Thread by @smilesguthrie

In the U.S you can drive a car if you want to.

Just:

-Take a test that shows you're not going to use it to kill someone out of stupidity/insanity/incompetence.

-Wait in a boring line.

Maybe with murder weapons we could start with the latter and work our way to the former?

Heres a thread:

1/ Cars have practical uses. Like:

-transporting you and your loved ones.
-transporting you and your loved ones' stuff, things, and belongings.

Driving 100 miles an hour is not necessary to accomplish this

2/ Driving 100 miles an hour is, however, really really really really fun for some people. it is a hobby. That's why there are racetracks where you and yr buds can drive really fast and there are no school children nearby.

3/ Guns also have some practical uses. Like:

-Hunting
-Protecting your rural home/livestock from criminal/predatory animal threats. perhaps you live far away from police or animal control. Cool. Got it.

Magazines that hold 100 Bullets are not necessary to accomplish this.

4/ Using a magazine with the capacity to hold 100 bullets is however, really really really really fun for some people. It is a hobby. That's why there are shooting ranges where you and yr buds can go shoot a whole bunch of bullets where there are no school children nearby.

5/ Hobbies are fun! And people have all different kinds of hobbies. I like making bleeps and bloops with synthesizers. I also like playing video games. Both of these are difficult to kill people with. It is, however, possible.

6/ Video Games can kill someone if the disc is dropped from a great height. In a vertical orientation, allowing it to gain enough speed to become lodged in someone's skull.

7/ Synthesizers can also kill someone if dropped on their head... the height of the fall necessary to do so is of course relative to the size and density of the synth.

8/ I understand that other people have more dangerous hobbies than I do. And that is fine. I went skydiving once and a guy called Tom strapped himself to me and said "I got you bro, I do this for fun" and he made sure I didn't die and it was rad.

9/ But when some hobbies are being used as weapons for murder. it's no surprise that people might be saying "hey guys I don't think this is very fun anymore"

10/ If something you enjoy as a hobby is being used by terrorists to murder people at random, at alarming rates, wouldn't you like to do a better job of regulating access to this thing?

11/ if terrorists were regularly throwing 220 pound Yamaha CS-80's off of buildings and killing thousands of people I'd be saying
- Lets have background checks for synth purchases
- Maybe nobody really needs a synth heavier than their own body no matter how fun it is.

12/ This does not mean the ban of all synthesizers. Maybe just the really heavy ones.

13/ I would want to regulate my dangerous hobby, so that less people would be killed by the thing I love, and also, selfishly, to manage public opinion, save face, and protect my own ability to participate in my hobby!

14. I would be fine playing Microkorgs and Minimoogs if it meant an end to Mass-Murder-By-Synth. But the possible dangers of my hobby are at the moment hypothetical.

15/ Fast cars and automatic guns (or semiautomatic guns with attachments to increase capacity and lethality) are statistically dangerous hobbies. Both because of accidental death/injury. And also because they are being used in terrorist attacks.

16/ Looking at the casualty statistics of these attacks it is clear that one of these things is much more effective at murdering civilians than the other.

17/ If Automatic firearms (or modified semiautomatic firearms) are more efficient than cars as tools for mass murder. Why are they so much easier to acquire in the United States? And with less regulation? @nra

18/ @nra does it seem right to you that the thing you love is so easily acquired by terrorists in the US and so effectively used for mass murder?

19/ @nra. I am willing to accept that our value systems are different, and that we have different ideas of what a fun hobby is. I am willing to respect your responsible participation in a hobby I don't care for. But -

20/ @nra if you want Americans who do not share your enthusiasm for guns to be able to respect your organization, you should be the first to offer up a "real solution" so what is it? Really! I'm interested to hear your solution. You are the gun people. What do you want to do?

21/ @nra perhaps it is time for even you to acknowledge the need to:

- Ban sale of automatic firearms and high capacity magazines to civilians.
- Close the gun show loophole
- Perform stricter background checks.

You probably know more about guns than me... does that make sense?