IIn 1764, kids in a school were scalped.
In 1898, an 8 year old student was stabbed to death.
In 1927, a school board member set up dynamite in an elementary school and blew a portion of it up (if I remember correctly, he had more rigged, but they failed, so that is why only part of the school blew up). 45 dead, 28 injured.
In 1940, a 3rd grade student was stabbed to death.
In 1944, a student held down another student while a third student stabbed her to death.
In 1959, a parent detonated a bomb in the school yard during recess, killing 6, injuring 19.
In 1961, a 14 year old student sexually assaulted his teacher and then stabbed her to death.
In 1964, a student in Germany turned an insecticide sprayer in to a flame thrower and killed 11, injured 22.
In 1970, Israeli Air Force bombed a school, killing 46, injuring more than 50.
In 1977, a guy ran in to a school and killed 4 kids, one adult, with a machete.
In 1982, a guy entered a kindergarten in China, stabbing everyone. 5 died, 43 injured.
In 1983, a guy attacked a nursery, hacking up 3 people and injuring 2 others.
In 1986, a man and his wife took hostages at a school and their bomb went off, killing 2 and injuring 79.
In 1994, a psycho with a club beat 4 kids to death in a school.
In 1996, a man slashed kids and teachers with a machete at a school holding a picnic.
In 1996, a man set a 6 year old student on fire.
In 1998, a teacher stabbed 2 kids, injured 15.
In 1998, a teacher stabbed 8 students, 3 teachers, at a school in Hungary.
In 1998, a man in China stabbed 23 elementary kids.
In 1999, a man entered a school and chopped 3 students to death with a meat clever in Latvia.
In 1999, a man intentionally drove his car in to a school playground and killed 2 kids, injured 4.
In 2001, a man slashed a principal and two teachers with a machete, as well as injuring several kindergarten students.
In 2001, 4 students were stabbed in the neck in an elementary school.
In 2001, a janitor in Japan stabbed to death 8 kids, injured 15.
In 2002, a man in Korea injured 10 kids with a knife.
In 2002, a man in China stabbed and killed 5 elementary kids.
In 2003, a man in China stabbed and killed 4 elementary kids, and 4 teachers.
In 2004, an 11 year old girl in Japan killed another student by slashing her throat.
In 2004 in China, a man with a knife and explosives injured 28 kindergarten students.
In 2004, a man in China stabbed 25 students with a kitchen knife.
In 2004 in China, a primary school teacher killed 4 kids with a knife, injured 9 other kids and 3 teachers.
In 2004 in China, a man injured 12 students with a knife.
In 2005 in Japan, a 17 year old stabbed stabbed 3 teachers.
In 2005 in Japan, a teacher stabbed a student to death.
In 2006 in China, a man entered a kindergarten, sprayed the floor with gas, and set them on fire, killing 12 kids, injuring 4 students and teachers.
In 2006 in China, a man hacked his aunt, went to a school, and stabbed a 3rd grader to death.
In 2007 in China, a man stabbed 4 students, killing 1, aged 9.
In 2007 in China, a man threw students out of a window, killing one, aged 9.
In 2008, in Afghanistan, 15 students and teachers had acid thrown on them.
In 2009 in Belgium, a woman entered a kindergarten, stabbed 4 people, two babies included, and injured 12.
In 2009 in China, a woman killed 2 primary school students with a kitchen knife, injured two more.
In 2010 in China, 8 students were hacked to death with a machete, 5 injured.
In 2010 in China, 2 students were killed with a meat cleaver, 5 injured.
In 2010 in China, 17 were injured from getting stabbed at a primary school.
In 2010 in China, 29 kids, 2 teachers and a security guard were stabbed at a kindergarten.
In 2010 in China, a man broke through the gate with his motorcycle, injured 5 students with a hammer, and almost put two kids on fire (the kids were pulled away before he could do it and he ended up only setting himself on fire)
In 2010 in China, a man killed 7 students with a meat cleaver, injured 11.
In 2010 in China, a man killed 3 kids, injured 3 more, and 4 teachers, with a knife.
In 2010 in the Philippines, a 4 year old student was stabbed to death, 4 other kids wounded.
In 2011 in China, a woman injured 8 students by slashing them with a box cutter.
In 2011 in South Africa, a teacher was hacked to death with a machete in front of his class by his brother.
Let's use China as our example. Here is the sum of gun possession in China:
Gun ownership in the People's Republic of China is heavily regulated by law. Generally, private citizens are not allowed to possess guns.Guns can be used by law enforcement, the military and paramilitary, and security personnel protecting property of state importance (including the arms industry, financial institutions, storage of resources, and scientific research institutions).
Civilian ownership of guns is largely restricted to authorised, non-individual entities, including sporting organisations, authorised hunting reserves and wild life protection, management and research organizations. The chief exception to the general ban for individual gun ownership is for the purpose of hunting.
Individuals who hold hunting permits can apply to purchase and hold firearms for the purpose of hunting. Illegal possession or sale of firearms may result in a minimum punishment of 3 years in prison, with the maximum being the death penalty.
Gun ownership in Hong Kong and Macau is tightly controlled and possession is mainly in the hands of law enforcement, military, and private security firms (providing protection for jewelers and banks). Still, possessing, manufacturing and import/exporting airsoft guns with a muzzle energy not above two joules of kinetic energy is legal to citizens in China's SARs.
Firearms control was inherited during British and Portuguese rule and more or less retained today. Under the Section 13 of Cap 238 Firearms and Ammunition Ordinance of the Hong Kong law, unrestricted firearms and ammunition requires a license. Those found in possession without a license could be fined HKD$100,000 and imprisonment for up to 14 years
Now let's take another look at the list of non-gun related attacks and see how many occurred in China.
Banning guns will not prevent people from committing murder. They will just find other weapons to use. A gun is 'faster and easier', sure, but, it is not the only option. If you know how to use a weapon properly, ANY weapon can be fast, easy and very dangerous. Just like if someone knows how to use their hands and feet in a fight. They will be more dangerous than a person who doesn't know how to be quick and accurate.
Let's also think about illegal drugs. How's that holding out? Oh, right, people are still obtaining drugs and ODing on them.
I totally understand the way people look at guns. I don't think it is by any means a far fetched conclusion, but, IMO, people always jump to that conclusion without ever thinking of the full situation.
In pretty much all of the examples I gave, those people were mentally ill.
Weapons don't kill people. You need someone with a problem to use those weapons maliciously.
The man who killed those kids yesterday suffered from multiple personality disorder.
I don't give a shit how 'innocent' your mental illness is. This guy could have been a real nice guy as Adam, but a real tool as Johnny. Just because people saw nice guy Adam most of the time doesn't mean he is okay. Anyone with a mental illness should be in some kind of institution.
Using the nurse from the Kate Middleton prank, everyone loves to jump on the DJs, but they fail to look at this woman's mental state. A normal person like you and I would be embarrassed. Most people would. Anyone who actually goes off and kills themselves had something else going on. She already had issues and that prank was 'the last straw'.
All about mentalities, not weapons, and the stupid media flaunting these things for the next psycho to up the ante so he can get all over the news.