Crazy people have been doing horrible things since the dawn of time and will continue to do so regardless of what anti-gun laws you or lawmakers decide to impose on citizens. More guns do NOT create more murders. Nearly every home in Switzerland has a gun and yet they have one of the world’s lowest murder rates. In the U.S. gun sales have been through the roof over the last decade or so and our murder rates have fallen around 50 percent during the same time period. An “assault rifle” is nothing more than a semi-automatic rifle that LOOKS like the ones soldiers use. It is LESS powerful than the average hunting rifle. If someone wants to kill a lot of people and you restrict the clip size of their weapon, they will just get more clips. If you take away their gun all together they will strap a bomb to their chest.
FEAR is what has driven the recent talk about more gun control. We see the horror displayed on T.V., and we become fearful that such a thing could happen close to home. Our fears make us want to lock our doors and windows and keep our children inside. Because we cannot fathom how a person could do such a horrible thing, our mind points toward the weapon, and then blame is put on it more so than the person who committed the act. It is an understandable response. However, if you want to truly fix the problem that creates these mass murders, look to the individuals who are doing them, not at the means they choose. Our American society is ill. People are so afraid that kids no longer can run off to the park by themselves. We have stopped talking to our neighbors and riffs have formed in many families. Diluting our freedom to posses a firearm is a knee jerk response to a tragedy, and yet it is the WRONG response. Instead of stripping away the rights that many enjoy, which would only serve to create more alienation and fear, we should look at what’s wrong with the person who commits these senseless acts, and then work at getting them the help they need to prevent them from going over the edge.
I have only recently become an NRA member and am amazed at its research and knowledge about guns and governments. It is working hard at protecting one of our fundamental rights. It knows that forcing us to register/license our guns is the first step England used to strip most of its citizens of their guns. Don’t let it happen here. Join the NRA.
David S. Hardy
Helena