sort of rage.
I'll wager that in his case, it was because he was thrown over by a lady friend.

Yank, Warrenton , Missouri

Corriveau from Canada, if he had been a Muslim...what would the comments from the USA have looked like?

Indiscriminate killing - that terrorism to me.

Timur, London,

Eveyone in the U.S should be provided with sub-machine gun's, if they want them. I'm glad we're not that crazy here in the UK.

jayil, london, uk

Isn't it strange that all those killing were done by white people on white people ?

Corriveau, Quebec, Canada

SSRI Stories maybe this could help baffeled repeaterlist or news repeater im not baffled
google it

Antidepressant Nightmares
http://www.ssristories.com/index.html

This website is a collection of 2100+ news stories with the full media article available, mainly criminal in nature, that have appeared in the media (newspapers, TV, scientific journals) or that were part of FDA testimony in either 1991, 2004 or 2006, in which antidepressants are mentioned.

andy h, manchester/vancouver, u k /canada

The police are baffled? I'm not. He was angry, he had access to guns, he killed. Take away the access and he wouldn't have killed so easily. Simple.

I really cannot believe that American's are so stupid as to not see this.

kim, london,

The USA should wake up and ban the public ownership of guns like we have in Britain.

Mabon Dane, Haverhill, UK

This is ridicoulous! America can not continue have all sorts of firearms sold freely and easlily, in most cases legally, as in this case, and continue to regard itself as a civilised nation!
If America can not distinguish between the sale of a pound of tomato and that of a deadly firearm, then USA is not a civilised country!
period!

LEVENT, IZMIR, TURKEY

It is reassuring to read comments from some Americans who are against widespread gun ownership.

It is disturrbing that others do not see the logic in the fact that if something is not available - it cannot be used.

I would agree that to a certain extent that it is a matter attitude and intent ..

Quite.. from a European perspective, there seems to be an automatic response of extreme violence to solve a problem .. literally 'over kill' .. as in carpet bombing.. collateral damage.. 'friendly fire' ..

Many of us who used to look to the United States as the promoter of democracy and freedom become increasingly disillusioned as we become increasingly well informed.

While the constitutional right to bear arms seems outdated hogwash to some of us, without widespread gun ownership immigrants would not have been able to wipe out native Americans who tried to defend their property and way of life.

Americans value individual freedom..including to be exploited..starve..be killed.

Bootbear, Bedford, England

There is no easy answer to such social problems as that which has just occurred at Northern Illenois University. Such problems must be attacked from all angles that can be identified. Yet even in the context of continuing violence with the use of firearms, you still get people responding with the "right to bear firearms." argument. Do not people like Barack Obama not realize that such attitudes come directly from the frontier of the 19th century. To non-Americans the attitude is silly, senseless and barbaric. How can a people who have built the most powerful nation the world has ever known continue to profess such blatent immaturity?

Melvin Piercey, Brigus, Canada

For Gene, ST Charles, Mo.

These are the best figures I could get for actual firearms damage in the UK;

Firearms were used in 73 homicides in 2004/05;
412 firearm offences resulted in serious injury in 2004/05.

That's just under 10 per week!

As to the RATE OF GUN DEATHS (i.e. adjusted for population) my figures, dating from 2001/2002, are:

Homicide: USA 4 per 100,000; England & Wales 0.15 per 100,000. Result USA out-murders E & W by a factor of 27.
Suicides : USA 6 per 100,000; E & W 0.2 per 100,000. Result USA outkills England & Wales by a factor of 30.
Other (inc accidents): USA 0.36 per 100,000; E & W 0.03 per 100,000. Result USA outkills E & W by a factor of 12.

The last one is telling because it eliminates the mindset of the "volunteer killer".

I conclude high ownership of guns leads to high death rates, which may not be especially perceptive. But I sincerely wonder why so many Americans want their fellow countrymen dead in such numbers. Constitutional purity? Surely not.

Alan, London,

Solving "problems" with the gun is ingrained in the US culture - an inherently aggressive and violent society - sometimes it comes home to roost, most of the time foreign countries feel the pinch!

Timur, London,

Guns have always been readily available in the USA; why all the killings now? Think. What is missing in society now, when gun regulation is actually tougher, than in prior decades. As a Country we are not very old yet in recent decades there has been a major shift in societal standards in USA. Quit trying to analyze the symptoms and give a 30 min. sitcom answer and start trying to determine the disease. We all know the answer; no one wants to state it for fear they are going to have to admit humans require more than "political correctness" to meet the needs of it's citizens. Think.

V.Doty, Columbia, SC USA via China

I have resolved to say nothing more about such incidents. It just seems like telling a drug addict to stop in a house full of heroin. And if you get exasperated at the situation you begin to sound callous. Nothing it seems will ever change and we can only conclude this is the way the US wants it. Seems crazy to outsiders but anyways.....

Phil, Hong Kong,

americans`s just don`t get the fact that lots of guns in general circulation means that these things are going to keep happening. The arguement that 99.99% of guns are never used to kill anyone and are legally held, does not justify keeping them. What do people in the centre of a big town or city do with there guns? what`s the rational for keeping them? I would just like them to understand that europe does not have this problem.
If a european university student has a problem with something or someone the worst he/she can do is attack someone with a knife or baseball bat (which can kill). But they cannot kill six people in a lecture threatre. America needs a few sensible politican`s to make a stand for what is right.

keith lowry, belfast, northern ireland

There is so much gun crime because you can buy a gun as easily as buying a pint of milk. Imagine the scene in Britain if guns were as easily accessible...

Kathryn Jordan, Abergavenny,

if you take guns away.

it really wont solve anything.

after all it the person who does the act?

i'd be willing to bet that this crazy person who killed those people, didn't have a gun.

he would have stilled killed someone that day.

if not a gun, then a knife, or a bomb.

bruce, charlotte, north carolina

On Aug 26, 2007 times on line ran an article titled (Ministers cover up gun crime ) in the article it used stats for 2005-2006
which said there was more than 10 killed or injured in gun crimes per day in the UK. Whats true?

Gene, ST Charles, Mo.

I hope the victims' families take a moment to think about how the families of those Iraqis killed by carpet-bombings feel.

John Taylor, Sydney,

Sacrificed on the Altar of Gun empowerment, sadly fuelled by illiberal right wingers and gun profiteers. Ethical investing is one way to stop the tide, also remember which way to vote, or at least lobby your congressmen.

Elwin parsley, london , UK

Ernest, in all due respect, it has nothing to do with what 'popular entertainment' teaches the masses. The same programs are displayed in every western society throughout the world - all these movies, TV shows, music videos etc that people use as a tool to explain why such horrors and atrocities occur - is just an excuse. Simple as this - remove the weapons that kill.
My 11 year old son drives my suburu around the property - i can trust him and he is as capable under 'normal' day to day conditions as others i have seen on the road. However, given the wrong conditions - be it through a change in psyche, the introduction of drugs or other conditions - he becomes a leathal weapon. Take the vehicle away and there is no chance my son can do damage to himself or others.
The answer is simple.
If the US truely loves its own people, family, they would remove the one thing that kills.
.. and I hope this is the biggest wakeup call of all!!
Scott

Scott Merriman, Adelaide, SA

Before I say anything else, let me state that I'm not necessarily on EITHER side of the gun debate. I do, however, want to point out some things to BOTH sides.

1. Convenience/opportunity is a huge motivater for crime. For instance, if you leave your car window down and your purse or wallet on the seat, a theif could very easily take it. Not saying that that same person would be one to commit a violent crime or even break into something to steal. That being said, if someone is truly determined to commit a crime...they'll find a way.

2. The severity of the damage would be different if, say the gunman in this case, only had a knife or if he had a bomb it could've been worse. The same damage of a machine gun would be hard to repeat in the same time frame if the guy only had a knife. But again, if he was truly determined to commit the crime with whatever firearm he wanted, he could've done so illegally if necessary inspite of any firearm laws the US does or does not have.

Rachel, Kaiserslautern, Germany (via USA)

You reap what you sow - this stuff is unheard of in India where more than a billion people live; without widespread and easy access to GUNS.

vidyadhar, hamilton, canada

This is the clear result of having guns readily available to anyone. If all countries of the world have that great American freedom, schools and colleges would be bloody battelefields, and such daily incedents would be no news as it is turning to be in the US. Who would not have killed many people in his/her lifetime had he or she such easy access to guns?

sam, Dubai, UAE

the surprise here is that American's are surprised at these types of happenings anymore. They have been happening so frequently for years now.

The reason they happen is without a doubt the freely available guns.

Imagine the young man who has been jilted by his girlfriend, full of rage and hatred. Now imagine him having a gun hidden in the house, i've no doubt his parents had one or two round the place.

Now imagine the same young man without access to a gun because they are against the law. He would be full of rage and hatred but the more he thought about it the more he would calm down until he was ready to face the world again without having killed anyone.

America, you have created this monster and you are still creating it. It's no good shaking your heads and asking yourselves 'why'?

Kim, London,

American popular entertainment teaches the masses that guns & shooting solve problems. Art works that use fantasy to probe reality are comparatively few, yet even they are much enamored of violent themes. A chronic frustration & deep unhappiness seduce the masses who find violence entertaining. We drift ever further from changing America's work ethic, changing the distribution of income, changing our way of life. The violent imagination is rampant.

Ernest Werner, Trumansburg NY , USA

What? Not more students killed in a school shooting? Let me guess...wasn't America by any chance was it? Oh, it was. Yeh, probably something to do with all those guns. Just a guess.

Andrew Duncan, Godalming, UK

A woman teacher was shot ...
A woman shot and killed ...
A 17-year-old is accused of shooting ...
shot in the head by a fellow student ...
A gunman kills five and wounds 16 ...

Is it time to reword the 2nd amendment?

The utter waste of lives because some are in love with the misguided idea that a militia is the only thing protecting us from a dictatorship needs work.

Stephen Gunther, San Fernando Valley , Southern California

So we have a new Valentine's Day Massacre, I'm sure this guy would have known about the infamous first one, is all this about being famous through death, I think so, terrible but, he's now famous

Ross, Greystones,

America, the envy of the world.

Roger, Colorado Springs, CO

You know what the response will be from the gun lobbyists

All students should carry guns to protect themselves in such instances.

I heard a well know radio host say things on exactly those lines after the Omaha shootings.

Al, Omaha, NE

So the theory of unpredictability in psychologicaly unstable patients is found to be wanting here - I wonder if the inaliable citizens' right to bear arms and the NRA is anything to do with it - if we wish to avoid the Kutb or Al Quida theory of the world that is.

Nicholas Xenakis, Borough, London, England

GM, Brisbane, when you quote a statistic, please break it down.... 30,000 gun deaths in 2004

16,750 suicides (56% of all U.S gun deaths),
11,624 homicides (40% of all U.S gun deaths),
649 unintentional shootings, 311 from legal intervention and 235 from undetermined intent (4% of all U.S gun deaths combined).

By the way in the same year, England had 185

Saien, FL, USA

The common denominator to these shootings is that the perpatrator is or recently has been on psychotropic medications. Read the side effects of these: Homicidal ideation, suicidal ideation, anxiety, etc. The data is available to all but ignored by most. These shootings did not start with the availability of guns, but with the increased use of psychotropic drugs to handle the problems of normal life.

Mary, Chicago, IL

Constitutional right to bear arms - is it worth it?

Nicola, Lancaster,

How many american lives will it take to realise that there is no good reason for people to bear arms in america. It may be in the constitution but it is not ethical in this day and age.

(Not American by the way)

Martin, Aberdeen, Scotland

Why should Russia or anyone else worry about America - we will kill ourselves before we get to them. What a great country.

Rich, San Angelo, USA

I feel bad for the things , i feel that security measures to be implemented in all school and colleges all over US

Krishna , Hyderabad, India

This is ridiculous......

nitin, Hassan, India

Injury by weapons in assaults that are not firearms is much more common in the UK relative to population than in the US. Also property crime is worse in the UK. Much worse if you take out highly urban areas from the equation. YOB violence has no parallel in this country when it comes to killing innocent folk who ask drunk louts to keep te noise down and get their heads kicked in for their bother.

James, Bellingham, USA/WA

W. LaPierre, I am afraid that you are wrong in your assumptions that Britain and Australia are "victims of a rising tide of gun violence" and wonder where you get this information from?. Whenever anyone is killed by a gun in the UK it makes headline news it is such a rare a shocking event, it the US It seems there needs to be at least 5 people killed or it to even make the news.

Facts:

In 2005 there were 30,000 deaths caused by guns in the USA, with a population of 300 million that is a very scary figure.

During the same year in England and Wales, population of around 53 million, there were 50 recorded homicides caused by guns.

So please explain how despite the lack of a legal way to buy automatic handguns and machine guns the UK is suffering a rising tide in gun related violence?

Oh, and by the way. Your constitution does not give anyone the right to own guns. It gives the American people the right to bare arms to defend the nation. Not to massacre school children.

GM, Brisbane,

As usual on these tragic occasions we have a plethora of pompous comments ( liberally laced with humbug and schadenfraude ) from Europeans and Canadians extolling themselves and lambasting America. One of the reasons I left the UK was the appalling and ever-increasing violence and criminality, in the face of which ordinary citizens are becoming ever more helpless, deprived both of protection from the police
and of the means or even the legal right to defend themselves. The gun control laws in Britain are purely symbolic and serve only to ensure that the villains enjoy exclusive possession of firearms while the law-abiding are left defenceless. In fact, if only one student at Virginia Tec or Illinois had been carrying a weapon on the fateful day many lives might have been saved. Gun crime is rampant on the streets of Britain and there is no call whatsover for complacency or superiority from that quarter.

Chris Russon, Davao, Philippines

THE GUN made me do it. The car made me do it. The knife made me do it. The club made me do it. The booze made me do it. The drugs made me do it. My dog told me to do it. God told me to do it. PMS made me do it. The hammer made me do it..............Thats a lot of thing to ban, or blame. After all, we all know that people aren't responsible......right?

m.J., Iowa, U.S.A.

The gun issue is a red herring. The real "smoking gun" is the medication he was on and apparently stopped taking. Message: let's medicate students so they won't shoot us. Inspect each of the these college shootings in the US and you will find anti-psychotics and anti-depressants in every case. These drugs are the real danger. They make killers and suicides out of otherwise ordinary people.

Cavaner, Johannesburg, South Africa

I’ve said my piece on here, not understanding and disapproving of the gun culture in the US, but in the end I and my fellow Europeans have to accept that it’s up to Americans to decide what is acceptable in their own country.

Some churlish people would say that America in return should not try to impose its values on others.

We do have a right however to comment on American foreign policy, because that directly affects us. But that is for another thread.

Nick M, St Ouen, France

Joe. I just heard an Israeli being interviewed on the radio yesterday and he talked about the numerous terrorist acts that have been stopped in Israel by ordinary citizens who were armed. He was promoting allowing more ordinary citizens, including students, to carry guns to protect themselves. The problem with gun control is that only the bad guys will be carrying weapons because they'll buy them illegally.

Garry, Colorado Springs, Colorado

George Scicluna:

You may not like video games and television. That's your right. But there is no conclusive evidence that violent media causes violence in society. That's a fact.
On a side note, violent media is just as popular in almost all other countries in the free world but shootings like these are NOT common elsewhere. Sure, it has happened that a crazed person attacks innocents in countries like Germany or Finland but this is mainly an American problem.
Instead of flinging accusations around, maybe you should start with looking at what separates the US from other nations?

Owen, Malmo,

If this is not sufficient proof that there needs to be gun control in the USA then I dont know.

I live in Israel where, surprisingly enough, there is very strict gun control and there have never been incidents of this nature at Israel's schools and colleges.

Its taking democracy too far when ordinary citizens are able to walk into a gun shop and purchase as many weapons as they like.

Hopefully the Democrats will take a much firmer hand in this matter

Joe Charlaff
Jerusalem

Joe , Jerusalem, Israel

The NRA says "Gun control laws are not the solution".... what planet are these people on?

Cook, Reading,

It is not only sad but shocking to heard such tragic stories about students and teachers alike being slaughtered like cattle...my sympathy goes out to the family and friends of the victims, and i pray that courage illuminates those who are now in shock and probably fearing future lectures

Vanessa Kurz , siggiewi, Malta

Lots of misconceptions from foreigners here. 1. guns are banned in certain areas of the country 2. registration is widespread and there are federal, state and local background checks 3. concealed carry is also banned in some places, as in the unfortunate jurisdiction that this shooting happened 4. statistically in the USA, since widespread concealed carry has been made legal thru a strict set of standards, crime has fallen dramatically, criminals don't want to take the chance that just maybe you are armed & willing to defend your life 5. people in the UK can't own guns per se (shamefully even the UK Olympic Team must practice in another country!) but are victims of a rising tide of gun violence as are the Australians due to the fact that criminals don't care about the gun laws 6. "muskets" and modern firearms are equally as "dangerous" IF handled improperly, there is NO INHERENT danger in using a firearm unless you have criminal intent, firearms do not shoot without an operator

W. LaPierre, Washington, DC

hahaha. I totally agree with all the folks wanting MORE guns. It would have been sooo much better if like there had been twenty or thirty people in there all shooting at each other.

ST, Midwest, USA

My heart goes out to all these students' parents and families, but I agree with Adam Hunt that if the US government continues to placate the gun lobby, these horrific events are a matter of probability rather than possibility.

Robert Perry, "citizen carry" may be illegal, but this citizen, Stephen Kazmierczak and quite a few others seemed to be able to get hold of a terrifying range of weapons without any difficulty. Are you suggesting that everyone being armed at all times 'just in case' would make your country safer rather than making such incidents more alarmingly common than they already are? Sorry, but for most of us, including many Americans, the logic there is tenuous at best.

Ruth , Glasgow , Scotland

I feel I have to clarify a bit here. I was, in my earlier post, merely pointing out that possession of a weapon is a constitutional right in this country. I was neither claiming a position for or against that fact. Conspicuously ignored, however, was my MAIN point, the fact that other countries are just as, if not more, violent than this country, with or without guns. America does have its problems, of which this latest tragedy is surely a symptom. This was a bright young man who was well respected and well educated, why would someone like that do this? His having that gun and using it was merely a symptom of some serious underlying problem. Claiming that gun control is the answer is a bit like saying "I have the plague, but the real problem is these ugly black spots."

Ian, New York, USA

The neocons must have loved this story - hell, he was on drugs.

Only when they figure out he was on prescription drugs and legally held a weapon they can't scream blame towards the "liberals" for a change.

Every time one of these campus killings happens it's world news, no wonder they keep happening, best attention these kids ever get!

Peter Koy, London,

Just as a bit of perspective, having lived in Australia for over 90% of my life, the only rifles/automatic weapons I have seen are in the hands of soldiers for ceremonial use ie. marching up and down. I have never seen a police officer with one, and I have never seen a police officer with a drawn hand-gun. This includes security guards at airports and Parliament House. I assume they are there, but not carried around in normal use.

I only know of one person who has a rifle, and he's a farmer living on a farm.

In the UK over Christmas, I saw armed (ie. with automatic weapons and handguns) police at train stations and airports. And in Geneva there are armed soldiers at high-profile sites.

I pass no judgement on constitutions. Are there baddies out there with guns? No doubt! We're not perfect. But I will say it is nice to not see guns nor have to think about them.

aslsw, canberra, australia

Brad from Milwakee says that people “cause these types of acts – not guns”. He is correct. But it doesn’t seem to occur to Brad, and others, that with fewer guns it would be harder to commit these acts – or am I missing something here ?

Nick M, St Ouen, France

Guns laws hurt law abiding citizens. Criminals will find a way to get their guns just like they find a way to get their drugs. Drug laws have not stopped drug use, have they?

Doug, Boston, MA, USA

I've been reading all the posts regarding this latest tragedy and there are a couple of points that have been repeated time and again, both of which I find disturbing.

The first is that the solution to these shooting sprees is to relax the current laws to allow people to be armed in preparation to defend themselves. How can this improve the situation? Imagine how many more innocents would be caught in the cross-fire if people started firing back at the shooter...

Secondly, the vehemence with which (some) people defend their so-called right to bear arms, especially given the fact that the supreme court has repeatedly concluded that "Since the Second Amendment right "to keep and bear Arms" applies only to the right of the State to maintain a militia and not to the individual's right to bear arms, there can be no serious claim to any express constitutional right of an individual to possess a firearm."

Katie, London, UK

As an American, I must say I'm thoroughly disgusted with our government and their lack of gun laws. I even live in Texas and find that all automatics should definitely be outlawed and that most guns should be outlawed. Guns are only for killing and I don't find this to be any reason to sell or possess guns. The republicans in office get a huge paycheck from the gun associations (along with the tobacco companies) and there for why would they want law to lighten their pocketbooks?
I'm truly sorry for all the families who are affected by such terrible crimes and my prayers go out to them. It's time for this country to have a constitutional convention and revamp our laws. What worked in 1776 is not necessarily relevent for today.

Robin Castellanos, San Antonio, TX, USA

A violent country will reap what it has sown.

It is unfortunate that thevictims are not the instigators of the initial violence. My thoughts go to their families and friends.

Maybe, Armerica will strat to look at it's policies and realise that if you live by the sword, you die by the sword. All of the shooters hav egrown up in a country with violent video games, television, films and reality TV shows that teach us all to live for today.

The government has never stopped this rot because they are making too much money. They are motivated by greed and not love.

The powers that be will spend the next few days reciting scripted responses and they will be forgotten for more important duties such as wars in Iraq and Afganistan within moments.

MAybe the next President will have the strentgh to stand up for civil rights and not profit.

George Scicluna, Geraldton, Australia

This is half the reason these people carry out such shootings, they know their names will be all over the news and in their tiny minds they believe they will be remembered for ever .
How about the papers and associated press not publishing the names of these people who commit such crimes and instead concentrating on the victims and their families.

Nick Dixon, Sutton Coldfield, England

Laws that were passed hundreds of years ago are obviously going to become outdated and in need of change. The right to bear arms being the most apparent.

Adam Hunt, London, UK

I've ;ived in Chicago my entire life, spent 30 years in law enforcement with the Chicago Police Department. The vast majority of citizens here are NOT desensitized to violence. We live our lives, as most people and are abhorred when something like this occurs. One victim or thirty. Most of us value and treasure life. The availablity of firearms comes after the idea of violence is planted. Mentally disturbed, depressed, rejected...something in this man's head was environmentally disturbed. I wish we had an answer for that.

J. Edward Joyce, Chicago, IL, USA

Yes, the US and the world are now worse off when the Evil Right Wing Demons took of the US! You have it right!

Problem is, your pre-Right Wing Utopia was equally hellish and equally horrible.

Stop blaming current world leaders or the Constitution of the US. Place blame on the US Pop culture, the decaying US education system, and the lack of parenting in the US.

Kris Wiggs, Hughson, California, USA

Robert - what rubbish... the "god-given right of self-defense"?? I live in a country full of gun freaks and god freaks, where it is perfectly legal (and a "god-given" right after all) to be on prescription medication to control mental illness AND PURCHASE A GUN.

must. get. out.

Dianne, Boston, MA

"Aren't shootings like these a "normal" thing and a part of every-day life in America? After all, aren't guns are the good-old "American" way of settling disputes, venting out one's frustration or just having some fun?"

This post is in response to Jeremy's from India. NO. Shootings like these, no matter how frequent, are not normal. I live in America. I have a lot of friends and family. I don't even know anyone that owns a gun, except for a couple police officers. Let's not use this horrific tragedy as a means to bash America by making ignorant over-generalizations. YES, Amercia has many of its own problems and gun laws, in many citizens' eyes, are one of them. This is a time for sympathy and condolence not a time to politicize.

Steve, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

FACT: he broke the law by entering a "Gun Free Zone" with guns - would more or stiffer "guns" laws have stopped him?
I find it very interesting that the discussion goes directly to "guns" and not to the "person" who actually committed this act. Blame the NRA, blame the "gun lobby", but do not even think about blaming the "person" or why or how anyone could come to the conclusion that this type of act is the only or best solution to what was troubling him.
What about the drugs? What about a culture and education system that creates drug addicted children at age 5 in order to conform them to "their" ideal of behavior? Would this not be a better place to start laying blame? What about the "drug lobby" that push laws for causing our children to become addicted to their products?
GUNS are not the cause of these types of acts, PERSONS are thre cause of these types of acts. Removal of all the guns in the world would not have changed the reason why he did what he did.

Brad, Milwaukee, US

I love websites that screen posts!! Talk about putting your own spin on things. No respect for sites that do not promote free expression.

Steve, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

"The NRA and the gun corporations should lobby hard for subsidizing guns in America so that gun possession becomes a constitutional right of every citizen in every state." Gun ownership is a Constitutional right. It was awarded by the founding fathers in 1787. That is why it's so hard to get a handle on guns in the US. Congress is leary (scared) of introducing any laws which take away freedoms from Americans. Especially those freedoms offered in the Bill of Rights (first 10 ammedments to the US Constitution, of which the right to bare arms is one).

Brian, Philadelphia, USA

Jeremy, gun possession is the constitutional right of every citizen in every state.

Chris, Birmingham, AL

Isn't it disguisting that after so many tragic events the gun loby exists?

Ikoden, Bern, Switzerland

"To preserve liberty it is essential that the whole body of people always possess arms and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them. " - - Richard Henry Lee


"Firearms are second only to the Constitution in importance; they are the peoples' liberty's teeth." - - George Washington

Steve Mucci, Saylorsburg,

As Ian & Robert have said, there is a constitutional right to gun ownership in the USA. What we effete Europeans fail to understand is - why?

What might have seemed reasonable when talking about muskets and getting rid of the British in the 18th century doesn't seem so reasonable when talking about automatic & semi-automatic weapons. It seems to us simpletons that modern guns are rather dangerous.

Still, Mr. Kazmierczak probably didn't smoke, that would have been really dangerous and unlike firearms is regarded as being bad for those people in physical proximity.

Nick M, St Ouen, France

As a foreigner, when you read comments like "Gun possesion IS a constitutional right in this country" you can agree when people say the United States is a real mess.

It is unfortunate because I believe the vast majority of most Americans are really good people, however, they are being manipulated by fear, and a right-wing / corporate agenda.

The right to arms is nothing more than constitutional propeganda that perpetuates the internal and external violence in the United States and abroad.

Seamus, Canmore, Canada

When one notes the amount of horrific crimes, such as the rampant recent school incidents committed with firearms, it shouldn't make one reflect on how the world would be safer if we all had firearms, or how well someone shoots. What this should do is produce a large amount of empathy (not vengeful thinking) for every one of the people and families involved in these incidents. When one tries to 'arm' oneself with this sort of awareness, one might then more readily acknowledge that stricter gun control and laws surrounding firearms doesn't portend any violation of the law or one's constitutional right; it does, however, make logical sense, and ostensibly will cut down on further firearm crimes.

Jacob Giesecke, Bowling Green, Kentucky

In an ideal civilized world we would like to dispense with the necessity of armed police and soldiers. But no one else should have access to guns or the right to bear them. That is pure nonsense to support commercial and violent ends. The easy access to weapons is absurd. Violence is not a way of life and any action to deter it should be taken.

Don Matley, Ottawa, Canada

Some might say congratulations to the NRA on their support of murderers in the USA and Canada, you have been victorious again! I think to most others the NRA might be considered a terrorist organization with all the deaths their support of indiscriminate gun ownership and use has caused.

My sincere sympathies to all of the victims (living as well as dead) and their familes. I think the survivors should sue the NRA, the gun companies and dealers for support and damages.

greg, toronto, canada

Another unfortunate American massacre.

I can't help but find myself becoming desensitised to all of these killings though. If the American government are going to continue to placate the gun lobby and not ban firearms then why are these events reported? It's naturally going to happen.

It's becoming an every day part of American life...

Adam Hunt, London, UK

The shootings, unfortunately, are seeming more "normal". However here in the US, not everyone has firearms. You really have to want one to go through the process of getting one. (registration, background checks, etc.)

Those that REALLY want a gun to harm others usually would not be bothered going through all the paperwork in the first place and get weapons illegally.

Even if there were no guns, people who want to do harm would come up with something else to inflict damage.

Laura, Chicago, IL

Gun possession IS a constitutional right in this country. Unfortunately this means that, occasionally, someone who is off balanced, or just plain evil, gets their hands on weapons that can cause ALOT of pain and destruction. Guns are NOT the "good-old American way of settling disputes," in fact the use of violence is no more prevalent here than in Britain or many other countries, or at least so say the statistics. Perhaps, instead of relying on movies and sensationalized news broadcasts, the rest of the world should actually come to America and take note of how most people don't walk down the street with a gun in their hand, shooting at errant children and single mothers. Those who do, just like those who stab a child at a bus stop in Britain or bomb a temple in India, are seriously disturbed and not the norm.

Ian, New York, USA

Jeremy, gun ownership is a Constitutional right in this country, one that backs the God-given right of self-defense. However, it is a crime to settle disputes with firepower here, just as it is in any civilized country.

What happened here is that his victims were disarmed by the command of both the state of Illinois (which does not permit citizen carry) and NIU. Can you say "sitting ducks"?

Robert Perry, Chaska, MN, USA

A near 43% hit rate with moving targets, not bad that. Maybe he should've gone to the front line in Iraq or Afghanistan.

I wonder how many gun lobbyists equip their kids with firearms, and how many of their kids have been victims of random shootings.

Carl, Baltimore, MD

When I lived in England, after about three months, I suddenly realized that, for that period, I hadn't seen a weapon -- anywhere. A bizarre -- if very safe-- feeling. One that, unfortunately, I don't expect to experience again living in America.

Karl Bridges, Burlington, VT

Having a gun for hunting is no excuse. Remove the means and you remove the threat.

Scott Millson, Toronto, Canada

Aren't shootings like these a "normal" thing and a part of every-day life in America? After all, aren't guns are the good-old "American" way of settling disputes, venting out one's frustration or just having some fun? The NRA and the gun manufacturers must be applauded for their untiring efforts in making *quality* firearms more accessible to more Americans for a safer and more secure America. The NRA and the gun corporations should lobby hard for subsidizing guns in America so that gun possession becomes a constitutional right of every citizen in every state.

Jeremy King, Bangalore, India