Many people thought that after former Congressional representative Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona sustained a near fatal gunshot to the brain, there would be a national response to gun violence. There was some discussion about universal background checks and restrictions on certain types of weapons, but the talks quickly faded.
And probably more than any time in recent history, new legislation seemed probable after the Newtown slaughter of elementary school children. But the shooting deaths continue.
Slate has an interactive map on its site that collects data daily on the number of Americans who have been killed by a gun since the Newtown killings on December 14, 2012. The map puts the number at roughly 3,300 deaths, and it includes victims in Rochester, Buffalo, and Syracuse.
Support for new gun legislation remains somewhat strong according to a new MSNBC-Marist poll. Democrats and Independents strongly back gun control measures, but many Republicans do not.
Other recent polls show the public’s support for gun control may be slipping. And even though the majority of the public backs better gun control legislation, many members of Congress from both parties are not eager to move forward quickly on the issue.
The NRA has predictably recommended placing armed guards in all public schools. And President Obama is out trying to drum up support for gun control legislation. But it’s beginning to look as if it’s going to take more horrific events to make the American public angry enough to force Washington lawmakers to do something.
This article appears in Apr 3-9, 2013.
Disapprove of gun ownership? Then by all means don’t own one. Otherwise mind your own business.
Control nuts, not guns.
Te majority already speaks in the fact that 80% of us do NOT own guns. And yes, we need gun control. The idea that these laws only inconvenience law abiding citizens just isn’t true. There are plenty of non-criminals who are stupid and careless and in need of control. The mother of the Sandy Hook shooter was not a criminal, but she sure was stupid and careless to continue to have guns in a home with a mentally ill son.
The majority already speaks in the fact that 80% of us do NOT own guns. And yes, we need gun control. The idea that these laws only inconvenience law abiding citizens just isn’t true. There are plenty of non-criminals who are stupid and careless and in need of control. The mother of the Sandy Hook shooter was not a criminal, but she sure was stupid and careless to continue to have guns in a home with a mentally ill son.
Full disclosure: I do not own a gun, and I think my wife still has a .22 rifle that hasn’t been out of the closet in years.
How about a website that tracks auto deaths, or smoking-related deaths, or any number of other causes of death? The numbers do NOT warrant a response. How many millions of guns and gun owners versus how many deaths? Such a tiny percentage. And don’t give me any crap about one death being too many. If that were the case airplanes, swimming pools, ginsu knives and water balloons would all be outlawed.
It is about rights.
Period.
Why do we insist on continuing to give away our rights?
Our rights are being eroded a little at a time, all in the name of “safety” or “protecting the children”. With the exception of cannabis in Colorado and Washington, when was the last time anybody in this country earned MORE freedom? The fact that both of those were referendums voted in by the people is quite telling. The government has us under pretty much daily surveillance. I can’t go to work without being seen by at least 10 light-pole cameras and risking tickets at 2 red-light intersections. The NSA hoovers up any and all electronic communications. They don’t do much with it now… but they can. The TSA ignores the 4th amendment, as does stop-and-frisk. My students go to school only after going through metal detectors and then spend the day under unblinking gaze of something like 50+ cameras. We’ve ceased to be citizens and have become cogs in the machine and revenue sources for the government.
The current hue and cry for more regulation of this or that “danger” just shows that most people are sheep who care more about security than liberty. They deserve neither.
(Anyone who wants to know how Hitler or Mussolini came to power needs to simply look around at our nation in the last few decades. We’ve slowly gone from being a vibrant, growing, powerful people to a nation of simpering cowards in a fascist-lite environment. Only the continued existence of the First Amendment has kept us anything like free… certainly can’t give credit to the 4th or 9th.)
Once more for emphasis:
It. Is. About. Rights.
The left is showing it’s true colors by this giant gun grab. Why not enforce the laws on the books and focus on helping the mentally ill? Because democrats don’t care about safety and are exploiting this to achieve their long desired goal of disarming Americans.
Wolves in sheep’s clothing.