In one of my threads on my Facebook page, it was suggested that too many people are pointing fingers about the epidemic of gun violence plaguing America. Alas, I do not see any way but pointing fingers.
The NHS (National Health Services) has wanted to do research on gun violence for decades. Now, maybe we're all sick to death of yet one more study. What's to study? Guns kill people. Okay, okay, people with guns kill people.
A lot of people say mental health is a driving issue of gun violence. It sure is, how can anyone in their right mind wantonly take the life of another?
So if mental health is an issue, let the NHS do their job and study it, BUT the GOP/NRA partnership has for years shut down funding for that. The Democrats have repeatedly attempted to revive the Brady Bill. Again, the GOP/NRA has shut that down. Opponents say there are no needs for more background checks. If the current system of background checks aren't doing the job, this needs to be looked at. Too many people have "legally" slipped through the cracks. You all have surely seen the memes that say it is easier to purchase guns and ammunition than it is to get certain prescription (opiates).
It seems to me, there should be certain controls that raise a flag when someone buys thousands and thousands of rounds of ammunition or large numbers of guns. Seriously, I don't recall the particular case, but I remember the killer of one recent mass killing had just prior to his deed, bought 6,000 rounds of ammunition. 6,000 rounds? Just how many deer did they think going to kill (that's sarcasm, folks)?
And who needs an AK-47 or other assault-style rifles. Don't give me the schtick that some people want it for hunting. Yeah? Hunting humans because no hunter worth their salt hunts with a weapon that is best left in the hands of members of our Armed Forces or police (and don't even get me started on some police over the top actions, which is best left for a totally separate conversation).
I do not think someone "nonchalantly" walking into a gun shop should be walking out. Yes, I know that is not quite how it works, but I do think in some cases, it is far too easy for someone to buy a gun.
I know some people cringe when I suggest this, but I still think gun ownership should entail mandatory gun training (annually?) and ownership insurance. It works for car ownership, why not for guns (and I don't care if auto ownership is not a second amendment issue)?
Today, it is illegal to advertise smoking cigarettes on television. Same goes for the sales of hard liquor. I think the same should be said for gun sales.
Personally, I do not think the Second Amendment is sacrosanct. I also do not think it means what some gun advocates wants it to mean. What part of a "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." means everyone who wants a gun should have one? If gun ownership means "well regulated militia," then go join the Armed Forces.
AND, why oh why, does a second amendment right override my/our right to the pursuit of life and liberty?
It is estimated that there are 393,347,000 guns in America, and that is only an estimate. Again, there are no concrete figures because the GOP/NRA has blocked serious study. Incidentally, the population of the USA is 326,474,000, which means there are more guns here than there are people.
I do not dispute that gun ownership for hunting and home protection is a protected right. I believe "stand your ground" laws make killing too easy. I believe gun laws need to be more consistent from state to state. Personally, I do not think someone should be allowed to buy a gun in a state that they do not reside (one of the recent killers from California purchased his guns in Nevada). I do not see anything wrong with more strict background checks and longer waiting periods.
One can argue that there are plenty of roadblocks in place now. Perhaps. But something is not working. We should not be seeing news reports of daily mass shootings. Why is it that in no country in the world do we read of their citizens performing gun acts of violence as occur here? Are the mass killings that have been happening to us on an increasing frequency the new normal? Are schools, hospitals, workplaces, shopping centers, churches, etc., to now be the accepted sites for target practice?
Whatever the answers are to stop this epidemic, we are clearly not doing it. Thoughts and prayers are not actions, they are nothing more than patting one's self on the back for a polite Christian response. "Business as usual is not a response. It is a moral shirking of our duties to protect the ones we love. I say...
Enough is enough!
