Finding correlations is about all we've ever been able to do. But so what? Then what?
I love this. It is fucking hilarious to me. Like there is not a goddamned rampaging elephant in the room that is insanely, incredibly obvious to literally everyone on the planet except one American subculture.
The "then-what" is that you cannot buy a military-style weapon. /End. /Fin.
Why is this so fucking hard to get through?
If you:
How about we don't let you legally buy an AR-15-style rifle or another similar high capacity semi-automatic weapon?
Why is that SO FUCKING INSANE? Why do we all act like it is some hidden, obscure idea that no one is proposing?
The solution is right there in front of our fucking faces. And we are all so fucking concerned with our own ability to buy weapons that we pretend there can't be reasonable controls to prevent people likely to commit mass murder from legally buying them.
Will it stop all mass murders with guns? Nope. Will it prevent some? Definitely. Will you who 'once slapped around your girlfriend but it was just a thing and now you are all past it'/'had a drinking issue but are over it'/'had a conviction but it was bullshit and the cops all lied' be prevented from buying a weapon of this type? Yeah, likely, and tough shit, buddy, but you are statistically way more likely to shoot your spouse, girlfriend, somoene in a drunk barfight or yourself than you are ever to stop a crime. And that's the fucking tradeoff. Sorry to say - if you fall into one of these categories, you really should not have unfettered access to a semi-automatic high capacity weapon.
Reasonable minds may disagree about the categories on the list, the exact criteria, appealing your presence on the list, or any number of factors, but, truly, if you disagree that we need some restrictions of this type, you are a fucking deluded, callous, bloodthirsty madman and I just don't even want to bother having a conversation with you anymore.
Fact: the vast majority of all guns used in mass shootings are purchased legally.
Fact: there is a long constitutional history of placing reasonable limits all constitutionally protected rights, including the right to freedom of speech and freedom. The second amendment is unique in that we seem to throw out all limitations on (one interpretation) of its power.
Fact: no background checks and no restrictions on gun sales doesn't just mean that you can buy guns, it means that terrorists, criminals and the dangerously insane can buy these weapons too.
Fact: Supporting 100% unrestricted sales and purchased of guns is fucking stupid.
We done here?