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Joe is an American living in Germany- he doesn't have a gun there, but owns one in the States and told us about all the precautions he takes to make sure it's kept safe. Anu asked Kate if carrying a gun would make her feel safer- Kate said no, she didn't want a gun in her house "for the sake of my children"...
We got a text from Sweden....Helge asked " Alternative question: Do more nuclear weapons lead to more wars? ".
joined the programme, (he describes himself as "conservative with libertarian sympathies" ) and is the author of a book called "Armed America: The Remarkable Story of How and Why Guns Became as American as Apple Pie". He told us that violent crime is a "systemic problem" and that the USA has a higher rate of all kinds of violent crimes, not just to do with guns.
Paul in Toronto joined the conversation - He was in the army for two years. He would not allow civilians to have guns under any circumstances. He says there should be a complete ban on weapons. He doesn't want to ever have a weapon in his house. A lot of his friends have guns for entertainment which harm lives.
Clayton told him there's a need for guns in urban areas. Paul said we (in Canada) have fewer guns and therefore less chance of being shot. Clayton and Paul DID agree that in the past, the U.S, Canada and Australia were a "dumping ground" for criminals from the U.K. Clayton says there's a "violence problem " PARTLY because of that "gene pool".
Bolor- a Mongolian living in Switzerland- was next up; she told us that "nothing good can come out of a gun". She asked "why would you buy a gun if you don't intend to use it?".
Magnus in Iceland (but brought up in the U.S) told us that his father gave him a pistol when he was younger and he used it to scare off some youths who were giving him a problem. Later he sought a legal permit for the gun , and he was told that he couldn't take his gun within "200 yards" of a school, which meant he left it in his car when he picked up his son. Since then , he's gone off the idea of carrying one.
Riz in Sydney texted just before the break for the news..." Owning a gun here means u r a criminal. I wont feel comfortable in America. They say they're developed. I say its the same old 'wild west'
After the news, we heard a text from max in Ukraine "Readily available guns are an easy, fast and lethal means to release one's anger, which otherwise might have been dealt with.".
Clayton stayed with us and said that accidents with guns are much less of a problem than murders and suicides. "There are more serious things that can happen to you if you can't defend yourself" he said. He told us he'd drawn a gun twice, and not something he wished to repeat.
David texted to say "Stricter gun-control laws would not have prevented this (the Pennsylvania shooting) gruesome act. The perpetrator would have met every single condition to allow him to possess a firearm"
A man we called "Witness" on-air from Birmingham in England told us how he was caught up in a drive-by shooting when he was in a gang. He's now 32 and has in his words "settled down". He works with ex-gang members to help them find a better way. he said it was more of a "knife culture" when he was younger and now it's guns. He told us that "guns aren't the problem", it's people who can't control their violent tendencies.
Editor at Swiss National radio Georg auf der Maur joined us and told us about the debate in Switzerland regarding soldiers keeping their guns at home, not at an arsenal.
Nick, originally from the Uk, now living in Michigan e-mailed; "I own three guns. I used to shoot in England and welcomed the freedoms offered when I moved to the USA. What does bother me is the ease with which guns can be purchased here. There should be much tighter controls on who can purchase them and at least a requirement to lock guns in owners homes." And Abel from Singapore texted : "people are irrational when They're angry, and can do anything, including shooting another person, which they regret afterwards. Guns should never been allowed".
Anu read out an e-mail criticising us for not having a pro gun control voice from the U.S , saying we were being unfair.
Rosemary from Brussels was living in the U.S and learnt how to fire a gun. Her tutor advised her to "shoot to kill, so they can't sue".
Erin in Detroit e-mailed to counter Clayton's "gene pool" point; "America is a nation controlled by fear and violence. This is why our crime rate is so high. It has nothing to do with criminals coming from other countries. Further more if most crime in america occurs in urban areas, why are most gun permit holders suburban residents. "
An NRA member from Texas- Al- says to all those people who don't belive in guns "if they had to defend their family, they'd think differently". Georg, a still-serving member of the Swiss Army told us he would never carry his gun-it stays at home.
Vladimir Eremin, the photo editor of the spoke to us after the , Montreal and was back on today. He said students at the college have received counselling and are still worried it could happen again. The news from Pennsylvania obviously affected them.
We finished the programme with two texts. One from Damian in Slovakia "If someone is assaulted, then that person has two choices: to react violently or peacefully. The 1st restarts the cycle. The other stops it."
The other from Nono, who is Portugese, but listening in Iceland : "in Portugal, gun controls didn't work - things got worse"