[Pballerjosh]

Confirmation of a mass shooting at a Connecticut Elementary school. At least 26 people killed. 18 of which were school children. Absolutely ****ing disgusting.

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/12/14...ool/?hpt=hp_t1

Inb4gunarguments

[Lazarusrat]

Jesus WTF is wrong with people!!! It's to bad the guy shot himself and deprived the parents the chance to beat him to death with their bare hands.

[Volucris]

This is not political.

[TheSilentAssassin]

Very sad.

[EgoManiacal]

Originally Posted by Volucris

This is not political.

Just because you don't want to talk about gun control doesn't mean this doesn't belong in a politics sub-forum. This has implications on many aspects of public policy.

That said, I don't really want to talk about gun control either. I'd like to talk about public perceptions of mental health and availability of mental health care to those who need it.

inb4 someone asks "why should I have to pay for it?"

[Murph1329]

Originally Posted by EgoManiacal

Just because you don't want to talk about gun control doesn't mean this doesn't belong in a politics sub-forum. This has implications on many aspects of public policy.

That said, I don't really want to talk about gun control either. I'd like to talk about public perceptions of mental health and availability of mental health care to those who need it.

inb4 someone asks "why should I have to pay for it?"

time to get rid of HIPAA for mental health issues. Right now doctor's aren't reporting and there is no way for a gun shop to validate the information given by a consumer with mental health problems

[Eric the Fish]

You do know that HIPPA applies mainly to group health insurance and that most group health plans give little or no coverage for mental health issues.

[Umami]

Originally Posted by Murph1329

time to get rid of HIPAA for mental health issues. Right now doctor's aren't reporting and there is no way for a gun shop to validate the information given by a consumer with mental health problems

Did you think this through at all? It does nothing for people who don't seek/don't have access to treatment.

[Volucris]

We don't know what caused this yet, stop talking as if you do.

All we know is that a lot of people are dead and many parents are going to be burying children. No parent should ever have to experience that. It happened at a gun-free zone where nobody could defend themselves and the police took a long time to arrive. It's the typical recipe for a rampage.

[drgonzo]

Originally Posted by Volucris

This is not political.

Is it though? We have to ask ourselves, why so often nowadays?

The elephant is in the room.

Originally Posted by Eric the Fish

You do know that HIPPA applies mainly to group health insurance and that most group health plans give little or no coverage for mental health issues.

Yes, this is the other elephant in the room. Mental health care in the US is severely lacking, not the least reason for which is lack of insurance coverage.

Somewhere between 25-50% of all people will experience a certifiable mental illness in their lifetime. This is a major issue.

Originally Posted by Volucris

We don't know what caused this yet, stop talking as if you do.

All we know is that a lot of people are dead and many parents are going to be burying children. No parent should ever have to experience that. It happened at a gun-free zone where nobody could defend themselves and the police took a long time to arrive. It's the typical recipe for a rampage.

What justifiable thing could have caused this?

And what, kids should be armed now? Elementary school teachers perhaps? Is it a good idea for people to have loaded weapons around their own kids, let alone thousands of other peoples' kids?
Do we need armed guards at our schools now? Gun possession restrictions don't apply to those charged with enforcement.

This is very, very political.

[slateman]

For what it's worth, CT has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the country. They still have an Assualt Weapons Ban. And, like just about every other school in the country, carrying a firearm of any kind is a felony.

[Umami]

Originally Posted by Volucris

We don't know what caused this yet, stop talking as if you do.

Copout if I've ever heard one.

I am comfortable in the conclusion that someone who resorted to killing children needed professional help, and if you don't then I'm a little worried about you as well.

[TheSilentAssassin]

Originally Posted by drgonzo

Is it though? We have to ask ourselves, why so often nowadays?

The elephant is in the room.

I would be interested to see if these incidents truly are increasing faster than expected (population growth, etc) or if that simply is perception and media attention.

[StellarKnight]

Originally Posted by TheSilentAssassin

I would be interested to see if these incidents truly are increasing faster than expected (population growth, etc) or if that simply is perception and media attention.

Good question.

[Volucris]

Homicide with a firearm in the United States is currently at a low and has been on a steady decline. The most recent statistics is 2.7 deaths per 100,000 people. Shootings are not happening any more often than before. This is just confirmation bias to believe the contrary.

[StellarKnight]

Originally Posted by Volucris

Homicide with a firearm in the United States is currently at a low and has been on a steady decline. The most recent statistics is 2.7 deaths per 100,000 people. Shootings are not happening any more often than before. This is just confirmation bias to believe the contrary.

A useful statistic, but what about the occurrence of mass shootings?

[Iamamartianchurch]

Originally Posted by StellarKnight

A useful statistic, but what about the occurrence of mass shootings?

Suggests that there is something rotten in our society. I don't think it has anything to do with access to professional mental health services.

[memorex]

people *****ing about banning guns again its not the guns fault, its the crazy mofos in this country

[IgnoranceInABag]

i think all arguments in here are about lacking mental care in the country tbh

[Umami]

Originally Posted by Volucris

Homicide with a firearm in the United States is currently at a low and has been on a steady decline. The most recent statistics is 2.7 deaths per 100,000 people. Shootings are not happening any more often than before. This is just confirmation bias to believe the contrary.

BALTIMORE—The number of U.S. homicides has been falling for two decades, but America has become no less violent.

Crime experts who attribute the drop in killings to better policing or an aging population fail to square the image of a more tranquil nation with this statistic: The reported number of people treated for gunshot attacks from 2001 to 2011 has grown by nearly half.

"Did everybody become a lousy shot all of a sudden? No," said Jim Pasco, executive director of the National Fraternal Order of Police, a union that represents about 330,000 officers. "The potential for a victim to survive a wound is greater than it was 15 years ago."

In other words, more people in the U.S. are getting shot, but doctors have gotten better at patching them up. Improved medical care doesn't account for the entire decline in homicides but experts say it is a major factor.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...684277812.html

Originally Posted by Iamamartianchurch

Suggests that there is something rotten in our society. I don't think it has anything to do with access to professional mental health services.

It has to do with social stigma as well as access.

I would also attribute a lot of gun violence to an increasingly prevalent attitude that resorting to firearms is a justifiable method of conflict resolution. Laws in "stand your ground" states have only bolstered this attitude.

[PM6 Scenerio Player]

I do believe that gun law need to be revamped 100% regardless of statics or not. I believed this before this, the mall shooting and the Batman shooting.

This one really stands out for me because I have a summer home near there in Fairfield and my youngest daughter is in Pre-K. Its scary to think about this. Im not a emotional person and this brought a tear to my eyes. God Bless those lost and those who will remember them.