A Crucial Time to Consider Gun Controls
The GOP Congressional baseball practice shooting is a poignant time to reconsider our lack of reacting to tragic mass shootings. Yes, I know that Republicans are using our sympathetic reactions to the shooting to shame gun control advocates from speaking up, when they really need to.
Even Republicans who were under fire are sticking with the NRA line that the only way to stop a bad man with a gun is to have a good man armed with a gun. Why weren’t they each carrying an equivalent semiautomatic high velocity rifle and pistol with them, plus a load of ammunition? Because they were not allowed to in that area. Really? If everybody on their team and their loyal fans were carrying such an arsenal, do you think the Congressional police would have allowed the majority whip or even any congressman anywhere near that area?
In this area of time, we are sadly observing the occurrence of three of the worst mass shootings. Could that have motivated the current shooter? It has been easier for the Republican Congress not to act in those cases, despite national appeals by President Obama, and the survivors and families of victims of those shootings. But now, congressmen, their leader, their aides, and their families were attacked. Can they really turn aside again? Are they really that beholden to the NRA, a large Republican campaign donor organization? Relatively few gun owners belong to the NRA, and those that do even poll more in favor of closing gun purchase loopholes.
The only things stopping gun violence are the fact that only one third of Americans own guns, and that states like California have stronger restrictions on guns. The toll from guns is 32,000 deaths a year, many more injuries, and up to this date 153 mass shootings this year. That is about 90 deaths per day. About 19,000 of the deaths are suicides by guns. Suicide by gun is highly successful, whereas other attempts usually fail and give the depressed person a second chance. These people can often be identified as depressed or unstable and prevented from owning guns or having guns around.
The ball park shooting did delay the day’s committee consideration of changing a law so that silencers could become more available. A silencer on a mass shooter could delay responders from identifying the location of the shooter, and make the mass shooting much deadlier. The Republican’s mythical “guy with a gun” scenario, is instead being used to push for more lethal rights to allow open carry, by anybody. Republicans have not passed bills to even close the gun show loophole. They have passed bills to allow people on the terrorist watch list or do-not-fly list to buy guns. Government is even prohibited from having a computerized list of those who should not be allowed to buy guns, and have to do the checks by hand records. People on the IRS list of those not mentally competent to fill out tax returns have now been liberated to buy guns.
Whereas detailed examination of each shooters’ motives cannot prevent the next, quite different, shooter, in this case, the shooter had been charged with domestic abuse, and even abuse with a gun butt. Any decent laws combined with a computerized checking system would have prevented him from buying guns. Much of the Republican Congressional talk is just how to protect themselves, not the general public, which is subject to almost all of the American carnage.
We call for all Congressmen and state legislators to stand up and do the right thing, and effectively advance gun control laws. Â Just the opposite is occurring with our very pro-NRA President.
