Mass Shootings in America
America is unique in the world in terms of how many mass shootings we experience compared to the rest of the globe. No other country comes close to the volume we have. In the past week, America was hurt by two more mass shootings. Don’t kid yourself into believing these incidents will mobilize America to act. If the shootings at Sandy Hook, Parkland, and Columbine failed to motivate Congress, nothing will change how we deal with this issue. One must understand that millions of Americans are far more focused on their second Amendment rights than they are on saving lives. Having said that, this is a very complex issue, with no simple solution. Please don’t operate on the fantasy that gun control will stop mass shootings. Gun control will help, and probably prevent some, or several, mass shootings, but they will not go away. You may not want to acknowledge this, but they are part of our culture.
Having said that, think about the following. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could cut the number of mass shooting in half? Gun Control won’t magically eradicate mass shootings, but it could save a significant number of lives, by reducing the volume.
Let’s start by establishing some basic information. Contrary to what many Americans believe, an American President cannot abolish the second amendment. That is a virtual impossibility. Next, get real on this issue, because Congress cannot find enough votes to establish Universal Background checks, so how could anyone believe somebody is coming to your home to take away your weapons. Therefore, the second Amendment and the right to arm yourself isn’t going away. And with the current members of the Supreme Court, it may possibly be strengthened.
Next, the author of this article does not want to do away with our second amendment rights. I support the right for law abiding citizens to arm and protect themselves. However, if I was in charge, when a citizen wants to purchase a weapon, there should be a law requiring them to take a firearms safety course. Many people accidentally shoot family members, or themselves, because they have no idea how to properly and safely handle a weapon.
The next common-sense prohibition would be the elimination of military weapons, such as an AR-15, which is often used in mass shootings. Obviously, those kind of weapons increase the volume and type of carnage we’ve witnessed so often. Keep in mind, that even if we banned military style weapons tomorrow, there are so many already in circulation, it would be years before this could turn into a major change. But we have to at least start the proves. We already restrict ownership of machine guns, so we can also restrict ownership of an AR-15, or similar weapons, using the same logic. Keep mind the goal is to make it harder, not easy, to gain access to these type of deadly weapons, which are used so often in mass shootings.
Another positive change would be Universal Background Checks, eliminating the gun show exception. Do you know that surveys reveal over 85% of Americans support Universal Background Checks? Despite that overwhelming support for them, NRA sycophants in Congress repeatedly block this commonsense regulation. Does any decent American want convicted felons, mentally ill people, and, juveniles having easy access to legal purchases of weapons? In addition, I would include a mandatory 24-hour waiting period for gun purchases. Once again, do you want someone who is emotionally aroused and angry, to walk into a gun shop and purchase a weapon on the spot? Let’s mandate a cooling off period.
Let’s examine another flawed argument offered by right wing NRA representatives. One hears them constantly use a city, such as Chicago, as an example, which in their minds, illustrates why gun control doesn’t work. Despite very strong gun laws in the city of Chicago, everyone acknowledges they are awash with weapons. What NRA advocates and right-wing radicals fail to include in their argument is the fact that anyone can leave the city limits of Chicago and buy all the weapons they want in nearby jurisdictions. This is also true in a city such as Washington, DC where thugs drive across the Arlington Memorial Bridge, into Virginia, and buy all the weapons they want. However, if we implement FEDERAL GUN CONTROL LAWS, the examples of Chicago and DC, cited above, would disappear. Then we would actually find out if gun control eliminates, or at least helps prevent, some or many mass shootings.
The one option America cannot afford is to do nothing in the face of non-stop mass shootings. Let’s try to finally do something about this unnecessary carnage of our citizens. Maybe it will help, maybe it wont. But one thing we know for sure, what we are doing now has been a total failure.
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