MovieChat Forums > Runaway Jury (2003) Discussion > Good movie but lousy message

Good movie but lousy message


Whether you agree or disagree with gun control, what exactly was the grounds for the lawsuit. Yea they sold the guns to the guy who shot the people, but how does that make them neglegent? How would they know he would use the gun to kill people? Some guy even made the argument how some people kill other people with cars on purpose, and no one tries to sue the automobile company over that. Never heard a good rebuttal when that was brought up. If you dont like the gun laws, try to get them changed, but suing someone for doing something that was perfectly legal I have a problem with.

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I'm with you. Great cast, great acting, and a decent thriller until deteriorates into nothing but a political statement.

"Creasy's art is death... He's about to paint his masterpiece."

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Well the store that sold their guns was selling them by about 30 to 40 a month of semi automatic assault rifles to the same guy. That guy was the one selling them on the blackmarket and sold it to the guy who shot the people. Now i think where the grey area comes into play is that they should have been at least a little a suspicious and looked into why this one person was being sold 30 to 40 guns every month and what was becoming of their guns. Instead they rewarded the store owner by sending him on vacation. That was what the lawsuit was about. I know that anything can become a weapon but some are more intended for destruction that others. I think that was one of the other points. Now personally i'm undecided on whether the lawsuit is "justified" or not necessary. There are people who are trying to change gun laws but the NRA and lobbyist for them make it very difficult to make changes or at the very least make small changes as in having gun manufactuers keep an eye on extremely large purchases of guns on a frequent basis. I'm guessing a lawsuit on gun manufacturs would have more of an impact in that takes away from their revenue, damages their public image, and forces them to take some kind of action if they want to maintain a good image.

Now do correct me if i'm wrong or misinformed about anything i said, i'm not the most versed in the issue of control.

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[deleted]

A person can take someones life with almost any item if they want to. If i walk into a restaurant and take a fork off a table and kill someone does that mean the restaurant owes the victims family? Liberal thinking is that if you take away peoples personal responsability and redistribute wealth you can fix social ills.X

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With out all the political stuff (all through the far left doesn't help with their brand of Liberal McCarthyism) I asked someone who was ranting a similar question to yours:

If i was walking across the street and got nailed by some bimbo driving a BMW, texting, blasting Lady Gaga, and generally not paying attention to her surroundings. Who do I take to court? The woman, the wireless company, the person she was texting, Lady Gaga, BMW for making the perfect people hitting car?

Personally I don't see how anyone other than the person welding what ever it is that killed someone as the responsible party. But I guess the plan of the people in this movie was to go around from state to state to slowly rig juries so 'victims' can win their law suits. Until one day someone notices the same douche bag on every jury and every single court case is over turned and dude spends the rest of his life singing the Milk Shake Song in the showers.



Cry 'God for Harry, England, and Saint George!

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>Personally I don't see how anyone other than the person welding what ever it is that killed someone as the responsible party.

Agreed.

Ultimately, for me, the movie was about personal justice and the cynical, aloof air of people in society. That message came across in many ways, namely, that it was never about the law or even personal responsibility but merely about manipulating the numb masses.

The one thing I did not like, though, was the smiles exchanged between Nick, Marlee, and Rohr at the end. This seemed to send a message to me that condoned Nick and Marlee's actions.

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sorry but when someone combines Liberal McCarthyism and puts in parenthesis it makes anything else they say a completely mute point leaving only the impression of the close mindedness in the way they live their life.

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First off, I want to thank you for taking the time and effort the respond to my post. I think it is really swell that a great, brilliant, and all powerful gray cells, took the time and trouble to go off on someone in some effort to prove intelligence.

But you want to know why I am really thanking you? B/c you prove the point of someone how just skips through various threads and 'lays down the law' so to speak. How super,cool,keen, you must be to more or less spit out a standard emo kind of reply.

"Close mindedness?"
I have honestly, never heard that in a sentence before as an insult.
Close Minded, yes, Mindedness, this is the first.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJmuxRw1vqA&feature=colike

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As to your final point, I think the distiction is that "closed minded" is an adjective whereas "closed mindedness" is a noun. One describes a person, the other is a concept.

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Those things you mentioned are NOT produced to KILL people. Cars are made to transport, cell phones are made to communicate.

Guns are made to kill. And if one person buys huge number of assault weapons in a short period of time and the seller doesn't even bother to questions what his motives can be for buying these weapons (remember, the job of these guns are to kill, not to defend but to attack and not to communicate), they are negligent.

However, I don't think many people have an issue with regular law abiding citizens buying a gun (pistol) to protect themselves when they need to. That is so different from buying large number assault weapons.

But that is so difficult to understand for conservative brains.

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I normally do not go around trying to correct people, but I can't stand it any more. Guns are NOT designed to kill people. Unless there is a new firearm being developed to bludgeon people to death, the gun does not inflict ANY damage what-so-ever. You CAN say that ammunition is designed to "kill" & you would be more forgiven.

Guns are designed to launch a specific caliber of projectile (the bullet) by feeding the cartridge (the whole round) into the chamber of the barrel. Guns are specifically designed to be a certain size for certain applications, or have other features that allow it to more accurately, more quickly, more SAFELY or reliably (& so on) launch those projectiles.

I say you would be forgiven for saying that ammunition is designed to kill, because even that is not entirely accurate. Bullets (remember, this is the part the separates from the case when the pressure from the burning gunpowder propels it down the bore of the barrel) are designed to either travel a certain distance from a certain length barrel, penetrate a certain material or expand in others. There are a number of things that various types of bullets are designed for. Even hunting ammo is designed for accuracy, penetration or transferring energy & so forth.

Saying "guns are made to kill" only shows what table you eat at. Guns are (for the most part) designed or RE-designed to launch a projectile. If it fails to do this, it fails to be useful & becomes useless. And it is in the interest of BOTH parties that only their dogs have teeth. If you think guns are a conservative issue, you have much more to learn.

This movie was incredibly flawed because it never once explained how anyone other than the assailant were responsible for the crime. The "black market" seller was also committing a crime. Here's something you are surely unaware of... when a person buys more than 1 handgun within 5 consecutive business days from a dealer (what the "black market" guy was doing in the film) the dealer is required to fill out & submit (usually via fax as they want it immediately) an ATF Form 3310.4 (Report of Multiple Sale or Other Disposition of Pistols and Revolvers): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Form_3310.4

In real life the second "dealer" would've been visited by BATFE. It is a felony to buy & sell firearms for the purpose of generating income without a valid Federal Firearms License. This would have had him locked up very early on.

It was incredibly evident by the close of the movie that the whole point of the film was to give people the false idea that gun manufacturers should be liable for their "death" tools. It also shows the mindset of "the end justifies the means".

If in the end you would like to see guns go away completely from citizens hands, I suggest you look into having the U.S. Constitution amended.

R.E.D.

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This message is filled with such mind-numbingly stupid *beep* that I'm surprised I still have the ability to type.

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Then you are clearly "mind-numbingly stupid", do not know *beep* & should therefor stop typing.

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Really. Go ahead and TRY to blame your idiotic post on me, but it doesn't fly. You can also try to claim that guns aren't for killing, but you're just making an ass out yourself in the attempt.

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Idiotic? LMFAO! You have yet to offer a single intelligent rebuttal. Show me SOMETHING that even SUGGESTS that guns are "DESIGNED TO KILL". You can NOT! You can't, because you are insanely naive & stupid. You do not even have the capability to process the information that is available via a GOOGLE search! LOL! I never said "guns are NOT for killing" (which is already pretty @#$%ing stupid to say) I merely stated the facts that when a firearm designer is coming up with the ideas, he can NOT include a single thought about LETHALITY. You fail to understand this, because you blame the GUN, the DESIGNER, the MANUFACTURER without a single brain-fart for what the AMMUNITION was designed for. Tell me this, do you honestly believe all guns are supposed to be registered? Do you believe hollow-point ammunition can penetrate a bullet-resistant vest? If you have answered YES to either of these questions, it means you learned too many false-hoods to carry on in an intelligent debate. STOP learning about firearms from MOVIES. STOP accepting the lies that are fed to you from your choice of media. Go do just a LITTLE research yourself. Until then, STFU!

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Wow. You sure do make a TON of assumptions about people just because they realize how moronic your post was, don't you? I was going to answer your idiotic questions with a yes or no, which is much more than they and you deserve, but you answered them yourself. I understand that you answered them yourself because you don't want to be even more embarrassed than you already have been, so you are somewhat forgiven, moron.



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3 posts from you & not 1 single intelligent thing to say. Not 1 single fact. Not 1 single piece of even inaccurate information. You are obviously refusing to say a single thing for fear of proving how ignorant you really are. In the 3 posts you've made, you have ONLY resorted to personal attacks. You do not have to like me. I do not have to like you. But you DO have to know what you are talking about to enter into an intelligent conversation about the facts. There are facts that MAY help the argument FOR gun control... such as how the media's claim that the Aurora, CO. shooter's 100rd drum mag "allowed him to fire between 50-60 rounds per minute". They made this claim because they thought that this was too much. But, their estimate is WAY too low. So, the facts, which may be used against me, are what they are. I have not read 1 single fact from you. Until you do, you will always & forever be emotionally incapable of processing or stating facts about guns.

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If you had not made about a dozen assumptions about me thus far, we might be able to have a little chat, but you have...... I'm not humoring your idiocy, massive amount of false assumptions, and general lunacy with anything other than flame messages. So sorry to disappoint, or should I say, so glad that you are relieved about not getting owned any more than a simple flame war would allow. That's simply all you deserve at this point.

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LMFAO! You're silly! You CAN'T present any facts, because you HAVE none! Not 1! "getting owned"?? This is just pathetic. All you have done is proven yourself to prefer to bury your head in the sand. Keep your eyes closed & then no one can see you! LOL!

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The fact of the matter is that guns are made for killing. Is every single type of gun made for killing? No. Is every single bullet made for killing? No. That does not change anything. You can use a gun for various things, including maiming someone and target practice, but the general purpose always has been killing. You know it, I know it, and the people you are very poorly attempting to confuse know it.

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BS, just because you THINK you know it, does NOT make it a FACT. Is it a FACT that guns are designed to launch a projectile?? YES! HOW does this in ANY way PROVE that the GUN was designed to kill? It the the operators choice as to where to AIM the weapon. But the bottom line is that the ONLY thing a firearm can be designed for is LAUNCHING PROJECTILES! Guns were designed to increase the THROWING RANGE OF PROJECTILES! NOT 1 THING MORE! Ever since man realized the usefulness of throwing rocks, he desired a way to throw them further & more accurately.

Let me help you with the VERY simple exercise... REGARDLESS of what you THINK you know, if the cartridge FAILS to fire, HOW can the gun be lethal? Guns do NOT contain gunpowder! CARTRIDGES do! Even muzzle-loaders require someone to ADD powder to the firearm. The gun itself is an inanimate object with not capacity for decision making. It would not even have a single automatically moving parts if it were not for the cartridge to operate its action.

If it were possible to remove every currently existing cartridge & prevent the manufacture of NEW cartridges, WHAT gun would have ANY lethality?

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Dude, really. You are not helping your cause. Basically, the conservative version of liberal nonsense.

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Give me 1 example, just 1 single example of a single firearm being designed to have any degree of lethality. Just 1 example. Surely, because you "KNOW" that SOME gun was designed to kill, you can post 1 single, solitary example of 1.

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Let me help you with understanding precisely what I am talking about... I am NOT talking about the APPLICATION of firearms. It does not matter if EVERY firearm has ALWAYS killed at least 1 person, that is their APPLICATION. I am talking about their DESIGN. You can NOT design a firearm to have any degree of lethality because no firearm HAS any degree of lethality... WITHOUT THE AMMUNITION! A firearm without ammo is USELESS. Even the lethality design of the ammunition is irrelevant if you cannot manage to HIT a vital area. Firearm designs & ammunition designs are ALL assuming many things. The first is that there IS a cartridge FOR the firearm design. The latter is that the user will be ABLE to hit a vital area. Lethality is the job of the projectile. The gun can only aim, fire, feed & dispose of the remaining waste of each cartridge.

Certain KNIVES are designed to kill, simply because they have direct contact with the target. Ballistic knives (knives that LAUNCH a blade) are DESIGNED WITH THE BLADE. So, although it too launches a projectile, the blade is PART of the design. I just wish you could see the distinction. To SAY "guns are designed to kill" is a MASSIVE assumption. You probably cannot name a single firearm designer. So it is all too assuming to guess what they had in mind. Even IF the designer were aware of their use & application, it is still the job of the ammunition producers to actually produce the ammo to be used. And the degree of lethality that those rounds possess as well as the reliability of the weapon system (a broken gun is also useless) in addition to the shooter's ability to HIT what he wants will ultimately determine if the APPLICATION is LETHAL.

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You can NOT design a firearm to have any degree of lethality because no firearm HAS any degree of lethality... WITHOUT THE AMMUNITION! A firearm without ammo is USELESS.

You can NOT design a car to convey people anywhere because no car HAS a working engine... WITHOUT THE FUEL! A car without fuel is USELESS.

You can NOT design a refrigerator to keep food cold because no refrigerator CAN keep food cold... UNLESS IT CONTAINS FOOD! A refrigerator without food is USELESS.

You can NOT design a television to show television programs because no television CAN show a program... IF NO ONE IS BROADCASTING! A television without a television signal is USELESS.

You can NOT design a condom to work as a contraceptive because no condom CAN work as a contraceptive... UNLESS IT CONTAINS A PENIS! A condom without a penis is USELESS.

Okay, maybe, but so what?


On second thought, I take that back. This is a crucial and compelling argument.

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Er... guns are designed to kill people. There is something wrong with you. It is perfectly legitimate to support gun ownership, but it is silly to say that guns are not designed for killing.

They can be used for other purposes, including having fun at the range and so forth. But the core design purpose remains as it is.

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HOLY 4-YEAR-NECRO-POSTING, BATMAN!!

Well... What can I say. Since you came along and offered a zero-science, non-evidence based rebuttal, I guess you win. I mean, I can't exactly argue with a "Everyone knows that!" kind of statement, can I? I suspect you offered zero evidence because you actually HAVE none. Since "guns are designed to kill people" ('& I mean, come on, EVERYONE knows THAT!!'), what exactly is the designing process for ensuring that a GUN is capable of killing a person? How does one design a firearm to KILL?? Your lack of experience & knowledge is evident in your lack of a valid reply. Being that I posted that going on 4 years ago, you have essentially had 4 years to come up with a better reply. This is what you provide?? Does your Google not work? This stuff is not hard to research.

First, most firearm manufacturers do NOT produce, market nor sell ammunition. Now, other than being used as a club to bludgeon someone to death, HOW are firearms lethal (let alone DESIGNED to be) with a lack of ammo? Do you know something that the firearms manufacturers don't? I bet the U.S. military would be very interested in your magic weapon which doesn't need 'b0olItZ'.

In all seriousness, nearly ALL ammunition is designed, marketed and sold by ammunition manufacturers. For instance, Gaston Glock (of the GLOCK firearms manufacturer located in Austria) designed his first model (the GLOCK 17 or G17) to use an existing cartridge, the 9x19mm (also known as 9mm Luger or 9mm Parabellum). There are FAR too many types and varieties in this caliber alone to list them all. Though, of all the design types, there are full-metal jacketed bullets (which are lead with a copper jacket offering very little transfer of energy to the target and are designed primarily for target shooting) hollow-point bullets (which transfer a large portion of their kinetic energy to the target by way of using the materials of the target to force the bullet to expand, not unlike how a parachute works, these are primarily designed to expand in human tissues using the principles of hydraulics because we are mostly water) & BLANKS (which do NOTHING but make a loud "BANG" & throw a bit of muzzle flash). Now, Gaston Glock did NOT invent any of these types, nor did he even fine-tune any of the plethora of varieties within these 3 types. He simply designed a firearm to use this caliber (which has been around since 1908) as it allowed him to squeeze in 17 rounds into the magazine (you know, that thing you erroneously call a "kLyP"?).

At the time (mid-1980's) there weren't many firearms that were small enough to be concealed & light enough to be carried comfortably while also providing this many rounds of ammunition to its operator. Now... GLOCKs have been used by various militaries, police, civilians & criminals the world over. LOTS of people have been shot by bullets launched from the barrel of a GLOCK. In WHAT way is the manufacturer liable for those deaths? I mean, that was the whole point of my argument about the film (just in case you missed that in your rush to say "Come on! Everyone knows THAT!"). GLOCK does not, nor have they ever sold ammunition.

Their guns can be used exclusively with any of the types or varieties of ammo mentioned above, which includes BLANKS (this is the cartridge type that does NOT actually contain a BO0L3T). HOW is the GUN designed in such a way to ensure death? I mean, if guns really ARE designed to KILL people, they need to go back to the drawing board, because death is NOT assured with any of the thousands of firearms designs around today. Perhaps a firearm designed to self-destruct and explode with a force of 1-kilo ton would TRULY be a gun that is "designed to kill people", as this would terminate its operator.

But being that firearms natively lack the explosive charge (gun powder) to do anything other than being a heavy piece of materials, should the blame really be placed on the manufacturers of the ammo? I mean, after all, you CAN design a bullet to perform a certain task once it terminates into a target (this is called "terminal ballistics" and is an entire science all on its own). Bullets (also known as projectiles) can be designed to explode, fragment, ignite flammables, mark the target, punch holes in paper, fly faster than sound (super-sonic), slower than sound (sub-sonic), MELT (Mythbusters' Ice Bullet) & so forth. You people, very typically, place blame, responsibility and culpability wrongly. All due to a lack of understanding basic physics.

There actually was a case of a bullet designed (in principle & theory) to inflict more bodily harm than anything on the market at the time which was re-branded due to the political climate. It was called the Black Talon. I suggest you read all about it on its Wiki page. The medical examiner who performed the autopsy on people killed in a 1993 spree-killing found the wound trauma to be unremarkable. Meaning that the bullets did not actually do anything vastly different from other bullets on the market at the time. Why didn't Winchester know this when they designed the bullet? Because we haven't yet legalize the testing of bullets on human subjects. I wonder why!

At any rate, only the thing that actually ENTERS a human body can be "designed to kill people". Firearms CAN be designed to use certain accessories that may make shooting easier (scopes, red dots & other optics for easier, more precise aiming). They can be composed of certain light-weight materials which would allow less muscular people to wield them (aluminum, polymers, titanium, etc.). They can even be designed for concealment (smaller objects are easier to hide & carry). But they abso-LUTELY can NOT be designed to kill, unless they are designed to explode and kill its operator.

Lastly, going brain-dead political ("...the conservative version of liberal nonsense") illustrates a lack of scientific understanding and political motivation. You literally hit me with the anti-Galileo argument of, "Of COURSE the Earth is flat! EVERYONE knows THAT!". Simply stating something with no evidence is the reason we have a judicial system in the first place. You probably also believe the U.S. is a democracy because you've heard it on the TV & read it on the iNTerWeBZ a bajillion times. But a simple reading of the pledge of allegiance would indicate otherwise. I'm done with you.

PS. This reply was for anyone else with an interest in this subject as education is more important than blindly & mindlessly regurgitating the verbal diarrhea of those who refuse to educate themselves due to an irrational fear of an inanimate object. This disorder has a name - hoplophobia. Goodnight, hoplophobes!!!

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Oh, I have no intentions of actually engaging you in the specific merits of your position. I am sure your position can be argued, very few positions are internally so inconsistent that they cannot be argued at all.

But as pointed out by literally every single other poster here (unless I missed anything), your definition/concept of the word "design" does not fit that of the vast majority. Of course, you are entitled to propose your own definition/concept, but as you may have noted, it has been universally rejected.

Really, I am not sure what you hope to achieve with your unique definition/concept. Communications essentially require that everyone use the same language, the same definition of concepts.

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Jesus Christ...

You now want to pretend like it's an issue of semantics? Just... YO! Is there one, single, solitary example anywhere in this thread, your OWN pointless posts or ANYWHERE on the ENTIRE internet of a single firearm that was designed to kill? Do you have a make, model, caliber, date or production, patent number... ANY-****ING-THING???

"...very few positions are internally so inconsistent that they cannot be argued at all.". Can YOURS be argued at all beyond "Everyone knows that already!"? WHAT is your argument? NOT your statement ('GUNS KILL PEOPLE AND THAT IS WHAT THEY ARE DESIGNED TO DO!'). What are your points? What is your evidence that guns even CAN be designed to kill? I am not asking (nor daring) you to challenge what I know. I am calling you out directly and challenging what you THINK you know. WHAT can a firearms designer do to make their GUN more lethal? And more to the point, how do you make a gun LESS lethal. Since you seem to think it all comes down to what the designer had in his head... what would be an example of a firearm (semantics ARE important here because we have laws written in a language that must be uniform, otherwise no law would apply) as defined by 18 U.S. Code § 921, which was designed to be LESS than lethal? Oh wait! That's those rubber boolit thingamajiggerdoodads that I saw on da TV! The ones that they use in prisons & during riots. Hmmm... are those guns different from the ones that shoot da WEELY weel boolits? Or is it the SAME firearm loaded with... wait for it... A LESS-THAN-LETHAL ammunition cartridge?! Ever heard of those things before? Yeah, they work in REGULAR firearms.

Now, when they designed, invented, came-up with, produced, manufactured, conceived of, brought into existence (or whatever you want to pretend I mean here) those shotguns, did they even THINK about those rubber slugs? IDK... most likely not since the designs of those weapons that use those rounds are about 50-100 years OLDER than any of the less-than-lethal cartridges.

So now let's say I go out of my way to make a new, single-shot (this means it can only fire one round before it has to be reloaded), crack-barrel shotgun intended to ONLY be used with the less-than-lethal projectiles (da rubba boolits frum da mooveez) already on the market. Because those cartridges are designed to work with existing firearms, they can be used interchangeably with standard lethal ammo. Therefor, my design will also have to permit the use of the standard lethal rounds too. That is, unless I design a NEW less-than-lethal round as well. One that can ONLY be used in my design & one that I would have to sell WITH the gun as no one else makes nor produces/sells it. What's happening here? Am I designing something to kill people, or am I designing something to launch a projectile? Do I have ANY control over what the projectile consists of & how much gun powder is behind the payload, ultimately determining the minimum range it can be fired safely without splitting a human skull (that is how those things work... to be effective at decent range, even they can be lethal up close)?

If I allow my design to utilize existing less-than-lethal rubber projectiles, it would HAVE to also allow the use of the lethal rounds that they are interchangeable with. So, I make SURE that I market & advertise my shotgun as "Designed for less-than-lethal cartridges only!", instruct the use of LTL ammo exclusively in the manuals & so forth. Then someone decides to load it with a lethal round & kill someone. Am I to blame? Should I be sued because my shotgun allowed the use of lethal ammo already on the market? T-shirt cannons can be loaded with arrows, nails, glass, grenades, etc. Were they designed or intended for it? Does the allowance constitute culpability? Negligence? WHAT IS YOUR ARGUMENT & WHAT IS YOUR EVIDENCE???

BTW, the flat Earth myth too was universally accepted for how long before everyone ended up looking dumb & feeble minded?? Hmmm... I am telling you STRAIGHT up that your "[position is] internally so inconsistent that [it] cannot be argued at all". I am challenging you to show otherwise.

You come along and try to get into a debate that is quickly becoming 4 freaking years old & the BEST you have is, "You have a different definition. Everyone always knows this! It's universally accepted! I think like every other brain-dead idiot, so I must be right for being in the majority!". For the love of ****! I genuinely feel dumber for having responded to your absolute pointless drivel.

Remember to spay & neuter your little numbskulls. Hoplophobia begins at home.

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It is not merely semantics. You wish to define the word in a way that suits you, everyone else here has rejected this definition of yours. Simple as that.

In this specific case, majority wins. In language/definitions, the majority is right.



The mainstream definition of the word "design" simply requires that its primary function be that of X, whatever X may be. Do you accept this definition, without any qualifiers or restrictions? Yes or no?

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I don't know how you managed to make it seem like I don't know what "design" means. Did you actually read the last post? Did you see the different ways I phrased it? I have been asking for 4 years & STILL,, despite you arguing the point that EVERYONE agrees, not 1 single answer has been given to explain HOW someone can make, design or otherwise create a firearm to kill people. Do YOU know WHY? Because the GUN does NOT actually INFLICT the DAMAGE! Oh, I know... this makes NO sense to you because "Everyone already knows that guns cause damage!" & this is the fallacy of your lunacy.

I realize why you cannot separate these things. You have the same mindset as the people who want to ban guns because they cannot separate the behavior of the person who commits the crime & the tool they used to facilitate it. As far as you & every other zombie is concerned, the power lies in the gun. This is why, fortunately, we are NOT a democracy. For if we were, than the ignorant majority would always win. There are 3 sciences here: INTERNAL BALLISTICS, EXTERNAL BALLISTICS & TERMINAL BALLISTICS. It is impossible to "design" a firearm where the function is to directly affect the TERMINAL ballistics. This is because it is ONLY the function of the projectile to perform its task where it terminates, NOT the gun. It would be like praising the launch pad at Cape Canaveral for getting men & women safely to & from space when it is the function of the shuttle.

The primary reason neither you nor anyone else here can wrap your minds around the concept is because you TRULY BELIEVE there is a such thing as a "powerful gun". If there are powerful guns, then there are super-sonic launch pads too. The firearm is literally the platform from which a projectile is expelled. Until you understand this concept, you will never learn. I didn't come here to debate the merits of the 2nd Amendment or firearms laws; rather only the physics & sciences behind it. And I couldn't be FURTHER from a Conservative. You people are no different than the idiots who continued to perpetuate the flat Earth myth. And that is the reason there are a number of zombies in this country who continue to believe that nonsense.

The truth is, everyone does NOT know that guns were/are designed to kill people. Everyone that has this view adopted it from someone else who already had it. I am merely looking at the facts of how firearms function & pointing out the fallacy in your flawed logic. Jesus must have REALLY walked across water & had wine parties because enough people believe it.

THE FUNCTION OF A FIREARM IS TO ALLOW (not even to PERFORM the function of) A PROJECTILE TO BE EXPELLED FROM ITS BARREL'S BORE. THE GUNPOWDER PERFORMS THE FUNCTION OF CREATING PRESSURE. THE BARREL SIMPLY CONTAINS THE PRESSURE & FOCUSES IT FORWARD. IT IS THE FUNCTION OF THE SIGHTS TO ALLOW (again not to PERFORM the function of, merely to ALLOW the function of) AIMING AT A TARGET. IT IS THE FUNCTION OF THE USER TO DETERMINE WHERE TO AIM IT! THEREFOR, THE OPERATOR IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT THE BARREL IS AIMING AT!!! Get it? I SERIOUSLY doubt it. This is like debating Darwinism with a creationist. You already have a flawed foundation... what can you possibly learn by building on it?

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So... do you agree or disagree with the definition of the word "design" as outlined by me?



Once again, I wish to point out that the majority is right by definition (without needing any justification) for this very specific issue of word definitions. You are not permitted to define words as you wish.

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I not only agreed that "design" means "to perform a function of X", but I tried to illustrate that WHAT you people THINK that function is, is erroneous. The function is NOT to kill a human being. It is LITERALLY only to allow the launching of projectiles. THAT is the function, that can BE the only design. Firearms are legally defined as:

The term “firearm” means (A) any weapon (including a starter gun) which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive...

The legal definition is NOT "something designed to kill people" because the solitary action of launching a projectile does NOT ensure that someone will or even CAN die.

So, I once again, and for the LAST time state: Firearms are designed to perform the function of (designed for) launching a projectile, NOT the killing of a human being. To state otherwise is to have a conflation of function & "the end result of a specific set of circumstances" which is the application. IE: confusing WHAT may happen when a bullet of a certain type (blanks & less-than-lethals wouldn't count here) terminates into human tissue versus someone TRYING to cause a projectile of a certain type to terminate its trajectory into human tissue. Do you STILL not see the distinction? I mean, I'm not speaking 'Merican.

This is REALLY not that hard to understand. Set your FEELINGS about guns aside & think logically, CAN someone be harmed if NO projectile is launched? IF not, then the firearm HAS to be primarily & totally designed to allow the expulsion of an explosive to be contained, while directly the pressure towards the muzzle, thus propelling the projectile towards the muzzle, but NOTHING MORE. AT THE POINT THE BULLET LEAVES THE MUZZLE, THE GUN CAN NOT DO ANYTHING TO ALTER THE TRAJECTORY OF THE BULLET!!! IS THIS MAKING SENSE TO YOU YET??? I STILL challenge ANYONE to provide the name, make, model, caliber or SOMETHING of a firearm that was irrefutably designed to kill people.

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So... to confirm, you completely agree with my definition, with no qualifiers or reservations whatsoever. Yes?

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realeveryday2005

This is like debating Darwinism with a creationist.


Ha! I knew it. With the amount of intelligence, critical thinking, and evidence based logic.. I knew you were against silly religious nonsense too. Same here. Just like with religion, this debate is all emotion based. No facts or evidence to the contrary will ever sway them to the truth of reality. You can sit and explain to them (like you have) a hundred times how their logic if flawed, they don't care about facts.. just what feels good to them.

Everything you've said it spot on. You seem very knowledge with field of firearms. As am I. Huge enthusiast myself. Collector, personal seller, builder.. etc
You are making these anti-gun sissies look bad. Their logic is so beyond flawed, it's insane. Fallacies and factual errors galore.

But let's say firearms WERE "designed to kill". What does that have to do with suing the manufacturer? That makes it even MORE stupid than using a car that "wasn't designed to kill". In their mind, they bad guys are using guns.. in their intended manner. So how is that grounds for lawsuits? That's the same as suing Ford for driving a F-150 down the road... in the manner is was designed for!

Going with the logic that firearms are for killing.. then the good guys should absolutely have them! To protect themselves and theirs. There will always be bad guys. What is the best way to stop them from harming others? How about a tool designed for killing? So you should be FOR firearms!

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I'm genuinely starting to feel sorry for you
You have now, over a period of four years, attempted to convince all that guns are not designed to kill. A very large number of people will never be able to agree with you. A very large number of people will see the posts on this subject as no more than a linguistic or semantic duel.
Obviously, most respondents to your claim are delighting in baiting you and it seems that you are finding it hard to let go.
For your own good, give it a break.
As for my own thoughts on the matter, if I were to strictly apply the logic as practiced by Aristotle, your argument is commendable and convincing.
If I were to rely mainly on anecdotal evidence, historical fact, pragmatism and a bit of common sense then any purely logical explanation would be of no interest to me.
Whatever your critics say, you do show a good amount of intelligence as well as being generally well-informed.
Did you enjoy the movie?

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The best analogy about car can be made this way?

If a car company tries to sell its products, make advertisement like "you can also use our cars to kill people." When you drive our car onto a subject with minimum 25 m/h, we guarantee that he'll not survive that hit.

And after these sales pitches if somebody buys the car, hits someone to kill him with the car, and then say that he bought the car because the car's company said it's a good tool to kill people,

in this case, can you sue the car company for negligence and for improper business dealing? Oh, hell you can. And believe me you will get a lot of money from that car company if you sue. I guarantee you.

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"all through the far left doesn't help with their brand of Liberal McCarthyism"

Bwahahahahaha! That has to be the dumbest line I have ever read on IMdb!


The Dude abides.

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If i was walking across the street and got nailed by some bimbo driving a BMW, texting, blasting Lady Gaga, and generally not paying attention to her surroundings. Who do I take to court? The woman, the wireless company, the person she was texting, Lady Gaga, BMW for making the perfect people hitting car?
Classic. I'm thinking about downloading this thread.

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"If i walk into a restaurant and take a fork off a table and kill someone does that mean the restaurant owes the victims family? "

No. Fork is not used to kill people 99.99999% of the time. Guns are used to kill people 99.9999999% of the time.

I don't think there is a big discussion about people's having gun (a pistol or shutgun etc) to protect yourself when you feel the need to, but that discussion stops about assault rifles and guns that are NOT made to use for defense but to ATTACK and KILL. And if one person buys semi-automatic weapons on a regular basis and the people selling him these are not checking his background, his psychology etc. they are negligent.

Because again those weapons are made to KILL people, forks are NOT.

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Look buddy fella, I ain't saying it is right, fair or proper. I don't own a gun. But when you come down to it,


PEOPLE KILL PEOPLE MAN!

Swords, and other crazy stuff was made to kill someone, because some body had it in his mind to just slaughter everybody.

Its a condition in people, you say get rid of all the guns, people will use a floor board and invent ACME me style killing machines.

What it always, always and I know this is a total crazy idea.

But it is personal responsibility, common sense, and actually paying attention. This movie (imo) said it was okay to break a law that you do not agree with, fine. Untouchables, Green Mile, Pineapple Express, all had the same message, but the high hand and "morality" is so heavy handed in this. Yea, both sides was lookin to cheat the system, but one side managed it better and on fact, not emotion.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJmuxRw1vqA&feature=colike

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"Guns are used to kill people 99.9999999% of the time."

REALLY? 99.9999999% of the TIME?????? My guns have never killed anyone. (Nor have the thousands of rounds of ammo that i've shot thru them.)

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He's wrong but your rebuttal is irrelevant.

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When you irresponsibly design and sell a product designed to cause injury and/or death that's negligence. A car or a fork or a pencil aren't designed to kill, especially on a large scale.

So, you're all for liberty and personal responsibility? What are your views on drug laws? How about drunk driving laws? Prostitution? I assume it's against, against and for?



This will be the high point of my day; it's all downhill from here.

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You may not be aware of this because you clearly have no knowledge of firearms or ammunition... but most firearm designers & manufacturers do not ALSO sell ammunition. For your comment to make any sense, the gun would have to be capable of killing WITHOUT AMMO! If you simply remove the ammo from the equation, it would be impossible for anyone to have SHOT anyone else with the fictionalized firearm in the film. Why were they not trying to sue the cartridge company? As stupid as that would be, that is what actually IS designed to inflict damage to hard or soft tissue. A gun can never be designed to kill because it does NOT kill. ALL it does is feed, cycle, consume & reject the waste of cartridges. If you think otherwise, you are simply being illogical by being overwhelmed by your emotions.

Use your brain & think... without the ammunition, how is the gun going to be useful? When people commit crimes with unloaded firearms, they are merely THREATENING that they HAVE AMMO! But if anyone KNEW that they didn't, WHAT threat would the gun present?? You have to be willing to take a few steps back to think if what you have been fed is the whole truth & nothing but the truth. Do you honestly believe that firearm designers are even thinking about the damage their design CAN do? If so, you are either lacking in comprehension or unwilling to see the truth.

The only ones responsible in the film (OTHER than the actual person who committed the crime) were the LEGAL FFL holder (the gun store) & the person they sold to (illegal black market guy). The FFL holder is REQUIRED, BY LAW to submit an ATF Form 3310.4 for selling more than 1 handgun to the same customer in a 5 day period (this is Federal law & applies to ALL states). Because the ATF was NOT investigating the illegal "NON-FFL holder", this clearly shows that the gun store did NOT file the 3310.4 WHICH IS A FELONY! ATF regularly audits gun dealers & looks at the records in their log book. They also would have had access to the dealer's Form 4473s, which are required to be filled out by the non-FFL holder upon purchase. The entire story in this film exists ONLY in the vacuum that was created to convince people like you that these things actually happen.

If you can TRY to NOT be emotional about guns in general, I would love to give you a proper education on what is real & what is fiction. You may not like what IS legal, but that is your opinion, which you are entitled to. But the difference is trying to understand what the actual facts are. I can assure you that they are extremely different from what you BELIEVE, FEEL & THINK.

And WTH are "drug laws"??? I'd love to respond as to what I'm in favor of or against, but since there are useful "drug laws" as well as draconian "drug laws" it makes it pretty impossible to simply reduce the response to "for" or "against".

R.E.D.

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Thanks for the laugh. I'll give you an A for imagination. And another one for having the cojones to actually post it. lol

This will be the high point of my day; it's all downhill from here.

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Using that very limited, closed-minded and wrong-headed thinking, one could just as easily say that conservatism is about taking away people's sexual freedom, conquering countries and having no compassion for those in need. Take your head out of your ass, please.

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I would be impressed, though horrified, if you were able to walk into a restaurant and kill someone with a fork. I mean, guarantee that a person will be dead using only a fork found already in the same restaurant? Ignoring movie magic making it seem like such at thing might be simple... It is not.

Only a weapon designed for killing is so effective. Such as, for example, knives with specifications in their thickness, grind, and made from materials such as carbon steel... or any gun.

You don't regulate forks because their purpose, for which they are specifically designed, is so outside of the use as a weapon as to make it a terrible one. An attack from which, being easily defended and survivable. You don't regulate cars be... oh, wait... they really do. A lot. Vehicular Manslaughter is a specific thing outside of just good ol' Manslaughter for a reason. Combat Knives (or more specifically any over a certain size) also... regulated and have a special class as a weapon. Even those however, have a much higher rate of survival for victims of attacks due to typically requiring some level of expertise to make effectively fatal wounds.

As for why the companies are liable, it is again a question of purpose. A car has a purpose. To get you from point A to B as safely and effectively as possible. A fork, also has a mundane everyday reason to exist: make eating solid food easier.

A gun however, has a very specific and uncommon purpose: Kill a living thing. That is the only reason it exists. The other things you do with it, shoot skeet or target shooting, are all literally only in existence because they were invented to help you do the first thing, kill, more effectively.

Or, to be fair, show your expertise in killing without someone having to die at the moment in Sport Shooting.

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And yet countries with strict gun control have a negligible murder rate. Apparently a fork is not usually the weapon of choice.

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Gun manufacturers don't sell directly to individuals, though. They might sell to individuals through dealers, but the dealer is ultimately the only one who has direct contact with an individual. The manufacturer isn't any more aware of the individual buying the gun than is Acme when their baseball bats are sold through Wal-Mart.

Now the dealer, he might have a vested interest in telling the BATFE that this dude is buying mass quantities...which implies that the buyer is acting as an unlicensed dealer (and thus unfair competition).

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Buying a gun for someone else is a felony.

So the guy who bought the guns is the criminal.

The store that sold the guns should have been sued, not the gun manufacturer... and even then, it's not the gun shop's responsability.

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That's right. Selling something that is a tool for killing from a distance should be done responsibly. Sure, technically one can be in the right, but many times that is not enough. The laws in place are seldom exhaustive enough to cover everything needed for the good of all. I have the right to sell guns; everyone has the right to buy and use them. What if I suspect the guns are used to commit crimes? Without looking into my suspicion, am I right in selling the guns? What if my loved ones are killed by the guns I sold? Will my tune change? Americans talk only about their rights, but seldom their responsibilities.

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you people realize guns are designed to kill right? I mean, the reason they don't compare to forks or cars being used as weapons is because those things aren't designed to be weapons. They aren't designed to kill.

A fork is a utensil. It is designed to effectively penetrate food and keep a hold of it so you can bring it to your mouth. The ends of a fork are purposely made dull so they won't easily hurt someone.

A car is a vehicle. It is made for transportation. An energy source is fed into the engine to make the wheels move so the driver and his/her passengers can go from place to place without exhausting themselves. Cars are also heavily regulated and go through safety inspections to make sure they are safe for the driver, other drivers sharing the road, and exhaust levels are kept to a minimum.

A gun is a weapon. Fire propelled bullets are loaded into a chamber and set into a straight path of destruction at sound-barrier-breaking speed at the push of a trigger. Guns are prized more for holding more bullets, loading faster and packing a more powerful violent punch. So guns are designed specifically to make death and destruction as efficient as possible. Safety features are added to keep the gun from only firing when the shooter wants it to.

Forks and cars can certainly be used as weapons. They aren't designed for that, in fact they are specifically designed to make their use as a weapon less effective/efficient. Guns are the exact opposite. They may be used for something other than weapons, but they aren't designed to be paperweights or decorative pieces.

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[deleted]

A gun is not designed to kill anymore than any other object made by man. People first started killing with rocks and sticks and have been coming up with new ways ever since. The only way for people not to kill is to not have people.

X

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A gun is not designed to kill
Next time I need someone to explain that black is white or that up is down, I'll be giving you a call.


Go to an arms show, talk to the sales people at the booth about kill zones, kill percentage and kill ratios. You'll have a cogent conversation.

Now go to the market and talk to the sale people there about kill zones etc regarding pomegranates or dust mops. They'll look at you as if you are crazy.

They'll either be right, or you'll see how silly your " gun is not designed to kill" statement is.


WARNING!
Objects under T-shirt are larger than they appear!

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"Go to an arms show, talk to the sales people at the booth about kill zones, kill percentage and kill ratios. You'll have a cogent conversation."

Obviously, you have no real-world knowledge or experience with guns or gun shows. Judging from your comments, you assume that what you watch on television shows and movies is accurate. Nobody is going to discuss "kill percentages" or "kill ratios" with you.

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Perhaps not, but if you open your yap, you'll probably prove to them that you're stupid enough to have that conversation with. Just sayin'......

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WilliamZoom espoused: "A gun is not designed to kill anymore than any other object made by man."

BS, that's a ludicrous statement. What are they designed for then? Merely to rip holes in paper targets? To blow cans off of fence posts? To make small-dicked a-holes feel more potent?

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An important part of the film's plot is being forgotten in this discussion.

The wife suing the gun manufacturer had a whistle-blower witness, a high level employee of the company being sued, that was going to testify that the company knew the guns were being sold illegally and not only didn't stop it, but encouraged it. This is why Dustin Hoffman initially didn't need to pay to fix the verdict. However, on the day of testimony, Gene Hackman was able to buy off or disappear the witness. Dustin Hoffman couldn't get a court delay, so the judge made him rest his case. Immediately after this he went to his law firm to ask for the $10M out of emergency cash to buy the verdict. (However, buy the final act he regained his conscious and decided not to get involved.)

So yes, the wife's case as presented to the jury was weak because the witness linking the gun company to negligent behavior was missing on the day of testimony.

To me, it's that part of the plot that keeps this film from being a blanket accusation against the entire gun industry. The suit was only about one specific fictional firm that was purposely acting wrongfully.

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The movie was good until the end. The only thing they did was award the woman a handout since she should have been suing the gun store and not the gun manufacturer. The only reason she would be suing the gun manufacturer instead of the gun store is because she knew they actually had money.

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Because if you bring down the store, you just bring down the store, and that's it. If you bring down the manufacturer, you can make change the system because that manufacturer from now on make sure sellers of its weapons act differently. So the change will affect whole bunch of sellers, not one. Hope you get this point.

The point is not to get money. It is to hurt the manufacturer so it makes some changes in the way it makes business.

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yes and no.

First thing is I noted was that the gun salesmen was rewarded by the gun company for his sales, so there was some kind of affiliation there.

Second when a company is found guilty of bad practice the only way to punish a capitalist based company is where it hurts and what it cares about, money. The amount would have to be high enough for them to feel it, so if 1 billion of sales a year, a fine eg. of 10k is like pocket change and wouldnt be appropriate. The idea is for it to make the company think twice and realise by defying the law it isnt profitable and as such change its practice. Its to serve as a detterent for repeat offence.

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WHAT?????
do you compare gun shooting to an accident?? or I don't know with an on purposed car accident???
do you really think it's fair and logical?
I'm with movie. I heard so much about shooting in schools.you may of course. but have you ever heard a young kid in high school runs through school with a car to kill his classmates and teachers?
I suppose you are right,what you gonna say when with a car you can kill one but with shooting hundreds of innocent people?!
(on purpose) car accident will last seconds what about shooting? seeing people die in front of your eyes,your friends,your classmates...
I'm just talking about shooting at schools right now.
however guns are made just for killing, aren't they? what about cars...
these are not my reasons for being in movie's side I just was shocked with your opinion. DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE IN WHAT YOU SAID?
I already have seen another movie which played a real sound of a student girl who phoned police for help. and she died.
frankly I found this movie so great not just because of my favorite (John Cusack) for its subject which few movies mention.
you know if there be less guns there would be less requirement for purchasing and keeping guns.

I hope you understand.

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I find it absolutely frightening and a bit dismaying that people would be so eager to forfeit the defense of their own lives. Just because your life isn't valuable enough to defend doesn't mean you should force other people to be sitting ducks as well.



MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

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[deleted]

But just because I can't defend against drive-by shootings does that mean I should forfeit my human right to defend myself? I mean, Tylenol has been used to kill people and it may not cure my cancer, but I should still remain unoppressed in order to use it to treat my headache.

And so it is with guns, using them for at least the minimal amount of defense.





Boy, if this wasn't where I put my signature, I'd really let you have it!

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This post is stupid. The message of the movie was stupid. "Sue the gun manufacture because guns kill people and they have money. The only people who should get sued are the people who commit the crimes and/or possibly their families.

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I'll say this. Why didn't they just make it true to the stinking book? A cigarette law suit makes MUCH more sense. But no, Hollywood needs to change things.

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Because preproduction started in '97, and The Insider was released in '99, so the plot got changed because the producers weren't stupid, even though the film's release was pushed to 2003. Also, Grisham liked the movie (why do people always overlook the approval of the person who wrote the book?) and scott-1441 already pointed out in his post why the case wasn't as stupid as it seemed to most people on here.

Didn't really like the movie, but I'm not blaming it's plot. That's just how I feel.

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Nope. The case was stupid. You shouldn't award people who are just looking for handouts.

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'YES' to gun control and 'NO' to jury control. The second is more informing to me. IT's in the title. Jury consultant? Successful? The guy has reached pension age. It's a PROFESSION? Or that's just fiction?:P If it's not... democracy is fiction, or well, still unfinished 'suit'.

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[deleted]