I served proudly in the U.S. Army from 2001-2006. Completed 2 tours of duty in Iraq,(2003-2005). Recently i have noticed a very one sided debate over the country's current gun control laws, and while i do agree with some of the arguments made, there is an overwhelming amount of nonsense being thrown out by people who have no idea what they're talking about. The last two mass shootings involved STOLEN firearms. A recent poll of prison populations convicted of violent crimes with firearms revealed that 80% of those involving firearms were obtained ILLEGALLY. Tightening restrictions on law abiding citizens only ensures that two groups will have all the firearms, criminals, and the government. Common sense tells me to trust neither of the two. Another argument i recently heard was that the Feds should do away with all magazines, grow up people. If someone enters my home intending to do harm to myself or my family, i will apply the appropriate force i deem necessary, not some liberal who doesn't know which end of a firearm to point at an enemy. The criminal will not wait for me to reload, wont take a break while the police are en route. I will apply the amount of force necessary to ensure that the threat cannot repeat these actions on another citizen. I took an oath to defend this country from enemies, both foreign and domestic, and i will continue to do so. Two members of the CNN  crew,(Piers Morgan and Ashley Banfield), have used the Fort Hood shooting as points in their arguments against firearms claiming that if a mass shooting can take place at Ft. Hood, one of the most secure posts in the world, then we should do away with them. I was stationed at Ft. Hood for four years. Yes they are well guarded and heavily armed, too bad those weapons are facing out, not in. Units are scattered all over that installation, and each one of those units does have it's own arms room, too bad they are not allowed to store ammo inside them. Soldiers that live off post own personal firearms, and they are allowed to bring them on post to shoot at ranges. This is a common event on the majority of posts across the country. As long as you have the proper identification and a D.O.D. decal on your vehicle, the odds of you being searched at the gate are slim.The AR-15 is a very popular weapon system these days, and it is similar in appearance to the infamous M16/M4 variants used by several military's around the world. However, this is where the similarities end. Anyone who has served in the military can verify that these weapon systems are different. The M16/M4 variants use the NATO 5.56MM cartridge, while the AR variants use the Remington .223,(unless the weapon is chambered for both, i.e. you can fire a Remington .223 out of a weapon that is chambered for NATO 5.56mm, but firing a 5.56mm out of a weapon chambered for Remington .223 will result in a critical weapon failure. IT WILL BLOW UP). Mind you these rounds are similar in size, but anyone who knows what they're doing can tell you the 5.56mm round is a "hotter" round. The actual size of the bullet is different, along with the brass cartridge. The amount of grains in the two cartridges are different, along with the primer. In most professional circles, we like to refer to the Remington .223 as a "varmint" round, while the NATO 5.56MM is more accurate, and has a higher pressure when fired. Personally, i have fired the NATO 5.56MM in a military theater of operations, any Soldier or Marine can verify the 5.56MM is best a medium ranges, i have witnessed enemy combatants hit by a 5.56mm get back on their feet and run,( hitting someone at too close a range does not allow the round to do what it is intended to do, i.e. tumble inside the body), the round passes clean through with minimal damage. Banning fore end grips is just silly. It's a piece of plastic. It DOES NOT affect the weapon systems rate of fire. They are good for one thing, accuracy when firing in either burst or fully automatic. Which the AR platforms are incapable of doing unless you have illegally modified it, or have equipped a bump stock. Beta mags,(magazines with a capacity of 100 rounds and higher), are unnecessary. I agree these high capacity mags should be banned. The U.S. military does not use them. They are prone to jamming, and in every instance i can think of have always failed when in use. I also agree in background checks for EVERY firearms purchase, and that some sort of system should be in place so you cannot order thousands of rounds online without passing certain criteria. Not to mention a complete over haul of this country's mental health care system. Look people, this stuff is pretty common sense. Sit down with your children and do some parenting. If a child learns a curse word while watching t.v. do you blame the network? no. It's the parents responsibility to turn the damn thing off. Wake up, actually spend time with your children and be apart of their lives. If you think video games are too violent, then don't buy them for your children. Banning the makers is not a substitute for parenting. In other words don't punish an entire nation for what a tiny percentage do. I agree that there are some common sense steps we can take as a nation to prevent some of this violence, but you're never going to stop all of it, and taking firearms away from responsible gun owners is not the answer.It is my right as an American citizen, and a combat veteran,( a member of the REAL 1 percent of the American population who served in Iraq), to purchase,own, train with, and maintain any type of firearms i damn well please, and no one will take that from me.