Not sure what part of the US you lived in but I'm sorry you had such a bad experience. I was born and raised in the rural western US and have been around guns my entire life. I have never lived in a home with fewer than a dozen guns. I have been shooting guns for more than 50 years of my life having started at the age of 6. I currently have a target range in by back yard where my wife and I as well as our friends enjoy shooting. I have never known anyone in my community who didn't have at least one gun in their home. I carry a gun everywhere it is legal. I have never shot anyone or used a gun for anything illegal. I do not know anyone who has shot anyone or used a gun for anything illegal. The area I live in has one of the highest gun ownership rates in the US and yet has one of the lowest crime rates. I honestly feel there is a direct correlation between high gun ownership and low crime. My guns are for sport, enjoyment, entertainment, hunting and self defense. I don't look forward to killing anyone and if I at some time do it would only be in self defense.
First off, the late 80s, early 90s was the WORST time in our history with regards to crimes of all kinds, violent and otherwise. Since then, they've been reduced by about 2/3rds for reasons nobody, including the FBI and other Law Enforcement agencies don't really understand. My theory is that that time frame corresponds to the time when babies aborted after Roe.v. Wade would have been reaching prime crime committing age, but since they were aborted, they weren't here to become criminals. Often, unwanted children are neglected and/or abused and as a result become violent criminals, which makes it more likely to suppose the fact that they didn't exist, they obviously couldn't become criminals. However, there is no way to prove that, and there are competing theories, so who knows, maybe I'm completely wrong. I don't think anyone will ever KNOW the reason, but the facts remain. Regardless, most "good guys with guns" have zero desire to kill someone. I've even said on many occasions that if someone kicks my door in and enters, yes, I would point my firearm at them, but I'd also give them a second or three to bolt before pulling the trigger. Killing someone, no matter how legal it might be, is the LAST thing I want to do. I would much rather that the presence of my weapon makes them turn and run. Such a scenario plays out millions of times a year, but doesn't typically make the news, so we never hear about it.
The US's addiction to mind altering prescription drugs plays a large roll in the US's addiction to Mass shootings. Stop popping so many anti depressants, Valium and Xanax and the rate will drop. How much is debatable but it's definitely a large factor in some of the shootings.
The problem with that theory is that for every incident of a person on those drugs committing such a crime, there are millions of others who are being helped by them who don't. So, even if the drugs are in fact the root cause, the downside of restricting them to innocent people who need them is larger than the upside of banning them.
In Europe we pop <1/2 the anti depressants US does, plenty of countries have guns here but not the Mass shootings. No one is saying ban anti depressants. Just control them responsibly! For every person they help in the US they are harming at least 1 by being inappropriately prescribed. My friends live in New York and to get Xanax from his doctor he had to ask for it and then 20 minutes later he had it, try that crap in the UK and the doctor would laugh you out the surgery. People are far more inclined to go the doctors in the US already deciding what drugs they want, if they don't get what they want then they go to another one until they do. Fluoxetine Hydrocholoride should be treated with more respect.
I use xanax and have for years, legally with a script. Nothing about it's effects comes even close to making me violent. It just calms down my anxiety to the point that I feel like a normal person. On a few occasions, it's even knocked me out, but that's rare, and it might only be a coincidence, as I "knock out" (as in fall asleep) randomly even without it. (Other health issues, long story.) It is not the boogie man you seek. In fact, the reason I'm awake this early (it's 4:46 AM local time) is because the "rack monster" demanded that I fall asleep last night around 8PM. Unusual, but not the first time. And I had not taken xanax prior to it occurring, in fact I think the last time I took it was about 3 days ago.
I don't see dosage on there, it's the amount pills taken and strength of those pills that tip the balance. A person taking anti depressants every day is very different from a person that had a course for 3 months for various reasons which this doesn't take into account. Also mixing prescription drugs which is where the real danger probably lies, one drug to level the other one out. Norway, Sweden and Finland the sun doesn't rise over large portions of it in any meaningful way in winter so increased depression is hardly surprising. Surprised why you were at it you never quote this from that article https://www.businessinsider.com/countries-largest-antidepressant-drug-users-2016-2?r=US&IR=T
What does dosage have to do with it? You take an effective dose. What does the amount of time on the medication have to do with anything? You take it as long as you need it. The article didn't say anything about the amount of sunshine in Norway, Sweden, and Finland, doctor. You could write and sunbmit a peer-reviewed article and see if they'll include it.
So you see no difference in taking antidepressants for 3 months vs a year? You see no difference between taking 80mg of Valium a day vs 8mg? I'm saying your effective doses are far too high for the vast majority of you and most of you don't need the pills at all.
Valium isn't an anti-depressant. Get back to me when you have the slightest idea about what you're talking about.
Valium is a GABA receptor obviously, do you know what Fluoxetine Hydrochloride is? It's a GABA receptor. Do you know what a GABA receptor is? Just wondering because your scientific knowledge suggests you have no clue in anyway at all. Get back to me when you've googled it.
This is what you said that I responded to, "In Europe we pop <1/2 the anti depressants US does". As I said before, it depends on where in Europe you're talking about.
No it is not it's a mind altering drug which is what my first post was clearly about if there's confusion it's that I was not talking exclusively about anti depressants. Very possibly I needed to make it more clear. I am talking about drugs that affect long term dopamine, GABA receptors & Serotonin (Linked to GABA). SSRI's should not be taken lightly.
For the third time. This is what I quoted, "In Europe we pop <1/2 the anti depressants US does". I'm not talking about Benzodiazepines. Those are an entirely different ballgame. As for this, "SSRI's should not be taken lightly". Who said they should be?
I have little problems with Valium or Xanax on there own except that they are treated as candy by a small portion of the population. I do worry though that people with serious mental issues are fobbed off with Xanax and Valium when they should have professional supervised help. Pop a pill is the US solution to mental health issues. https://consumer.healthday.com/ment...-use-jumps-65-percent-in-15-years-725586.html I'll try and find the C4 show where they broke down the pill usage was back 2012 so figures are out of date now as UK has increased it's pill popping too. It was based on amount of pills taken per person not just amount of people prescribed.
From what I've heard there are better anti-anxiety medications than Valium or Xanax. Ones that are effective while being taken but are easier to get off of.
