Newtown School Shootings

[PanzerJaeger]

If I'm understanding the position of the 2A absolutists on this board:

• Mass shootings are rare, inevitable, and (while sad) a price of freedom
• Any attempt at registration, mandated safety measures, or anything, really, will just be a nanny-state infantilization of the citizenry (part of the larger degredation of rights which we will only tolerate when originating with acts committed by people with Muslim names)
• Therefore US citizens should suck it up, arm themselves, and never speak of this again

Can we please dispense with this 'absolutist' moniker? I understand that it is always beneficial in debate to frame your opponent as some sort of extremist, but this is nonsense. Guns are one of the most heavily regulated products in the American marketplace. There are limits on functionality, size, ammunition type and many other design elements that essentially neuter these weapons as compared to their military counterparts. Off the top of my head, I cannot think of another product that requires a background check to purchase. Certain types of chemicals, maybe? To the true absolutist, such things would be intolerable. And yet, no one here seems to be seriously arguing against them. In fact, I would wager most here would be supportive of a national registry for the mentally ill that could be crosschecked during the background check process.

But yes, allowing the actions of two mentally disturbed men to curtail the freedoms millions currently enjoy would be an illogical, immature reaction to media sensationalism, a superficial gesture that would do little to prevent such incidents in the future.