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leftyladyfrommo

(18,816 posts)
Tue Jun 10, 2014, 07:27 PM Jun 2014

How are these young people gaining access to guns?

And not just one or two but many guns and lots and lots of ammo.

Do they order them from the internet or do they find straw buyers? It doesn't seem like getting guns is much of a problem for them.

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How are these young people gaining access to guns? (Original Post) leftyladyfrommo Jun 2014 OP
Private sales are virtually unregulated... HooptieWagon Jun 2014 #1
Careless owners. SevenSixtyTwo Jun 2014 #2
I wonder that as well. SummerSnow Jun 2014 #3
Parents? Maedhros Jun 2014 #4
Properly trained kids are not the problem. Eleanors38 Jun 2014 #8
Kids that take weapons to school aren't properly trained. Maedhros Jun 2014 #9
I leave proper age up to parents. Eleanors38 Jun 2014 #11
Those younger than 21 most likely steal them from relatives. Jenoch Jun 2014 #5
Theft, illegal sales that mostly started as theft Lee-Lee Jun 2014 #6
Millions of young people are given guns as gifts by parents. Eleanors38 Jun 2014 #7
proliferation. KG Jun 2014 #10
Where do they get the money? leftyladyfrommo Jun 2014 #12
Because: America! Fuck yeah! Iggo Jun 2014 #13
I had access to guns as a kid. I never thought of doing anything violent with them. Throd Jun 2014 #14
I'm not especially anti gun leftyladyfrommo Jun 2014 #15
Our household had guns, but no particular fascination with them. Throd Jun 2014 #16
 

SevenSixtyTwo

(255 posts)
2. Careless owners.
Tue Jun 10, 2014, 07:45 PM
Jun 2014

Some are obtained through straw purchases and gun show loopholes but most are stolen from homes and cars as they're left for easy picking. I keep mine in a gun safe if they're not in my immediate possession and control. When we take them to the range, they're carried in an old guitar case so as to not catch the attention of neighborhood sticky fingers. I'm all in favor of holding original purchasers of firearms more accountable for the whereabouts of their firearms. We wouldn't leave a million bucks laying out on the nightstand while we're out for lunch because we know there's a chance someone might break in and easily pocket it. We should have the same concern with firearms.

SummerSnow

(12,608 posts)
3. I wonder that as well.
Tue Jun 10, 2014, 07:49 PM
Jun 2014

It's definitely not hard for them to get guns. But parents should more than vigilant to inspect their childrens' room from time to time, find out who they friends are and check the internet; Facebook accounts, twitter, etc. They may not like it but you got to do what you have to do. So many parents don't know whats going on with their children, but sometimes you think you do then something tragic happens. Children can be very cunning when it comes to hiding stuff from their parents even when the parents are alert.

 

Maedhros

(10,007 posts)
9. Kids that take weapons to school aren't properly trained.
Tue Jun 10, 2014, 09:31 PM
Jun 2014

And those children in those pictures are too young to be handling those weapons, in my opinion.

I grew up with firearms, and in my household one didn't get to carry weapons until age 12.

 

Lee-Lee

(6,324 posts)
6. Theft, illegal sales that mostly started as theft
Tue Jun 10, 2014, 08:18 PM
Jun 2014

Or idiotic parents that leave them with access.

Or by breaking in to a parents safe/finding the key/learning the combination.

 

Eleanors38

(18,318 posts)
7. Millions of young people are given guns as gifts by parents.
Tue Jun 10, 2014, 09:14 PM
Jun 2014

My first firearm was a new shotgun, given by my folks when I turned 13; the next one was a target revolver, given a few mos. later. But I had been instructed in the use of these and other weapons before I was 10. I don't think kids getting guns in this manner are the problem. The problem is with those people who turn psychopathic, have untreated serious mental illness, or who take to a life of crime, a small number of people.

leftyladyfrommo

(18,816 posts)
12. Where do they get the money?
Wed Jun 11, 2014, 10:20 AM
Jun 2014

Do these parents just hand over large amounts of cash to these kids? Guns are not cheap.

I can see them stealing a gun from someone in the family but these kids have whole arsenals. I just can't understand how a parent could miss the fact that the kids have an AK47 or two in the closet.

Or how about bomb building in the garage?

I wonder if some of these parents are so afraid of these kids that they just let them do whatever they want.

What a mess.

leftyladyfrommo

(18,816 posts)
15. I'm not especially anti gun
Wed Jun 11, 2014, 10:32 AM
Jun 2014

and we had a couple of rifles in the house. Our neighbors all had rifles of one sort or another.

But my dad and my neighbors weren't having some kind of weird love affair with their guns. They were tools. They were in the closet, unloaded an pretty much forgotten until dad and my brother wanted to go target shooting.

My dad would never have thought of taking a rifle into a public place. Never would have happened.

Did you see the cartoon where this guy is standing in front of a desk with two AK47s hanging off his arms. There is an older lady sitting behind the desk who asks "Have you ever tried Viagra?" That's pretty much how I feel about this stuff.

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