Saturday, May 2, 2009

Gun Control

I remember hearing a news story before the election about the huge increase in gun sales because of fears that Obama would reinstitute stricter controls on the purchase and sale of guns. Post-inauguration, it turns out he has much bigger and more pressing issues to worry about, but that hasn’t stopped a run on ammunition that is making many calibers completely unavailable around the country. I was privy to a conversation this week between two hunters frustrated about not being able to buy certain types of bullets for their weapons, and 60 Minutes
also mentioned this phenomena in a recent story about gun control, the gun show loop-hole and citizen fears about a collapsing economic system.

Apparently, there is a pretty good segment of the population that fears a complete collapse of the U.S. and world economies would force them to protect what they have at gunpoint, and they want to be prepared to do so. Others have always felt that the second amendment protected their ability to stand up to, and even overthrow the government in case it overstepped. Since I have recently started watching the HBO miniseries, John Adams, I am reminded of a time when exactly that scenario did play out in this country, and I actually understand, respect and even support this argument for our right to bear arms.

There are two arguments from the gun lobby that I just don’t get. The first is letting the assault weapons ban expire. Maybe it’s an extension of the above argument. After-all, fighting against our own government with today’s military technology, should it become necessary, would require more than a few handguns and hunting rifles. But if that is not the argument, I just can’t see why any law-abiding citizen would need a weapon that fires multiple rounds, rapid style. These are the weapons used by gangs and school shooters to mow down as many people as possible in a short period of time.

April marks the anniversaries of several prominent domestic terrorist attacks including Oklahoma City, Virginia Tech and Columbine – this year is the tenth anniversary of the school shooting in Colorado that killed twelve. The Columbine shooters used automatic weapons purchased at gun shows and illegally through friends. They were able to buy ammunition legally even as minors, including for a Tec-9 semi-automatic handgun that was fired a total of 55 times during the massacre.

The other argument that makes no sense to me is that the government wants to “take away” our guns. Sensible gun control that limits the type of weapons and monitors to whom they are sold, is not taking away anything from those who already have guns. Law-abiding hunters and those wishing to protect themselves should also not have any problem passing criminal background checks and other limitations before buying new weapons. The “pry it from my cold dead hands” rhetoric has always seemed extremist to me.

People have every right to protect themselves against violence, and if they feel that carrying a concealed weapon or having a loaded gun in their home is the best way to do so, they should have that right, but at some point, I think we need to examine exactly WHY we have more gun violence in this country than anywhere else in the world. The rate of firearm deaths among kids under age 15 is almost 12 times higher in the U.S., and American kids are 16 times more likely to be murdered with a gun, 11 times more likely to commit suicide with a gun and nine times more likely to die from a firearm accident than children in than in 25 other industrialized countries combined. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

U.S. Department of Justice data (2000-2002) reveals that very few of the current gun laws in this country are even enforced. While eighty-five percent of cases prosecuted relate to street criminals, those who engage in illegal gun trafficking, firearm theft, circumventing background checks and other laws governing gun dealers are rarely investigated and prosecuted. Additionally, a small number of gun stores (1-percent) sell weapons traced to 57-percent of gun crimes.

Additionally, we have enacted some really ridiculous zero tolerance weapons policies in our schools that preclude students from bringing a butter knife for use at lunch, and recently led to the 10-day suspension of a Young Marines drill team member for having mock rifles used for competition in her car at school. The animosity is heightened by extremist views and rhetoric on both sides of the debate. Both the “pry it from my cold dead hands” faction and the zero tolerance crowd need to take a step back and find a way to meet in the middle. Open, honest and productive debate about sensible law and policy (as well as enforcement) in regard to gun control can only take place when we stop screaming our own position from the top of our lungs and take some time for calm discussion and listening.

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