Why is it that every time there is a shooting tragedy (e.g.,Virginia Tech) people demand gun control?

Is gun control really the issue? Aren't criminals able to obtain guns whether they are legal or not?Why is it that every time there is a shooting tragedy (e.g.,Virginia Tech) people demand gun control?
it would make it harder and there would be less guns to have to worry about. sure even though drugs are illegal, people can get them if they want, but not ';every household '; in America has illegal drugs. they do pretty good catching illegal traffickers. they don't get them all, that's impossible. but there is less chance that your kid will get a hold of them because ';they are'; illegal. same for guns, if they were illegal there would be some sense of control. this ';still able to get'; excuse is an excuse! and a weak one.do you keep poisons in your home? why not? because they are dangerous and you don't want your family to get hurt. ';but oh' they could still get a hold of them if they wanted!'; so why don't you keep them in your home and save them the effort! sometimes if people have to make an effort to get something illegal it sways them. they can't just go to there closet when they have a melt down , it could make them think twice! are you a moron and have guns, right! hope none in your family accidentally shoots you or a loved one!Why is it that every time there is a shooting tragedy (e.g.,Virginia Tech) people demand gun control?
Doesn't mean that it has to be easy for them to get their weapon of choice. There should at least be a standard nation-wide waiting period so that a person's background can be thoroughly checked out before they are issued a gun along with documentation of who is purchasing what and mandatory licensing for carrying said weapon. Something needs to be done to change these laws, guns are just too easy to get and the NRA has too firm a grip on Washington's ba**s!
There is one simple answer: look at reality.





In reality, there are 17,000 people murdered in the USA per year, mostly with guns.





In reality, there are just a few hundred people murdered in Europe per year, with aproximately the same number of people living in the USA and Europe.





Probably the percentage of maniacs among americans and europeans is the same.





In Europe, there is strict gun control - in the USA not.





So, if gun control is not the solution, if that doesnt help, what's the difference between europeans and americans after all?





Here in Europe nobody feels depressed because of a lack of freedom to carry a gun.





If there are criminals, we call the police, they are the experts.





I always read from americans that you want to defend yourself and your family - okay, that's a point.





But does ';defend'; mean that you have to shoot? If a gangster knows that you have a gun at home, he will bring his - to defend himself. In his criminal mind he will always find an excuse for that stupid idea. If a gangster sees that you pick your gun, what do you expect will happen? He will not surrender, most probably, he will shoot, at you and your family.





So, what the police in europe successfully does is that they tell you: don't try to be a hero, don't try to fight. Your best chance is to run. Your second best chance is not to give a criminal a reason for violence.





De-escalation works pretty well. You might lose your wallet, your car and other valuables, but your chances to be intact at the end of the day are much better.
Good question- I think the problem isn't guns but BULLETS! how about an ammo law!
That's easy to answer! I call it ';Jumping on the Wrong Bandwagon';. See first the MEDIA suggest something and the public jumps right in! This shooting could have all been avoided long ago! Before this guy ever purchased a gun he displayed the emotions of a ';Serial Killer or Multiple Killer'; his writings in class, his behavior, his failure to obey authority, and last isolation! See the problem is Excuses are far too many and always given when things are too late! Next, we as a Society always laugh at or mock the Strange and Unusual. But once a Psycho has reached his peak and sets out to KILL, the first thing AMERICANS wants to say ';more Gun Control';.........Here's a ugly truth that no one is truly going to say ';If everyone had a GUN they might only have had three slain instead of thirty-three!';
Perhaps because these incidents show people with guns can't be controlled.
People want simple answers for complex problems.





Laws won't stop this from happening.





VT was a gun free zone that didn't work.





If people were more aware and talk to the odd balls maybe he would have open up and this won't happen.





Too many people are wrap in their lives so much they can't see the problem before it is too late.
In 1996 a man went on a rampage in Tasmania, Australia, killing 35 people.





The Australian government introduced tougher gun laws as a result. The had a buy back scheme on semi automatic rifles and a much tougher registration process for gun ownership and how guns are stored. In fact 112 people had been killed in 11 mass shootings in the 10 years up to Port Arthur. We were like America is today.





Since the new guns laws were introduced gun violence has dramatically reduced.





The risk of dying by gunshot has dropped dramatically since the gun buyback scheme was introduced after the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, a new report says.





Dr Philip Alpers, a University of Sydney academic who helped write the report, said the buyback saw the number of gun deaths a year fall from an average of 521 to 289, “suggesting that the removal of more than 700,000 guns was associated with a faster declining rate of gun suicide and gun homicide”.





The Prime Minister, John Howard, introduced some of the world’s toughest gun laws after the massacre, forcing people to surrender semi-automatic rifles, which reload each time the trigger is pulled, and pump-action shotguns.





The new report, titled Australia’s 1996 Gun Law Reforms: Faster Falls in Firearm Deaths, Firearm Suicides and a Decade without Mass Shootings, finds that in the 18 years before the gun buyback there were an average of 492 firearm suicides a year.





After the introduction of the buyback scheme, that figure dropped to 247 in the seven years for which reliable figures are available.





The report also found the rate of gun homicides fell from an annual average of 93 in the 18 years before 1996 to an annual average of 56.