‘Gun Control: A Matter of Public Safety.’

After the tragic mass shooting in Las Vegas, the debate over gun control needs to be reopened by Congress. More restrictions of firearms of any kind must be enacted, and a constitutional amendment is needed if all states of the union cannot regulate firearms more effectively.

America’s gun control laws are some of the loosest in the developed world, and gun related homicide is the highest.  In Japan, shooting deaths have been almost completely eliminated.  Almost nobody owns a gun, and it is the developed nation with the least amount of firearms. Not even the Yakuza use guns. There is strict control over firearms, and they are almost completely forbidden.  For the Japanese it is a matter of public safety.

More gun control laws in the U.S. would reduce gun deaths.  Transportation of Polymer Glock pistols should be illegal because too often they are not detected by metal detectors. High-capacity magazines should be banned because they turn murder into mass murder. More gun control laws are needed to protect women from domestic abuse and stalkers. Legally owned guns are frequently stolen and used by criminals, and are rarely used in self-defense.

The Founding Fathers of our nation created the second amendment so states could form militias in order to prevent insurrections. What would the Founding Fathers say about the flood of handguns and weapons that so many ordinary citizens possess nowadays, and that have no relation to militias because we have an incredibly powerful standing army?  And there were no semi-automatic or automatic firearms, back in 1791, when they created the second amendment.

The former Chairman of ‘The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.’, Nelson “Pete” Fields said:

 “The first problem is to slow down the increasing number of handguns being produced and sold in this country. The second is to get handguns registered. And the final problem is to make the possession of all handguns and all handgun ammunition – except for the military, policemen, licensed security guards, licensed sporting clubs, and licensed gun collectors – totally illegal.”

Shields also said that he believed “in the right of law-abiding citizens to possess handguns… for legitimate purposes.”

After the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012, the Democrats were blocked from strengthening gun control laws because of the National Rifle Association’s influence over Republican held congressional districts.

The extreme partisan makeup of some congressional districts, gives the NRA more power, and they will endorse Republicans in these strongholds. Since these Republicans cannot afford to lose the primaries in 2018, the NRA has a huge influence over these incumbents and candidates.

Gerrymandering is a cheap way for the gun lobby to keep their candidate in office.  Therefore, the only way for Democrats to to get gun-control bills passed, is for the courts to redistrict the states in a fair, non-partisan way; trying to elect a Democrat in a gerrymandered district is a totally impossible feat!

Although many Americans advocate for common sense gun control, in rural states where gun ownership and hunting are a very important part of their culture, the NRA exerts a powerful influence and incumbents in these districts are more likely to vote in favor of gun ownership, or else be threatened by the NRA´s endoresment of the challenger, who might oppose any form of gun control.

According to the Managing Editor of ‘Sabato’s Crystal Ball:’

The Democratic vulnerability next year is clear, both in the volume of seats they are defending and the deep Republican lean of several of those states.

If such a GOP tide washed away several Democratic Senate incumbents while an unpopular Republican held the White House, it would be essentially unprecedented. In other words, it would fit right in with the 2016 election that broke many “rules” of politics.

And if President Trump‘s approval rating goes up and stays up, it will help the Republicans.

The Republicans are resisting any calls for change on gun control laws, and White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders says it is not the time to talk about gun control.

Politicians and citizens who demand stricter gun laws include the organization, ‘Americans for Responsible Solutions.’  founded by Gabrielle Giffords, a former member of the Democratic House of Representatives and her husband Mark Kelly.  Gifford’s career was tragically ended when she was shot in the head while she was at a meeting with her constituents in Tucson, Arizona.

The organization’s mission is to support getting the names of everyone not allowed to buy a gun into the background check system, a mandatory background check for every gun purchase or transfer of possession, including between private citizens, limiting domestic abusers’ access to firearms, stopping gun trafficking, preventing the carrying of firearms in certain locations, and maintaining silencers as a ‘title II’ device.

Jimmy Kimmel’s emotional monologue was right on point. His forceful words calling out politicians, the NRA, and that the people who consider gun violence to be inevitable, are complacent; and that the gun lobby runs this country, all resonated with me.  I also believe that we the people could be doing a lot more to push for gun control by holding our politicians accountable, so that they pass legislation which would restrict the purchase and use of firearms in the U.S.

It is about time our politicians go beyond kind thoughts and prayers, and take action.  The U.S. should be like Japan and not allow access to guns and make them illegal.

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