RalfTheDog
Apr 8, 01:20 PM
Yeah, that makes a little more sense. But what....iPad2 accessories?
I still have a hard time buying their reason.
As I said above, they will probably use it to sell something they can't move. My guess, "Purchase a Windows 7 phone, we will let you buy an iPad 2."
I still have a hard time buying their reason.
As I said above, they will probably use it to sell something they can't move. My guess, "Purchase a Windows 7 phone, we will let you buy an iPad 2."
sunfast
Sep 12, 07:37 AM
Does this mean we won't be seeing iTunes 7.0? I mean if they were releasing a new iTunes wouldn't they make the changes on the new release?
I might be getting confused here - but isn't the music store just a web thingy and not part of the software? i.e. store and media player distinct, though interlinked
I might be getting confused here - but isn't the music store just a web thingy and not part of the software? i.e. store and media player distinct, though interlinked
rdowns
Apr 12, 06:21 PM
What a joke this illusion of airport security is.
Video shows young girl receiving full pat-down from TSA (http://www.boston.com/travel/blog/2011/04/video_shows_you.html)
The TSA's pat-down policy has been widely criticized, but a video that popped up on YouTube today illustrates the possibly absurd levels to which agents take the process.
Here's a clip of what is said to be a six-year-old girl receiving a full pat-down from a TSA agent, who then apparently leads her to another area of the security checkpoint to perform a drug test. It's not clear whether the girl's parents elected not to put their child through a body scan, however the opening moments of the video do show a woman, believed to be the girl's mother, asking the TSA agent, "Can't you just re-scan her?"
Video shows young girl receiving full pat-down from TSA (http://www.boston.com/travel/blog/2011/04/video_shows_you.html)
The TSA's pat-down policy has been widely criticized, but a video that popped up on YouTube today illustrates the possibly absurd levels to which agents take the process.
Here's a clip of what is said to be a six-year-old girl receiving a full pat-down from a TSA agent, who then apparently leads her to another area of the security checkpoint to perform a drug test. It's not clear whether the girl's parents elected not to put their child through a body scan, however the opening moments of the video do show a woman, believed to be the girl's mother, asking the TSA agent, "Can't you just re-scan her?"
Mikeadelic
Apr 6, 06:54 AM
There's another, much more messed up story (http://www.slashgear.com/apple-rejects-iphone-app-for-lack-of-functionality-later-releases-app-with-same-functionality-itself-06144635/) behind this app. For those too lazy to click on the link, basically Apple decided to reject a third-party app that has the same functionality as the iAd Gallery for -- get this -- "lack of functionality". Then it turns around and develops the exact same app.
If what Apple has done here doesn't demonstrate anti-competitiveness, then I don't know what does.
If what Apple has done here doesn't demonstrate anti-competitiveness, then I don't know what does.
more...
definitive
Apr 15, 03:51 PM
why even bother posting these fake pictures?
monochrome noise filter in photoshop, anyone?
monochrome noise filter in photoshop, anyone?
lazyrighteye
Oct 6, 04:03 PM
I have used every major U.S. carrier except Sprint. I have used every iteration of iPhone since the original's launch date - which also represented my 1st experience with AT&T.
Until the 1st iPhone 3G, I had no issues with AT&T and their Edge network - namely because it's speed (or lack there of) was all we iPhone users knew at the time. Often calling AT&T my favorite service provider to date. And at the time, that was true. But once the 1st iPhone 3G hit, it started to become apparent that AT&T's network was not up to task. And as the popularity of the device grew, so too did my frustration with AT&T's network.
Living in Denver, CO, my (and several other users I know) 3G experience has been so poor, my dropped call frequency so high, that I had (yes, past tense - I'm getting there) disabled 3G most of the time. Of the two places I spend 80% of my life - work & home - neither offered a scenario that allowed me to use my iPhone for sending/receiving phone calls (let alone data). Zero bars of 3G and maybe a nub of Edge. At best. And that's having a giant AT&T logo'd tower in line-of-sight of my house and STILL can't send/receive phone calls form home. And mine and my wife's iPhones our only phones, this has been a really big problem for us. and what's been almost more frustrating than dropping all of my calls has been that all along I have upheld my end of the bargain. Every month, in full & on time, I pay our 2-iPhone Family Plan. But AT&T has not upheld their end of the bargain. A major aspect of the device, 3G, is virtually unusable to users in Denver (and other major markets). Dozens of fairly cordial calls (yes, I've been told by an AT&T rep that I'm "always polite" and that "yes, we do denote callers' behavior") to AT&T yielded the same, "we're sorry" replies. One even crediting my account for a full month of service. Nice, but that doesn't make my phone work any better. Another call to AT&T, that dropped, saw the rep called back to leave me a 4-minute message about how sorry she was about my horrible experience. Saying, on record, that their network "sucked," that they receive "a lot of calls about this from their iPhone customers." Even offering me the option to walk from my contract sans penalty. And that's when it hit me... wow - if one of AT&T's contingency plans is to bad mouth their own network and then allow iPhone customers to break their contracts, then this was a much larger issue than I realized.
And all of that set up was meant to paint a picture. One that many of you are all too familiar with. Same story, different city. So, with as much AT&T bashing as I have done over the past couple of years, I think it only fair/I'm happy to report that it appears AT&T has fixed their 3G issue in Denver. Monday morning, I woke to 5 glorious bars of 3G at home. I even shut down my iPhone & rebooted to make sure it was really there. Sure enough, glory! And from work I was able to make several phone calls with no issue. Confused by a functional AT&T network, I called AT&T and asked why everything was working. With a chuckle, the rep sad it appeared the network was upgraded in my area (seemed a canned line, but hey - I'll take it.). So here I am - day 2 of full 3G service at home, at work, all over town. Sounds silly, but it's really nice when your network... works. Considering my only gripe with my iPhone experience has been the service provider (yeah, a big gripe), it now appears the Denver's coverage is finally working as advertised. While the rep wasn't able to uncover exactly what "your network was updated" meant, I wonder if it's the new spectrum upgrade we've been hearing/reading about? Any other Denver (or other troubled markets) users notice the improved, read: functinoal, AT&T network? Pretty nice, eh?
So when I saw the Verizon "Coverage Maps" commercial Monday eve, it was oddly refrehing to find I wasn't yelling "YEAH! STUPID AT&T!" while waving my fist at the tv and instead able to turn off said tv and call my recently widowed mother who lives 2,000 miles from Denver - something I hadn't been able to do, from home, in 2 years. Ahh the simple pleasures...
Here's hope others' coverage improves as well.
Until the 1st iPhone 3G, I had no issues with AT&T and their Edge network - namely because it's speed (or lack there of) was all we iPhone users knew at the time. Often calling AT&T my favorite service provider to date. And at the time, that was true. But once the 1st iPhone 3G hit, it started to become apparent that AT&T's network was not up to task. And as the popularity of the device grew, so too did my frustration with AT&T's network.
Living in Denver, CO, my (and several other users I know) 3G experience has been so poor, my dropped call frequency so high, that I had (yes, past tense - I'm getting there) disabled 3G most of the time. Of the two places I spend 80% of my life - work & home - neither offered a scenario that allowed me to use my iPhone for sending/receiving phone calls (let alone data). Zero bars of 3G and maybe a nub of Edge. At best. And that's having a giant AT&T logo'd tower in line-of-sight of my house and STILL can't send/receive phone calls form home. And mine and my wife's iPhones our only phones, this has been a really big problem for us. and what's been almost more frustrating than dropping all of my calls has been that all along I have upheld my end of the bargain. Every month, in full & on time, I pay our 2-iPhone Family Plan. But AT&T has not upheld their end of the bargain. A major aspect of the device, 3G, is virtually unusable to users in Denver (and other major markets). Dozens of fairly cordial calls (yes, I've been told by an AT&T rep that I'm "always polite" and that "yes, we do denote callers' behavior") to AT&T yielded the same, "we're sorry" replies. One even crediting my account for a full month of service. Nice, but that doesn't make my phone work any better. Another call to AT&T, that dropped, saw the rep called back to leave me a 4-minute message about how sorry she was about my horrible experience. Saying, on record, that their network "sucked," that they receive "a lot of calls about this from their iPhone customers." Even offering me the option to walk from my contract sans penalty. And that's when it hit me... wow - if one of AT&T's contingency plans is to bad mouth their own network and then allow iPhone customers to break their contracts, then this was a much larger issue than I realized.
And all of that set up was meant to paint a picture. One that many of you are all too familiar with. Same story, different city. So, with as much AT&T bashing as I have done over the past couple of years, I think it only fair/I'm happy to report that it appears AT&T has fixed their 3G issue in Denver. Monday morning, I woke to 5 glorious bars of 3G at home. I even shut down my iPhone & rebooted to make sure it was really there. Sure enough, glory! And from work I was able to make several phone calls with no issue. Confused by a functional AT&T network, I called AT&T and asked why everything was working. With a chuckle, the rep sad it appeared the network was upgraded in my area (seemed a canned line, but hey - I'll take it.). So here I am - day 2 of full 3G service at home, at work, all over town. Sounds silly, but it's really nice when your network... works. Considering my only gripe with my iPhone experience has been the service provider (yeah, a big gripe), it now appears the Denver's coverage is finally working as advertised. While the rep wasn't able to uncover exactly what "your network was updated" meant, I wonder if it's the new spectrum upgrade we've been hearing/reading about? Any other Denver (or other troubled markets) users notice the improved, read: functinoal, AT&T network? Pretty nice, eh?
So when I saw the Verizon "Coverage Maps" commercial Monday eve, it was oddly refrehing to find I wasn't yelling "YEAH! STUPID AT&T!" while waving my fist at the tv and instead able to turn off said tv and call my recently widowed mother who lives 2,000 miles from Denver - something I hadn't been able to do, from home, in 2 years. Ahh the simple pleasures...
Here's hope others' coverage improves as well.
more...
mandis
Aug 7, 07:29 PM
Woooohoooo! Now the 20" ACDs go for around �410.00 (with edu discount)!! ;)
I'm buying two in September!! :D
I'm buying two in September!! :D
AtHomeBoy_2000
Sep 28, 01:23 PM
All pocket doors. Very interesting.
more...
Garion
Apr 16, 11:09 PM
why do music companies make it so difficult to distribute their music? weird.
Because, strange as it sounds, the music business still haven't realized their business is selling music. They still think their business is selling CDs. So whenever they sell an album as a download they think of it as a lost sale of a CD. Weird indeed.
Because, strange as it sounds, the music business still haven't realized their business is selling music. They still think their business is selling CDs. So whenever they sell an album as a download they think of it as a lost sale of a CD. Weird indeed.
needthephone
Apr 15, 05:43 PM
As much as I like google as a company, as with everything they start I'm sure they will never finish this. I've come to believe google is incapable of releasing a complete, polished project. But maybe I'm just bitter since I own a 40" google tv that is virtually incapable of doing anything worth doing on a tv.
Exactly, I totally agree and have said this before (only to be shot down in flames mind!)
Google hardly every leaves anything stable long enough, its always just about to be finished, always in beta. They always put a disclaimer and never accept any responsibility, hey its just beta use at your own risk.
Google is great and have to be admired just that I wouldn't use them for anything other than adsense or searching the internet
Exactly, I totally agree and have said this before (only to be shot down in flames mind!)
Google hardly every leaves anything stable long enough, its always just about to be finished, always in beta. They always put a disclaimer and never accept any responsibility, hey its just beta use at your own risk.
Google is great and have to be admired just that I wouldn't use them for anything other than adsense or searching the internet
more...
roadbloc
Apr 9, 07:39 AM
From what I've heard of Windows 8 so far, I am impressed that Microsoft are back on the ball in terms of features that users want. A lot of the features coming in Windows 8 should either have been added ages ago, or are polished/expanded versions of something that existed in Windows for a long time, but was either poorly integrated or went stale due to no updates for it over the years. It will also be good to see a return of the Marketplace.
The idea of Live integration and the 'Ribbon' in explorer are the only things that put me off.
What disappoints me in Lion is the system requirements. It is massively bloated. Core2Duo and 2GB of RAM minimum is terrible. Even though my Mac is capable of running it, I'm still not impressed. Hopefully the Resume feature will kick ass so much that it will be worth it. Other than Resume and Versions, the rest of Lion's features are a big 'meh'.
The idea of Live integration and the 'Ribbon' in explorer are the only things that put me off.
What disappoints me in Lion is the system requirements. It is massively bloated. Core2Duo and 2GB of RAM minimum is terrible. Even though my Mac is capable of running it, I'm still not impressed. Hopefully the Resume feature will kick ass so much that it will be worth it. Other than Resume and Versions, the rest of Lion's features are a big 'meh'.
wmmk
Aug 14, 11:44 AM
You're telling me they haven't recouped costs for designing the things yet? Or that we should always have to pay..
Of course they've recouped costs for designing products. My point is, if one product has superior design, there is high demand for it. Considering that the global economy is based on supply & demand, well designed products will always cost more than poorly designed products, unless the creator of the product with superior design chooses to discount their product to gain market share and popularity.
Of course they've recouped costs for designing products. My point is, if one product has superior design, there is high demand for it. Considering that the global economy is based on supply & demand, well designed products will always cost more than poorly designed products, unless the creator of the product with superior design chooses to discount their product to gain market share and popularity.
more...
saving107
Apr 15, 05:44 PM
Do more research on Tim. Steve picks the target. Tim delivers the system.:apple:
agreed.
The Verizon iPhone deal was all Tim Cook, even before Steve Jobs took his medical leave, it was reported that Steve Jobs had little involvement with that deal.
agreed.
The Verizon iPhone deal was all Tim Cook, even before Steve Jobs took his medical leave, it was reported that Steve Jobs had little involvement with that deal.
scu
Oct 20, 05:51 PM
Whoa dude. Good for you, but you are playing a *very, very* dangerous game leveraging that much. You don't know what could happen in the stock market. It might not have anything to do with Apple - it could be another terrorist attack in the U.S., or some other world-shaking event overseas (e.g. coup in Russia, revolts in China).
Don't do it, man. You're already making money on Apple stock - don't get greedy. Let me give you a cautionary tale: in 2000 my stock portfolio went from $100,000 to $30,000 in a matter of days. Not because the market went down by 70%, but rather because I was buying heavily on margin and the market went down by 20 or 30% or more in a few days (more in the tech stocks I owned). And I did *not* own any dot-bomb stocks. I invested in solid tech companies that are still doing well today, like BEA and IBM. The drop in stock price had *nothing* to do with the fundamental strength of the company or even their recent performance. It was just a market-wide overreaction. Give it some serious thought, man...
P.S. Since then, I've basically only invested in market-indexed funds (mostly S&P 500 but also some international funds since countries like India and China are growing faster than U.S.). I figure if I'm gonna get rich it's going to be based on what's happening in my career/professional life, not based on any investments. I just don't need the grief of seein my hard-earned cash flushed down the drain because of events I have no control over.
Yes I know it is risky. But my Margin Equity is 53% and I can not see it going down any time soon.
Don't do it, man. You're already making money on Apple stock - don't get greedy. Let me give you a cautionary tale: in 2000 my stock portfolio went from $100,000 to $30,000 in a matter of days. Not because the market went down by 70%, but rather because I was buying heavily on margin and the market went down by 20 or 30% or more in a few days (more in the tech stocks I owned). And I did *not* own any dot-bomb stocks. I invested in solid tech companies that are still doing well today, like BEA and IBM. The drop in stock price had *nothing* to do with the fundamental strength of the company or even their recent performance. It was just a market-wide overreaction. Give it some serious thought, man...
P.S. Since then, I've basically only invested in market-indexed funds (mostly S&P 500 but also some international funds since countries like India and China are growing faster than U.S.). I figure if I'm gonna get rich it's going to be based on what's happening in my career/professional life, not based on any investments. I just don't need the grief of seein my hard-earned cash flushed down the drain because of events I have no control over.
Yes I know it is risky. But my Margin Equity is 53% and I can not see it going down any time soon.
more...
mj_1903
Oct 21, 04:24 AM
Dividends, yes that would be a good idea, what with $10 billion in cash on hand. Microsoft finally decided that their cash horde was becoming a bit of an embarrassment and declared one.
Microsoft only paid a dividend when their share growth stagnated.
Apple on the other hand has had stellar share growth recently so there is really no need to pay dividends.
Microsoft only paid a dividend when their share growth stagnated.
Apple on the other hand has had stellar share growth recently so there is really no need to pay dividends.
SMM
Jan 12, 04:12 PM
Yeah. I love the products but I loathe the man. Then again I'm just a regular user and not one of those scary MacDroids. You know, the ones with the blank stare, the ones that repeat mantras about Windows viruses and the dreaded blue screen of death... some even believe Windows gives you AIDS. They're kind of like scientologists or Jehova's Witnesses. But you gotta keep in mind those were the ones he was addressing, as always. Hence the smugness. The Keynote is his church and he is their god. Notice the constant applause and cheering over stuff like, oh, some new button or menu item. Mac will always be my second platform because these people just scare the poop out of me.
Whatever you are attempting to sell is failing the 'smell' test (if you follow me). You do not know the man I am fairly certain. I am always suspicious about how well screwed on people are, who see others as mindless droids and cannot keep their bowel movements under control. :confused:
Whatever you are attempting to sell is failing the 'smell' test (if you follow me). You do not know the man I am fairly certain. I am always suspicious about how well screwed on people are, who see others as mindless droids and cannot keep their bowel movements under control. :confused:
more...
BornAgainMac
Apr 5, 03:20 PM
I was expecting someone to submit this app idea a long time ago with a fart / flashlight app.
Mars478
Mar 17, 05:53 PM
Oh my god... you jealous people always find a way to criticize someone... Seriously, this forum disgusts me sometimes.
JohnnyQuest
Mar 17, 01:03 AM
The fact that you feel good about yourself after doing this, to the point where you come on here to gloat, speaks volumes about your character.
Pretty grotesque.
Pretty grotesque.
Becordial
Apr 16, 08:44 AM
First off, it's supposedly a picture of the next-gen phone, it's not going to have the same rocker as the current or previous model. My 3G doesn't have the same switch as the first-gen iPhone.
Second, it's supposedly photos of the CASE, not the whole phone.
And, as someone pointed out in the MacRumors thread with these pictures, there's no space for the camera flash, which the next-gen phone supposedly will have, as there are things pointing to it in the OS 4.0 Beta. They're most likely fakes. Not the best ones, but certainly not terrible either.
What about if the Apple logo lights up white briefly to act as the inbuilt flash?
Second, it's supposedly photos of the CASE, not the whole phone.
And, as someone pointed out in the MacRumors thread with these pictures, there's no space for the camera flash, which the next-gen phone supposedly will have, as there are things pointing to it in the OS 4.0 Beta. They're most likely fakes. Not the best ones, but certainly not terrible either.
What about if the Apple logo lights up white briefly to act as the inbuilt flash?
Chip NoVaMac
Mar 9, 11:06 PM
It's Apple's philosophy. It comes down to building priorities around it and executing on them.
<snip>
It's not marketing-speak or hyperbole for the camera. It's an artist speaking about his work. Can you identify with this?
Apple operates from a completely different place and mindset from everyone else.
Why?
Simple. They actually give a damn about the User Experience. They understand that tech is used by PEOPLE, and people have lives to get on with. So . . . simplify, simplify, simplify; cut, cut cut; and then work to perfect what's left over.
That's the beauty of it. It's very Zen. Perfection - or rather, sublimity - is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing more to take away.
Why doesn't the competition do this or think this way?
1) Their priority is to make as much money in as little time as possible and to do it as cheaply as possible.
2) They're stupid.
Most of the time, #1 happens because of #2.
And there is no cure for #2.
Very well put... it is Apple's attention to the user experience that keeps us buying Apple products that we never knew we wanted or needed. Only time will tell if Steve Jobs is/was the visionary that brought Apple to the heights it now enjoys. IMO he is... he brought Apple back from near bankruptcy.
To be honest, I yawned when the first iPod was released. But then I finally bit the "Apple" and was won over. Smartphones left me wanting. Tried the Windows and Palm smartphones and they left me wanting. Till I got the 1st gen iPhone. This was what I expected a smartphone to be like. Three years later I upgraded to the iPhone 4.
To be blunt, there have been some misses. The first ATV was nice but could not see it for the price and the limits it had out of the box. But the ATV2 gave me what I was looking for at a price that made it a no brainer for me.
Some call me an Apple fanboy. To me that is not fair. Some feel that Apple offers products that exists in a closed system that Apple controls, and that is true. But it is that closed system that I believe helps in some ways the user experience and safety from malware.
And in some ways it hurts the user experience at the same time. Example is with ATV2 and Netflix. I can not search for GLBT titles from ATV2 as a genre.
Is Apple perfect in their business model? No, but I am willing to accept it for the overall user experience....
<snip>
It's not marketing-speak or hyperbole for the camera. It's an artist speaking about his work. Can you identify with this?
Apple operates from a completely different place and mindset from everyone else.
Why?
Simple. They actually give a damn about the User Experience. They understand that tech is used by PEOPLE, and people have lives to get on with. So . . . simplify, simplify, simplify; cut, cut cut; and then work to perfect what's left over.
That's the beauty of it. It's very Zen. Perfection - or rather, sublimity - is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing more to take away.
Why doesn't the competition do this or think this way?
1) Their priority is to make as much money in as little time as possible and to do it as cheaply as possible.
2) They're stupid.
Most of the time, #1 happens because of #2.
And there is no cure for #2.
Very well put... it is Apple's attention to the user experience that keeps us buying Apple products that we never knew we wanted or needed. Only time will tell if Steve Jobs is/was the visionary that brought Apple to the heights it now enjoys. IMO he is... he brought Apple back from near bankruptcy.
To be honest, I yawned when the first iPod was released. But then I finally bit the "Apple" and was won over. Smartphones left me wanting. Tried the Windows and Palm smartphones and they left me wanting. Till I got the 1st gen iPhone. This was what I expected a smartphone to be like. Three years later I upgraded to the iPhone 4.
To be blunt, there have been some misses. The first ATV was nice but could not see it for the price and the limits it had out of the box. But the ATV2 gave me what I was looking for at a price that made it a no brainer for me.
Some call me an Apple fanboy. To me that is not fair. Some feel that Apple offers products that exists in a closed system that Apple controls, and that is true. But it is that closed system that I believe helps in some ways the user experience and safety from malware.
And in some ways it hurts the user experience at the same time. Example is with ATV2 and Netflix. I can not search for GLBT titles from ATV2 as a genre.
Is Apple perfect in their business model? No, but I am willing to accept it for the overall user experience....
WeegieMac
Mar 18, 02:55 AM
But people actually seem to hate Apple because they can't afford their products. Most of them admitted that had the iPhone been cheaper they'd buy one, hence they can't afford it so they are bitter.
Nail. Hit. On. The. Head.
In personal experience, most of the Apple "haters" I've known have fallen into the category if they could afford an Apple product, then they wouldn't hate.
Hating something is easier than openly admitting "I want that but cannot afford it", so by creating a hate figure out of the company/products, it makes it easier for the person to "accept" that they will never own the product they secretly lust after.
Nail. Hit. On. The. Head.
In personal experience, most of the Apple "haters" I've known have fallen into the category if they could afford an Apple product, then they wouldn't hate.
Hating something is easier than openly admitting "I want that but cannot afford it", so by creating a hate figure out of the company/products, it makes it easier for the person to "accept" that they will never own the product they secretly lust after.
Rot'nApple
Mar 24, 04:08 PM
Gelukkige Verjaarsdag, كل عام و أنت بخير, Ծնունդդ շնորհավոր, З днём нараджэння, Sretan rođendan, 生日快樂, V�echno nejlep�� k narozenin�m!, Fijne Verjaardag, Joyeux anniversaire, Alles Gute zum Geburtstag, Buon compleanno, お誕生日おめでとうございます, qoSlIj DatIvjaj, 생일축하합니다, Felix dies natalis, Vill Gl�ck fir d�i Gebuertsdag!, Gratulerer med dagen, С днем рождения, �feliz cumplea�os!, Grattis p� f�delsedagen, Ch�c mừng sinh nhật, Halala ngosuku lokuzalwa... :cool:
So many posts of "Happy Birthday", that one more would just get lost in the shuffle... So, how many ways can one say 'Happy Birthday (http://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/birthday.htm)'? Let me count the ways... :eek:
Happy Birthday Apple OS X... :) :apple:
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/
/
/
So many posts of "Happy Birthday", that one more would just get lost in the shuffle... So, how many ways can one say 'Happy Birthday (http://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/birthday.htm)'? Let me count the ways... :eek:
Happy Birthday Apple OS X... :) :apple:
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Lord Blackadder
May 5, 06:24 PM
If we were to implement restrictions it would have to be nation-wide, or else it would be too easily thwarted.
What do we do with the 200 million legally owned guns? Not to mention the unknown (but surely quite significant) number of illegally owned or stolen guns we can't even track?
I think any talk of a blanket ban is pure folly and ignores the reality of the situation.
The biggest problem is just how far apart people are on this issue. People with little or no exposure to guns generally fear them and support draconian bans; people who grew up surrounded by them are much more likely to support some level of gun ownership, but a vocal minority of them want to do away with most or all regulation. I think both extreme positions (seeking to ban most/all guns vs advocating little/no regulation) are unrealistic and need to be abandoned.
The NRA's current policy leans heavily towards automatic knee-jerk attacks towards any person or organization that might appear to criticise or question any aspect of firearms ownership, or to undertake any scientific study involving guns, safety, culture, crime, etc etc. Speaking as a gun owner myself, I think the NRA is a wayward, counterproductive organization that is far too combative and has strayed too far from their original purpose, becoming in the process a horrible caricature of itself. On the other hand, a large chunk of the anti-gun lobby consists of fearmongers who are themselves largely ignorant when it comes to firearms and prey on the ignorance and fear of people to gain support.
The whole political debate is broken, and I see no evidence that this will ever change. Both sides fear nothing more than concession to their opponent, so an eternal stalemate will continue.
The OP is an example of just how far from reality the "gun debate" in this country has strayed.
What do we do with the 200 million legally owned guns? Not to mention the unknown (but surely quite significant) number of illegally owned or stolen guns we can't even track?
I think any talk of a blanket ban is pure folly and ignores the reality of the situation.
The biggest problem is just how far apart people are on this issue. People with little or no exposure to guns generally fear them and support draconian bans; people who grew up surrounded by them are much more likely to support some level of gun ownership, but a vocal minority of them want to do away with most or all regulation. I think both extreme positions (seeking to ban most/all guns vs advocating little/no regulation) are unrealistic and need to be abandoned.
The NRA's current policy leans heavily towards automatic knee-jerk attacks towards any person or organization that might appear to criticise or question any aspect of firearms ownership, or to undertake any scientific study involving guns, safety, culture, crime, etc etc. Speaking as a gun owner myself, I think the NRA is a wayward, counterproductive organization that is far too combative and has strayed too far from their original purpose, becoming in the process a horrible caricature of itself. On the other hand, a large chunk of the anti-gun lobby consists of fearmongers who are themselves largely ignorant when it comes to firearms and prey on the ignorance and fear of people to gain support.
The whole political debate is broken, and I see no evidence that this will ever change. Both sides fear nothing more than concession to their opponent, so an eternal stalemate will continue.
The OP is an example of just how far from reality the "gun debate" in this country has strayed.
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