It's funny because it's true. And because it's true, it's suddenly not so funny anymore.

[2ndAmForComputers]

[Fumesucker]

1. True.

[Scuba]

2. K&R Oh so true.

[alterfurz]

3. Too true to be good

[siligut]

4. Ben Franklin

Those willing to give up liberty for security deserve neither and will lose both

This seems to be a never ending fight.

[Mojorabbit]

6. Yes and so many people on this board are ready to give up

one more thing for the illusion of safety.

[Initech]

25. I'm usually quick to point out that quote every time this topic is brought up.

Of course your average freeper/republican types - they claim to love our founding fathers but never really take the time to truly understand or comprehend what they actually wrote and said.

[baldguy]

5. How much security does that handgun give you?

The answer is: None, of course. But in return, everyone around you looses their liberty, freedom, equality & justice - and some of them loose their lives. That's a high price to pay.

[Lizzie Poppet]

8. Prove it.

That a handgun privides zero safety and security, that is.

Good luck with that....

I'll not even bother with your second assertion yet...although I must admit a sort of morbid curiosity about your reasoning.

[baldguy]

14. 30,000 gun deaths each year; 100,000 injuries. No security there - Numbers don't lie.

The process by which that handgun comes into your possession creates the environment which causes those deaths & injuries. The rational people among us realized a long time ago that this price is just too high.

[Lizzie Poppet]

20. That's not even close to proof, actually.

It doesn't demonstrate that there aren't situations in which a firearm <i>is</i> security...and in fact a single instance of such woudl disprove your assertion that there is "none." You might be able to make the case that firearms cause more problems than they solve on an overall basis (although you might find that a lot more difficult to do with any genuine statistical rigor than you think...), but that wasn't your original claim.

Not going to bother continuing, since you elected to employ ad hominem (that amusing crack about what "rational people" think...). Have a pleasant evening!

[sabrina 1]

16. I don't know, I've managed to survive without carrying any weapons, and survived a

dangerous rape attempt by someone who it turned out was wanted for rape and murder, by using my head. True, if I had a gun, I might have been able to kill him, or he might have been able to take it away and kill me. But the issue didn't arise, thankfully.

It's amazing how many millions of people survive around the planet every day without being armed to the teeth. Imagine living in a country where guns are not legal, and yet, they manage somehow to survive.

The home of the brave appears to be a very scared place.

[Lizzie Poppet]

19. I'm (genuinely) glad for you.

But that in no way proves the above poster's assertion: that firearms provide no security or safety.

[rhett o rick]

29. Of course you're right. Firearms provide very little security. And the dangers

far outweigh the little security.

I rarely hear of people defending themselves with a firearm, but I hear all the time of people getting themselves shot or loved ones shot, or their children shooting each other.

[Lizzie Poppet]

31. There's a lot of research on this exact point.

Unfortunately, a lot of the studies that come down on both sides of the determination have some questionable methodologies, so the scientific jury is out, I'm afraid.

FWIW, I read about defensive gun usages more often than I do about things like kids getting hold of guns and shooting a playmate or suchlike...and FAR more often than I read about some psycho committing mass murder. Not as often, however, as I hear about "normal" criminal misuse of guns.

[DrDan]

26. wow - amazing that post had 2 supporting leaving it alone

if that is not the definition of over-the-top, I am not sure what is

[Warren Stupidity]

27. ramikin sleeps with the fishes

his big gun failed him again.

[DrDan]

28. appropriately

[lunatica]

9. That's what the Constitution looks like since the 2000 election too

[bhikkhu]

10. Those are all interdependent

...in that you don't have to butcher 4 to create one. Without security the others don't amount to much, but the best balance isn't necessarily what is best for any given individual, but for a given culture.

For instance, if you propose how you'd have to arrange things to maintain an adequate level of security in a society of immature asshats, it would be a whole different thing from the arrangement that would work well for a society more generally mature, compassionate and responsible.

[Dustlawyer]

11. We should not have to sacrifice freedom, privacy, and justice to have security!

People have a right to guns, but people should be free to enact sensible controls on them. Sensible and enforced gun laws would benefit all. You should have a gun for home protection and for sport, but no one should be allowed to be armed better than a mercenary or swat team member. Our system of Justice should be allowed to work w/o a finger on the scale. It should also be allowed to go after ANY law breaker (Bush/Cheney/Wall St. Bankers etc.). We should be free from unreasonable searches and seizures (warrant less wire tapping, electronic eavesdropping, stop & frisk policies etc.), yet submit to searches at airports, big public events and the like to protect the public in this era of crazies, terrorists and their ilk. There was a balance to all of this, but the gun lobby, the wealthy, and wall streeters have co-opted our Government to the point that they write the laws to favor themselves and we have let it happen. It will only get worse until it gets bad enough to bring together everyone that that they (the ones truly in control), have fighting each other b/c of intentionally mis-directed anger. We all need to understand that it is not Republicans and/or Democrats that are the problem. Everyone that understands this, needs to educate as many as possible of these facts. We fight over things like gun control, but lobbies like the NRA spread fear and dis-information, which make gun enthusiasts believe that it if they agree to something like banning large clips, assault rifles, waiting periods, that it will not stop until their right to keep and bear arms is gone. Others need to respect the choice that some make, to own and responsibly use fire arms. Gun control is just one of the debates that the corporations and the elite use to distract us, just like abortion, gay rights... These debates will always exist. Let's just make sure that WE THE PEOPLE, get back control of our Government and media so we can have fair and reasonable debates over these issues to determine where we draw the lines!

[Egalitarian Thug]

12. Yep. As reliably as Pavlov's puppies, fear motivates the herd like nothing else. K&R

Doesn't matter whether the object of that fear is real or manufactured, scare 'em and they'll swallow anything on the promise that this will make it all better.

[villager]

15. agreed -- fear motivates the herd of gun aplogists and proliferationists routinely and predictably

...every time...

[Tsiyu]

13. Looks like a Bennett cartoon

Please provide a link and attribution so the artist gets credit.

Thanks

[2ndAmForComputers]

17. I don't know, it was passed around by e-mail. If I find a link I'll edit and put it in.

[Tsiyu]

18. Thanks

Don't want DU to get in hot water for copyright violation

It looks like a Bennett, which you can find at Chattanooga Times Free Press site, I believe.
I'm on dialup or I'd look it up, but that site wouldn't load here til next week.

Love the cartoon, BTW

[cbrer]

21. Damn right

Not a bit funny.

[felix_numinous]

22. K&R

[kentuck]

23. Excellent!

k&r

[Zax2me]

24. Is this in reference to Affordable Care Act?

Because it could be used that way.
Which makes it lose track here....

[rhett o rick]

30. Please elaborate how this applies to the ACA. nm