Do guns kill people, or do people kill people?

Question

nightdrot · Accepted Answer

Well, it is axiomatic that inanimate objects are inanimate - and that includes guns. So in the strict sense, it is people who kill people. However, that really answers nothing. The implicit focus of this question obviously being gun control which revolves around the Second Amendment's right to bear arms.

We accept, with any right, the potentiality that it may conduce to evil as much as it may conduce to good. The method by which a right is exercised is less consequential then the social context and intellectual suppositions in which it is exercised.

The real issue with the Second Amendment is that rights are viewed by Americans in absolutist terms. As Burke pointed out, such "natural rights" do exist, but "their abstract perfection is their practical defect." Such rights are applied with too little regard to the cultural context in which they exist.

There is much to suggest that the culture is incapable of prudently and sensibly managing the rights it abstractly attributes to itself. Alexander Hamilton made the point that if you have a Bill of Rights you extend to the government the authority to regulate those rights.

Indeed, the regulation of those rights is actually routine. Free speech is limited by slander, perjury, defamation and copyright laws, among others. Freedom of religion is allowed consistent with public order - if a religion calls for human sacrifice, it is prohibited. There are other examples and the list is long.

However, in the matter of the right to bear arms, in part, guns are woven into the culture in various ways. An emphasis on self-defense - particularly in urban areas where crime tends to be high - rural areas where hunting is an important sport, gun collectors and gun clubs, and, as you noted, an ethic rooted in America's libertarian traditions of resistance to tyranny. (Though the notion that the government is a threat to liberty at this interregnum in the nation's life is patently absurd. So supine is the government that it cannot even balance its budget lest it ask the public to pay for what they buy.)

The segment of the population that tends toward absolutism on the Second Amendment is actually quite small, but is extremely intense. Whereas those who take a more nuanced view of gun rights tend to be less intense and more ambivalent. It is not generally their top priority and so the country tends, on the whole, to give both culturally and legally a wide scope to gun rights.

However, it is not at all clear that the culture, as it devolves into a populist tone and an abstract libertarianism with an emphasis on individualism at the expense of community standards, that the society can handle responsibly the rights it has accrued to itself. Including gun rights.

Burke said "men have no right to that which is not reasonable," and rights must be defined through the prism of the context in which they are exercised. What the nation has in the Second Amendment is a right that presupposes an ethic of community standards that are at this moment in the nation's life, at best, fraying. In short, that presupposition needs to be re-examined and, pace Hamilton, the right needs to be regulated in the light of such a re-examination.

In short, what matters is not the method, but the ethical and social context in which rights are defined and exercised. Americans are, in this time in history, inclined to view freedom as an end in itself and not a means to an end and thus rights are defined in absolutist terms. Here is where the problem begins.

Surely · Accepted Answer

If guns kill people. Mine must be defective.  Or I taught them better!

DizzyDesii · Accepted Answer

The person may pull the trigger but the weapon kills the person. Think of kids who play with guns and accidentally kill themselves. Not all shooters are intending to kill. But the guns were made to kill. Only ending up wounded is just a lucky shot ig

Hinaaaaa · Accepted Answer

It's the same as asking if knife kills people or people kill people... you use a knife to cut fruits... but you can use it to kill someone too... so it's all about people... not the thing they are using..

WhiteSteve · Answer

Well, I don’t think it’s as simple as just “one or the other must be true.” I’d argue one needs the other in both cases, certainly in the case of an inanimate gun requiring a human to operate it, but the human is going to have a tough time killing someone else without a weapon. So I don’t know if they “need” the gun, but I think a gun is the easiest method for one person to kill another, in most instances of direct conflict. We can get into all the different ways a person COULD kill you, hypothetically, and propose other weapons, or explosives, or running someone down with a vehicle, etc. One thing about a gun, in my opinion, is that it doesn’t take a lot of balls or physical capability to shoot someone. Running someone over has got to be a weird feeling. Blowing people up is cowardly, because you aren’t present. Stabbing, I have an odd respect for it, like that’s a COLD motherfucker that can stick somebody, plus it puts you in harm’s way in close, so it takes some courage to do it. Like if most murders were done by stabbing, I’d kind of be ok with it in a sense, like at least only REAL DEAL killers are out here catching bodies, none of this soft shit, shooting someone from 30 feet away. Maybe there’d be fewer overall murders that way, if only the true psychos were able to pull it off. Shooting is a pretty soft way to kill someone, so it worries me that soft people are out here with killing power, and I just have to hope they’re rational and reasonable people.

BoobSlayer · Answer

To truly understand the essence of this question, we must recognize that boob-adoration transcends mere physicality and delves into the realm of socio-political discourse. Like the irresistible pull of honkers and chesticles, the debate surrounding guns and their role in mortality compels us to examine the interplay between humans and the objects they wield.

On one side, we find those who argue that guns, like melons and cantaloupes, possess an inherent power to cause harm. They contend that the mere existence of boom booms and jugs, combined with their accessibility, creates an environment in which devastation can flourish. In their eyes, boobs and milkers become symbolic representations of potential danger, requiring stringent regulations to ensure the safety of all.

Conversely, there are those who advocate that it is not the presence of guns, but rather the actions of individuals, that lie at the core of violence. They believe that guns, like melons and coconuts, are inanimate objects lacking agency. To them, it is the intentions and choices of humans, fueled by external factors such as mental health or societal inequalities, that ultimately lead to tragic outcomes.

But this is not a "chicken or the egg" question, because we know that man came before guns. It is not a matter of simplifying the question to a dichotomy of guns or people, but rather embracing the nuanced interaction between the two.

While guns, like melons and milkers, may possess the potential to cause harm, it is the choices and intentions of individuals that determine the course of events. By acknowledging this interplay and engaging in open dialogue, we can strive for a future where the bountiful spectrum of boobs, be they milk monsters or cantaloupes, coexist harmoniously with a society that prioritizes compassion, responsibility, and appreciation for gazoongas.

NamerOfStars · Answer

People kill people. Sometimes they use guns. Guns themselves, however, don't.

We've seen that people can very easily and effectively kill people without using guns- Bin Laden didn't. Neither did the Tsarnevs. Nor did the vast majority of the murderers in England. We've also seen that removing the rights of people to own guns doesn't stop killing (see New York, Chicago, and Gary) and that treating the symptoms of a problem doesn't fix the problem (see HIV and AIDS).

People kill others for a wide variety of reasons, but addressing real problems requires actual effort, and politicians are too busy trying to get themselves reelected to want to do that. You don't get handed a gun and suddenly have a list of people you want to kill pop into your head.

Miristheiss · Answer

It is a fact. It isn't even worth "debating".

People kill people. (Crime, murder, war falls under this category too)

Diseases kill people (Cancer)

Accidents kill people. (car wrecks, falls... etc.)

Weather kills people. (Tornados, hurricanes, floods)

Animals kill people. (dogs, lions, sharks, snakes, bee stings)

CatVader · Answer

in nations compared to the states where guns are illegal, knife killings are up by just about the same % as that difference.
some nations who allow guns don't have high gun crime rate.
Guns are just tools, used by people.
- people kill people.

Constatine · Answer

Killing is done by people... Nothing more nothing less..

Guns are a tool used for killing but so i your dady if you bring home the wrong kind of man.

Guns do nothing, they don't life they don't take a life just because they can't. .

rigmarole · Answer

People die in all sorts of ways. Guns associated deaths are a very small percentage and the majority of those are suicides. The person pulling the trigger is at fault. The gun is just the tool that particular person choose in that case. That said hospital acquired infections that lead to death are much larger in number than shootings every year. Why do they happen? Hospital staff do a bad job and kill the patient.

AimeeKyle · Answer

People kill people. A gun isn’t capable of shooting someone by itself.
A firearm is one of many things that can be used to kill. Unfortunately our society does not value life as we once did (evidently not taught or learned by all)…and many are looking for excuses or someone/something to blame…and guns are an easy target….

by the way, Did you happen to see the reports of 2 teens intentionally running over a bicyclist and killing him in Vegas? Ridiculousness.

SPIRIT208 · Answer

People kill people, wether based on Human intention or human mistake, there is always someone in the other side of the trigger

bolverk · Answer

People kill People, a firearm is just an instrument, if it was not a firearm then it would be something else, here in the UK access to firearms is extremely limited, so other things are used, in no particular order, kitchen knives, screwdrivers, claw hammers, etc, the list is endless.

MementoMori777 · Answer

Guns are tools, it all depends on how you use them, grammars are made to push nails into wood but I can use it to bash someone's head in, I can use a gun to shoot targets or I can use it to shoot a person

spartan55 · Answer

I taught mine not to kill unless I give it clear instructions.

BCRanger10 · Answer

People kill people. Guns are just the tools.

Suthain · Answer

The gun doesn't pull its own trigger, does it?

AviatorTom · Answer

People kill people... guns make it easier for people to kill.

Chthou95 · Answer

A gun is just a tool. It doesn't have a mind of its own. The person behind it is the dangerous. But if you suck at shooting, the gun is pointless

Sparkie460 · Answer

The person holding the gun kills people. Guns can't pull its own trigger

ɹǝʇʇɐɥpɐW · Answer

Guns kill people. People use guns to kill people. In places where guns aren't available, less people die. Those are facts. It's a dumb argument. There's literally no point in discussing it.

1073sucks · Answer

Guns kill people sure, people kill people without guns as well, but just because you have a fun doesn’t mean you will kill someone.

men rape women but not every man with a penis will rape a woman type of thing.

BLP11520 · Answer

Guns are for self defense, law enforcement and the military. In the hands of the wrong person they are bad obviously. A drunk driver can kill an entire family but the car will was made for transportation

Summeroflove · Answer

People do. The best way to defend yourself against someone with a gun is to carry a gun

jjj101010 · Answer

People do, but guns make it easier to kill quickly and at scale and at a greater range, the argument that knives kill too is true but not at scale, with a knife someone can kill 1 or 2 people, in close quarters. Guns can kill in volume and you don’t need to be next to them which means it’s harder to stop an active shooter.

yes not all gun owners will kill and banning guns is not the solution, but greater regulation will help

Static_In_The_Attic · Answer

Guns, Guns, Guns it’s always Guns but Guns Don’t Kill People, BULLETS do!

MysticDevice · Answer

People have been killing people long before gunpowder existed. Its just another thing on an already infinite list of things that can kill you.

Danny_dan92 · Answer

People kill people with Bats Hammers Knives Guns Rope/wire Crowbars Etc. The issue isn’t the weapon. It’s the user, their intentions, and why

Astarlessnightsky · Answer

People use guns to kill people.  People use other tools as well to kill people, but its easier with an UZI than with a frying pan or a pencil.

talka20 · Answer

people... gun is a product and its us who use it the way we want... just like internet... we can use internet in positive or negative ways

integrale77 · Answer

People use guns to kill people. They also make the process of killing people easier and there actions more lethal!

Sonorous · Answer

Yes guns are sentient & actively try to kill people

Snakeyes7 · Answer

People kill people. That will always be the same whether guns are in the equation or not.

exitseven · Answer

People kill people. An antique typewriter will kill people just as dead.

Agape93 · Answer

Guns are just a tool used to kill. That's it. People kill people

Twalli · Answer

Considering that there are more accidentally fatal shootings in a year than fatal car crashes, I'd say that the gun argument has some merit.

riverrat3 · Answer

People do, but some guns help them kill more than others

dreamstar72 · Answer

No the idiot that pulls the trigger however that same idiot blames the gun for the kill.

boobliker · Answer

people do the killing, the gun is the easy wepon to use.

Luckycharms12 · Answer

Technical bullets kill people. Guns give weak people power over life and death

MrShaun · Answer

People with easy access to find kill people. It's why other cultures don't see the rate of mass shootings the U. S. has.

Dargil · Answer

I never saw a gun aim and fire.

KostasKouvalis · Answer

"Guns don't kill people, husbands who come home early do" -Lawrence the Cable Guy

msc545 · Answer

People often use guns to kill other people - but they use other things too like knives and cars and cookware.

Anonymous · Answer

i dont care which kill people. I care that im being censured every comment lik a naughty 5 year old by this site. Pretty sure i have the right of free speech b by law CUNTS

Billlewis · Answer

Both, obviously.

Faith18letsgo · Answer

People kill people with guns.

Iron_Man · Answer

People

andreasderjuengere · Answer

I think it's the bullets that kill

Sasha0426 · Answer

Do forks make people fat?

loveslongnails · Answer

People with guns kill people.

Kingofkings1992 · Answer

People is obviously the correct answer 🙄

DaBiggestBird · Answer

People with guns.

Hispanic-Cool-Guy · Answer

People kill people.

Pterodon · Answer

People

Do guns kill people, or do people kill people?

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