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Wednesday, October 11, 2017

AMERICA AND THE GUN CULTURE



BY MOHAMED MATOPE

Last Monday America suffered the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history. A gunman rained down thousands of bullets from high above into the crowd of about 22,000 country music concert attendants from his suite on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. Authorities said he fired hundreds of rounds per minute for 10 minutes from his hotel window, killing 59 victims and injuring 527 people.
Many friends have reached out to me wanting to find out the entanglement of guns in the American culture. Many people abroad particularly in Africa, where owning a gun is far more complicated than buying a house, find it difficult to comprehend that someone could possess such a stockpile of weapons unnoticed and be able to carry out such a horrible massacre. Here is what we know so far. Let me get a glass of water before continuing with this part of the story.
The shooter’s name is Stephen C Paddock, a 64-year-old white man, who has now already been declared a lone wolf and of course, not a terrorist. He is a wealthy property owner and regular in Las Vegas casinos who made a living through gambling and speculation. He apparently killed himself after police officers closed in on him in his room.

One of the many astonishing aspects of this heartbreaking story is an arsenal of firearms accumulated by the shooter. You probably want to sit back in a bunker or wear a bulletproof vest before continuing reading the next part of this story.
In his hotel room police found 23 guns, including high-powered rifles, AR-15s, and AK-47s capable of penetrating police armor as well as firing thousands of rounds of ammunition. They also found tracer-illuminated bullets that are commonly used to improve a shooter’s firing accuracy in the dark and high-powered military style telescopes. Upon searching other properties owned by Mr. Paddock, police recovered 19 more weapons, several thousand rounds of ammunition alongside ammonium nitrate, which is commonly used by terrorists to make explosives.
To put this into perspective, he had a vast arsenal of firearms enough to equip a NATO standard commando platoon (40 soldiers) for conventional warfare. Oh and here is the kicker: he legally purchased all the firearms.
So you ask. How the hell did he amass such an arsenal of firepower?  The answer is simple, the combination of the American’s gun law and the politics behind it.
The core of America’s gun law is derived from its constitution. Second amendment, part of the constitution guarantees the freedom of its citizens to own guns. However, each state can restrict the type of guns an individual can purchase, identification of gun owners, and restrictions for some people to own guns. The state of Nevada, where this specific shooting took place, has exceptionally lenient gun laws where semi-automatic weapons, assault rifles, and large-capacity ammunition can be purchased, without any questions asked, literally.
When it comes to the politics of gun control, two main factors play out: gun-loving voters and the influence of the leading pro-gun lobby group, the National Rifle Association (NRA). The NRA has transformed itself into a major political force, and they oppose all gun control measures, which causes any inconvenience for gun owners. They finance a large number of pro-gun candidates in elections. In the 2016 election cycle alone, they spent over $ 50 million to support Trump and many pro-gun congressional candidates.
Politicians fear to support any strict gun laws because NRA would retaliate by dumping millions of dollars in a campaign to defeat them. Many polls have shown that the majority of NRA supporters believe that the solution to America's mass shooting problems is more guns. They think that if every American has a gun, then people would be able to defend themselves and therefore it would deter people from carrying out a massacre like the shooting in Las Vegas. As if the current gun situation is not crazy already... sure enough, America is filled up with guns. There are more guns in America than the number of machetes in Africa’s households.
Unlike Africa, when a crazy person goes into an extreme state of craziness, they go after a crowd of people with stones or machete at worst. In America, they merely spread bullets like a fire hose. We live in the dangerous zone oooooooooo.

NOTE: The guy in the photo above legally owns 3000 guns

37 comments:

Anonymous said...

Useful analysis, but one could insert automobile for gun in this analysis. Year after year, 35,000 are killed annually in motor vehicle incidents, many of which could be avoided. The USA permits people to drive intoxicated, high on pot, heroin, opioids, etc. Others drive while texting, eating, applying makeup, you name it. Still others drive without a valid driver's license. Never an outcry about the annual carnage. The reality is that Americans simply do not care. They believe that freedom means that anyone can do anything any time they so choose. The Las Vegas tragedy is simply the latest. There will be no change. Congress likes things just the way they are.

Anonymous said...

No one is wondering what trump will do about guns. He will recommend more and fewer restrictions. Of course. He just hailed a mass shooting as a miracle. The people of this nation are the problem because they agree that mass shootings equals freedom.

Anonymous said...

My prediction: we'll go through the usual soul searching for a couple of weeks, hurl charges back and forth between the parties, call for all sorts of solutions, point out how we're the only country in the world doing this to ourselves. Then we will do exactly *nothing.* Because we're deadlocked in a passionate embrace with firearms. Every disturbed individual with a clean criminal records can obtain firearms, and literally everyone gets one free massacre if they so choose. It's a deadly circle of violence. My conclusion: Americans at large are OK with the thousands of deaths every year - losses that dwarf our losses to terrorism or in military campaign year after year. We're simply OK with it, and it's the price we're willing to pay for such an expansive view of the 2nd Amendment. I just don't know what to say about that, except that this is our choice.

Anonymous said...

While I agree with your sentiments, Just to be clear, are you actually a “fellow American”? Doesn’t sound like it. That is a phrase l citizens use for each other, and it sounds like a critique from afar. You don’t have to respond. Just wanted to point that out.

Anonymous said...

Stop looking for a motive. The man had dozens of guns designed for the purpose of killing people and thousands of rounds of ammunition. So, let's say out of every 100,000 "law-abiding" (of course Paddock WAS law-abiding too) gun owners with 40 or more guns and thousands of rounds of ammo, 99,950 don't have a screw loose. Are we OK with HUNDREDS of people roaming the country who just might cross over that line and have this kind of firepower?
The problem is the notion that target shooting for a sport is more important than lives. Get rid of the notion of target shooting, gun ranges for sport, and then there is absolutely no reason for anyone to have such weapons with that amount of ammo. The Second Amendment should extend only to home protection with a limit of perhaps two firearms and guns suitable for hunting with no magazines. End of stor

Anonymous said...

When grocery shopping, I ignore the probability one in four customers is carrying a gun. When shopping where men may be customers, I scan the area hoping I'll be able to spot the person with a concealed carry permit and avoid him. I definitely don't feel safer under these conditions. A good guy with a gun is just looking for someone to shoot.

Anonymous said...

Your arguments are fallacious. What would happen is better predicted by looking at the places where hand guns and short-range automatic & semi-automatic rifles with large magazines have been outlawed, like western Europe, and Australia. The rate of traumatic death due to firearms decreases by orders of magnitude. The experiment has been tried, and it works. None of your bs propaganda or transparent rationalizations are actually logical. Find another fetish. If you support the NRA, you are an enabler.

Anonymous said...

There was no records of arrests for domestic violence or assault with this shooter, no records of severe mental health issues either. This is only an opinion - but it's almost as if the shooter did this just to prove how easy and dangerous it is to get assault weapons in this country - and he was willing to cause this tragedy to do it. His insanity is mirroring our government's insanity in doing nothing about it.

Anonymous said...


you know what MR Matope lets leave America and their gun culture alone.
I've never owned a gun, and never will. I have many friends who do own guns. I wouldn't want to live near anyone who I knew was collecting machine guns as the Las Vegas shooter apparently did. I'd probably vote to keep machine guns out of the hands of my neighbors if I could, but would never vote to take away their handguns, knowing how dearly they treasure them.


Anonymous said...

I would say it is more shock and sadness at the unnecessary carnage and bewilderment at the lack of moral courage by politicians to take a more principled stand on guns regulation. It is seen as just crazy the range of weapons Americans have access to and the ease with which these can be acquired and carried. The images of Oath Keepers fully tooled up at what was supposedly a peaceful protest was jarring to say the least to most outside of the US.

Anonymous said...

Agreed. And the people that will be killed are right now purchasing guns to keep themselves 'safe'. Like the Texas father that set out to teach his son how to protect himself and his family against gun violence, but the gun went off when the dad handed the gun to the son. He died. Got to admit, though, he's safe from violence now.

Anonymous said...

It is difficult to reconcile the idea (or “ideal”) that USA is the “greatest free” country in the world with the level of economic, cultural, social, and intellectual development it has achieved thus far with having a large enough portion of its population living as if they are citizens of a country with a government on the brink of becoming a dictatorship. It makes perfect sense to regulate certain aspects of gun ownership (note am not advocating for no guns at all), as another large segment of the population believes, to guard as best as we can against its horrible and indefensible use.

Anonymous said...

Good analysis of reality of gun culture in this country. I'm African American and I think, by now, we can dispense with the tired arguments for and against gun ownership, gun control, the 2nd Amendment, etc. etc. There are more guns than people in this country. Even if guns were outlawed tomorrow, there would be no way to get rid of them. The 2nd Amendment will never be repealed. There will never be any serious attempt to restrict assault weapons at the federal level. I am simply waiting for Americans to get real and admit that guns are a religion in this country. Maybe the one true religion in this country. This is something native to the USA, and you will not find gun worship anywhere else in the civilized world. Sure, there are lots of other ways to kill people. But Americans prefer using guns. You can kill 59 people and wound over 500 in 10 minutes with a machine gun. Only one or 2 with a machete. It's simply more efficient, and even a 64 year old retiree can do it.

Anonymous said...

No one is calling for the repeal of the 2nd Amendment. But we as a civilized people need to actually sit down and make rational decisions removed from politics. This is NOT a political issue. We need to pass smart laws that will limit the types of weapons people can buy, the number of weapons that people can own to a number that is reasonable (no one needs more than 2 guns, lets face it), and the type of screening that they must pass to get one -- a criminal background check is not enough. Not sure about you, but I wouldn't want an unstable friend or neighbor roaming around with a semi-automatic weapon posing risk to my family at any unforeseen moment.

Anonymous said...

The second amendment says: "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." So, completely banning gun ownership would not be compatible with the second amendment, but regulating it obviously is with 350 million guns in this country and over 100 million gun owners, not a single wimp could fight this bad guy with a gun! How will 200 million people with guns guarantee that they will have borrowed valor to fight a bad guy with a gun?

Anonymous said...

But something interesting happened with this one. The country singer, formerly a staunch advocate of the 2nd A is now in favor of gun control. So maybe it is just a matter of when every gun advocate is him or herself touched by gun violence we will have the critical mass of the will to at least attempt to place meaningful limits on guns. Some people have to experience this to understand this is no way to run a civil society.

Anonymous said...

Sorry, but you are confusing numbers with power. The NRA wields extensive power through its financing and backing of politicians. What other group rates the performance of politicians regards their pro-gun stance and legislative efforts, and the politicians take note. It has been repeatedly publicised that they realise that it is not in their interests to go against the NRA. I would suggest, that both these coercive behaviours are actually counter to the intent of the Constitution....

Anonymous said...

Our 2nd amendment rights were written into the constitution specifically so we could defend against any and all future tyranacal governments that may be imposed upon us much like the one we had just fled from in England. Few people today have been taught this.

Anonymous said...

You are obviously a deranged left wing Democrat who hated Trump voters likely to be attending a country western concert. You are unfairly condemning NRA for your liberal political view gain without looking at the big picture which is America Gun loving culture.

Anonymous said...

Guns and ammunitions generate billions of dollars. There are over 200 million guns in the US alone. Gun is to alcohol as alcohol is to the Prohibition. Stop with the gun law debates. If we want to make a significant change, then let's start by educating people. Start with the kids. "Can't teach an old dog new tricks", let the cowboy generation die out and let the new and educated generation blossom into a better era.

Anonymous said...

If Stephen Paddock was a Muslim, Trump would be all over Twitter about this, talking about all the things we must do to protect American citizens, and Republicans in Congress would be scheduling hearings to forge an immediate response.
But since it's a old white guy who has terrorized our nation, Trump & the R's will do NOTHING. You see, it's not really about protecting American citizens. It's about advancing an agenda, and Stephen Paddock doesn't advance it.

Anonymous said...

As the US population became more urbanized, gun sales began to decline. So, gun makers co-opted the board of the NRA and turned it into a massive lobbying organization while switching from marketing guns for hunting/sporting applications to trying to convince everyone their lives were in constant danger from nefarious forces that could only be held at bay by a gun, preferably a cool black gun with customization options and add on features. It has always been about money!

Anonymous said...

Yes, the evil NRA liberals love to moan about like they use to "Booooosh." Funny how an organization witb four million members is assigned all the blame for 80 million voting gun owners. I guess maybe it's just easier to blame something other than your failed ideology the American people have rejected time and again.

Anonymous said...

So much for, “The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.”
By the NRA’s standards, the last place a shooter should have succeeded in committing a massacre would be in a heavily armed crowd. However, the roughly 100 police officers present were unable to stop the extremely well-prepared gunman.

Anonymous said...

Was this "original intent" in the constitution?
Why does a citizen needs 23 firearms for any specific purpose?
This nation is being held hostage by the NRA and Red State caucasian nut jobs that have brought this nation to its knees.

Anonymous said...

The 2nd amendment for the first 200 years of our nations history was interpreted wildly differently. private "rights" to guns were never part of it, it was interpreted as strictly "militias" so their was no justification for any private gun... so laws were based on reasonable restrictions.

Anonymous said...

the 2nd amendment for the first 200 years of our nations history was interpreted wildly differently. private "rights" to guns were never part of it, it was interpreted as strictly "militias" so their was no justification for any private gun... so laws were based on reasonable restrictions.
until the 70's, when there was a hardliner take over of the NRA by right wing, racist reactionaries after backlash from the 60's civil rights era. They systematically bought and sold judges to change the thrust of that precedent.
(the NRA actually supported gun control up until the 30's/40's focusing mainly on hunting and marksmanship ---think tommy guns from mobsters and criminals, they opening advocated for removing these guns from the populace)

Anonymous said...

Gun laws won't stop criminal because criminals don't obey the law! Just like murder laws won't stop criminals because criminals don't obey the law! Traffic laws won't stop drunk drivers because drunk drivers don't obey the law. Immigration laws won't stop illegals because illegals don't obey the law! .... Should I keep going?
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Anonymous said...

Amazing that this man brought with him to the hotel almost every single style of gun that the Democrats want to ban, and left other guns that Democrats don't want to ban at his houses. He had them all in one location. Very convenient. There's more to this story.
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Anonymous said...

By kowtowing to the NRA, politicians show they are more interested in their cushy government jobs than in what may be best for the American people.
Name me ONE politician who's lost his/her job by being challenged by the NRA?
The answer is the same as name me ONE law abiding citizen who's ever been visited by "the government" to confiscate his/her guns? It's all NRA BS.
I'm a lifetime member of the OTHER NRA:
Normal
Reasonable
Americans
Supporting families and sportsmen, not gun manufacturers!

Anonymous said...

According to the 2nd amendment, the militia is supposed to be well regulated. It's arguable that we no longer have a militia. But putting that aside, there's no question that this loon with dozens of firearms and modified weaponry could not possibly be considered "well regulated." The second amendment calls for gun control!

Anonymous said...

Ndugu yangu hii story ya huyu jamaa anayemiliki 3,000guns nilisoma story yake ,na nimeatach link ya stary yenyewe.Kweli mdogo wangu Matope tunaishi kwenye nchi ya vichaa wanaopenda bunduki kama ubwabwa lakini tutafanyaje sisi tunatafuta maisha tutabana hapa hapa lakini inabidi tuwe makini sana.


Meet the one man army who proudly boasts the scary title 'the most armed man in America' https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/3883930/most-armed-man-america-dragon-mel-bernstein-colorado-guns/

Anonymous said...

Does anyone believe that a man as dedicated to single-minded destruction as was Paddock, would obey any regulatory laws. No, in fact he probably did, when convenient for him obey laws regarding guns.
No, anti-2nd amendment fools, anxious to give up other peoples rights to accommodate their own self-centered fears, exploit every gun related event to confiscate firearms from responsible citizens despite the fact that we already have firearm regulations that are not being enforced and/or ignored by outlaw users.
The REAL reason for 2nd amendment rights is to insure that an armed government cannot subjugate its citizenry by overt force. The sympathies of gun banners simply believe that that such subjugation won't happen. It probably won't, but that because we have the 2nd amendment.

Anonymous said...

It's w-a-y past the time when effective gun control might once have been possible. Now, the NRA and the gun manufacturers and sellers have become the de facto "home-grown terrorists" in this country ... with some 90,000 to 100,000 people being injured annually by guns ... and some 35,000 to 40,000 being killed annually. The dead alone amount to some 96 to 110 DAILY !!! An excellent "kill ratio" for ANY organization of "terrorists" !!!

Anonymous said...

So the guy had 42 weapons, 23 with him in the hotel room (no doubt for "self Defence"...). These gun lobby lunatics get more crazy by the day as they babble on about self defence over the bodies of close on 600 dead and wounded citizens in this incident alone.

Cole said...

I know the second amendment allows people in this country to have the right to bear arms but from my perspective one person shouldn't own 3000 weapons. It's extremely excessive. Moreover, some states don't even require a background check to purchase a handgun ( For instance Virginia doesn't require a background check to buy firearms). The store might sell a gun to an unstable individual. I know the second amendment will never be reversed. However,each state can implement their own gun laws. Unfortunately, this Las Vegas tragedy won't be the last one.





Unknown said...

I agree with above comment 100% . It’s a common sense to allow people to own certain number of guns for protection 1or 2 perhaps, NRA don’t see it that way, they want more guns to be sold to people and be easily accessible like oranges in a supermarket. The saddest thing is however, they have a power of cash and vote. Politicians are so much afraid of them. Think about this, the last gun control legislation was passed by congress in 1994,( assault weapon ban )and was supposed to be renewed every 10 years, George Bush let it expired in 2004. However, local legislatures in the west and southern states are extremely active in passing pro-guns laws. If you look at the polls vast majority of Americans -over 80% -support background checks for gun purchases, but Congress won’t move legislatively because of NRA. It’s funny that this gun control debate emerges every time when there is mass shooting then it dies out without any action. Truly ,this tragedy is not the last one ,its only a matter of time before the next one.