Gun Control

I am really disappointed with the debate that has gone on since the Sandy Hook tragedy. It seems that the debate quickly ended up in the weeds. Occasionally a mention gets made about what caused it but those seem to be rare and a token nodding of the head to the issue. Instead the focus is on gun control.

All the talk about gun control has brought up the usual statements of incredulity even though answers, whether right or wrong, have been given many times in the past. It has also shown that we are changing as a nation to one that isn't rooted very deeply in our history and really doesn't care about our distinctives.

Guns have played an important role in our country and we wouldn't be the country we are today without them. There is a lot of talk about what the 2nd Amendment says but there seems to be some confusion as to why it says it. Make no mistake, it is there to protect the people from a government, foreign or our own, who threatens our very existence. The amendment isn't there so we could enjoy shooting sports. That is why the argument against assault rifles and large capacity clips doesn't hold up. A lot of people wave that off saying that our government would never do that in this modern era. I think they are right but not so sure that I would dismiss those who think otherwise.

Another argument I have heard is basically that it is fine if good citizens want to have guns but let's make sure that the bad guys can't get them so easy. This leads to the idea that all gun owners should have thorough background checks. That would be good except for the fact that it is the government who keeps the list, which, again, doesn't help against a tyrannical government. To make matters worse, some media outlets have foolishly started publishing names and addresses of legal gun owners. Great, give people one more reason not to want to register their gun.

We already have gun laws. Somewhere between a daisy BB gun and a howitzer there is a line. Undoubtedly that line upsets people and now everyone is fighting over where that line should be. The problem is the whole argument misses the real issue. It is like someone said, "It is like seeing someone kill a bunch of people with a shovel, taking away all shovels, and thinking you've solved the problem."

I know there is a difference between a shovel and a gun but more gun control doesn't really deal with the problem. Once again we are only giving a brief acknowledgement to the role media, video games, abortion and other cultural problems play in this issue. I read an article the other day about why President Obama should appoint a woman to head the FCC. It was important because media had such a profound affect on our culture, according to the article. How come when it comes to mass killings, even killings where the killer dresses up like a movie villain, all we hear is that media doesn't really have that big of an impact on people?

Mass killings are indeed very sad and ones involving children really shake us up. (Thinking about all the abortions that take place every day has the same impact for some people, btw.) It seems like we would be driven to get to the bottom of what is really causing these tragedies. But apparently out of sight, out of mind takes care of it. We really don't care how sick our society is as long as there isn't any mass killings.

I really don't care if they tighten gun laws. But I think it is a shame that guns have become the scapegoat so we don't have to address the real issues.