Less than half of Americans support stricter gun laws.

[acalix]

http://www.gallup.com/poll/179045/less-half-americans-support-stricter-gun-laws.aspx

Didn't 90% support gun control? What happened?

[Duckhunter935]

1. and it is dropping

any day now, right......

[safeinOhio]

2. Events

Will decide public opinion.

[discntnt_irny_srcsm]

3. But, hopefully...

...reason will drive legislation.

[ileus]

4. That's how we get emotion based laws that cause everyone to lose.

Last edited Mon Nov 3, 2014, 10:06 AM - Edit history (1)

[safeinOhio]

5. God, Guns and Gays

get rural politicians elected already. A little balance with checks on private sales and no one loses.

[safeinOhio]

6. We'll see what the voters

in the state of Washington say tomorrow. That will be the only poll that counts.

[gejohnston]

7. Yes, but are they informed voters?

the actual proposal is actually 18 pages, which the average voter has no idea about. For example,
Bloomberg poured $10M in TV propaganda alone. That doesn't count Gates or anyone else. Local grassroots efforts can't even match that.
Either you believe big money distorts the democratic process or you don't. There can't be one standard for the Kochs and another for Bloomberg or anyone else. Doing that would be hypocrisy or cognitive dissonance.
http://sos.wa.gov/_assets/elections/initiatives/FinalText_483.pdf

http://ballotpedia.org/Washington_Universal_Background_Checks_for_Gun_Purchases,_Initiative_594_(2014)

[safeinOhio]

9. Just puts a dent in

NRA propaganda.

[gejohnston]

10. except that

people who are affected (especially if they are the only ones) have every right to tell their side. Personally, I always side with grassroots with facts and reason on their side and always against sexist authoritarian billionaires and their Monsanto sidekicks who just make shit up for personal power and culture war.

[safeinOhio]

11. Like the NRA?

[gejohnston]

8. but rural people don't care about gays

at least in my part of rural America. When this happened, the conversation stayed on wolf re introduction and wild horses in the checkboard (this one where ranchers sided with the BLM and wild horse lovers, not so much)

[safeinOhio]

12. Less than half of Americans support stricter gun laws.

So much for Gallup polls and those that don't read them carefully.
Gun control issue pass in Washington State on Nov 4.


Welcome to DU

[kioa]

13. And the Democratic Party was walloped.

Once again showing that gun controllers put their pet issue over the well-being of the party.

It looks like we both agree; 2014-like 1994-belongs to the gun controllers.
Congratulations.
I'll be sure to remind the party of it as often as I can!

[safeinOhio]

14. Oh, really.

The results were because of low turn out, nothing to do with gun control. Along with the results in Washington state, we now see what happens when not only tea idiots vote.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/12/us/colorado-ousts-pro-gun-republicans-showing-effect-of-turnout.html?_r=0

Welcome to DU.

[kioa]

20. You mean promising the American people that Democratic candidates will take away their rights

didn't motivate the American people to vote for Democratic candidates?

Color me shocked.

[friendly_iconoclast]

24. "(W)e now see what happens when not only tea idiots vote."

Yeah, Republicans take over the Colorado state Senate.

Some "win"...

[safeinOhio]

25. You saying those republican voters

voted against gun advocates? About time.

[friendly_iconoclast]

26. Winning two seats back while losing the majority is only a victory if...

...you're the Black Knight:

[marble falls]

15. Point out one election that flipped on gun control.

[sir pball]

16. NY State Senate

I'm not going to say the SAFE Act was the only reason the chamber turned red, but it was sure a pretty good rallying point for upstate voters. Doubt it will be repealed, it's not a veto-proof majority, but it's sure as hell going to derail a lot of good legislation.

Not that Cuomo will mind a reason to be "fiscally responsible"..

[marble falls]

17. Like you pointed out, it was the issue or even one of a few issues.

[sir pball]

19. It sure didn't help, though

There were a few races that were explicitly framed in terms of the act and I'm pretty sure they all ended up as R wins.

In my anecdotal, residential, experience, there were a LOT of lawn signs upstate specifically mentioning it, none in a positive way. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if it was in fact the single deciding catalyst to get Rs out to vote, even if there were other issues of interest to them - not like Cuomo has been too bad to them otherwise.

[kioa]

21. Name one issue that lead to the recall or resignation

of three Democratic Senators.
Name one issue where 33% of Democrats supported the recall of Democrats. http://coloradopeakpolitics.com/2013/09/11/nerdfight-nate-silver-savages-ppp-for-suppressing-giron-recall-poll-results/


We don't have to speculate anymore; the results are in.
Now all you have to decide is if you prefer gun control or a Democratic majority; you're not getting both.
The Democratic Party will be making that same choice & I am confident they will chose to be a national party in leiu of a coastal regional party.

The control-freak Bloomberg-supported authoritarian wing of the party proved -once again- that they are political dinosaurs.
Climb out of the tar-pit. Join the winning team.

[jimmy the one]

22. where oh where have the pheph nuts gone?

kioa: Now all you have to decide is if you prefer gun control or a Democratic majority; you're not getting both.

Oh where oh where are the progun post hoc ergo propter hoc adherents? Notably silent on this, why?

You are equating gun control issue with the repub wins, that's like a violation of the old 'correlation does not prove causation' law some of us are well familiar with. (It does not rule it out either, but does not prove it).

Here in pennsy, democrat guncontrol supporter gov tom wolfe defeated repub tom Corbett, about the only gov pickup I know of tho, but pennsy has the highest nra membership per capita iirc, in the country. Looks like nra & progunnuts didn't affect much in pennsy picking a governor.

kioa: The control-freak Bloomberg-supported authoritarian wing of the party proved -once again- that they are political dinosaurs.
Climb out of the tar-pit. Join the winning team.

We're not in any tar pit, just the wrong end of a political pendulum swing.
And democrats still support gun control efforts by approx. 4 to 1, so it seems you might be on the wrong end of our political pendulum.

(I will probably not be able to reply to this, hibernating as the cold wave hits northeast).

[kioa]

23. The pendulum swing has been swung in the direction of increased individual liberties for decades.

Thats not changing anytime nor is it any different with support for gun rights.
Gun control has lost support while gun rights has gained support for over 20 years.
Gun contro had 78% support in 1990, now its 47%.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/1645/guns.aspx

In 1959 the publi supported a handgun ban 60%-36%, by 2011 it had more than flipped to opposing a handgun ban 73%-26%.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/150341/record-low-favor-handgun-ban.aspx

You had your opportunity.
It passed you by about the same time as support for Jim Crow passed by.

If you feel like reminising on those days rightly passed by, feel free to listen to some Laurence Welk in your tar-pit, but meanwhile those of us that support individual rights will continue to move forward.

"democrats still support gun control efforts by 4-to-1"
You know what happens when a party alienates a fifth of their base?
They get their ass kicked.
As demonstrated by the humiliating failures of 1994 & 2014.
But don't take my word for it-just ask Hudak, Morse, Braley or any of the other newly unemployed Democratic candidates your pet issue created.

"Here in Pennsylvania..."
The GOP gained 3 seats in the state Senate & have a majority in both the House & the Senate.
Some 'winner' you got there....
Tell you what, you convince the party that gun control played a part in the 2014 midterms, and I promise I will do the exact same thing.

[madville]

18. It all depends on the poll questions

Do you support universal background checks on firearm purchased? 90% yes sounds legitimate.

Other gun control related questions may get 20/40/50/etc% support, when people throw that "90% support gun control" number out it is rarely applicable to the issue or discussion since that specific poll was about one specific issue at that time.