When events like Newtown occur there are several reactions. First, there is disbelief. How could something like this happen? It can’t be true. But, all too soon, we know it is true. With the Virginia Tech massacre our community has had first-hand experience with it but that never prepares you for the next event. Since then we have had the Ft. Hood shootings, the Gabby Gifford tragedy, the Aurora killings, and now this, in some ways the worst of all because of the children involved.
After the initial shock has been absorbed the second reaction sets in: Profound sadness for those affected and a feeling of helplessness to do anything to ease their pain.
Close on the heels of those thoughts comes the third reaction: This must never happen again. We must have gun control and that will prevent further senseless murders. The gun enthusiasts (how can anyone be enthusiastic about an instrument whose sole purpose is to kill another person) trot out their tired Second Amendment issues. If one reads the Second Amendment this is what it says: “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.” In District of Columbia v. Heller, (2008) the Supreme Court uncoupled the right to bear arms from the “well-regulated militia.” How they did that without an amendment is beyond me. Now, anyone who wants a gun can get one, or as many as you would like. Here in Virginia I believe the law says you can buy only one a month. Some restriction!
Here are a few statistics that are astounding. Gun ownership in the United States is 89 guns/100 people. The second highest in the world is Yemen at 54/100. Despite the presence of multiple guns in many households, the United States is not the world leader in murders by handgun; South Africa, Colombia, and Thailand are ahead of us. In total murders the US is way down the list when corrected for population: 4.1 murders/year/100,000 population. Honduras leads the list with 91.6 murders/year/100,000 population; the machete, not guns, is by far the weapon of choice, worldwide.
There is no question that the massive availability of handguns in the United States accounts for most of the murders. In the last year with statistics, there were 12,996 murders in the country and 9,369 involved a handgun. Contrast that with Canada and 554 handguns used in a killing or similar numbers in the UK, France, Germany.
The mass killings we have seen will not be prevented by stricter gun laws. The true sociopath, the rare psychotic with violent tendencies, and the criminal intent on annihilating a rival gang, will not be deterred by gun laws. Of the massive number of gun murders in our country, disturbed people are a tiny fraction. Most gun killings happen in the midst of an argument gone too far where a firearm is available, a robbery, or in domestic discord. As Bob Kostas, one of the most reasonable of sportscasters pointed out that the murder/suicide of an NFL player and his girlfriend would not have happened except for the presence of a handgun. One would have thought he had suggested seizing every firearm in North America given the monstrous outcry against him.
What can we do to stop another Columbine, another Fort Hood, another Aurora, another Gabby Gifford, or another Newtown? Probably nothing. Horror happens . . . and it will happen again when seriously deranged people are armed and on the prowl. But that is no reason for not banning assault weapons, semi-automatic handguns with 30 round magazines, or being able to purchase unlimited amounts of weaponry online with no background checks. That it was not even mentioned as a campaign issue boggles the mind. Perhaps there is the will to act now.
We are a violence-prone people. We glorify carnage. Look at the unspeakable horror on television, the movies, and video “games.” Worse yet, go into a Halloween costume store and look at the children’s masks with faces hacked away or hands blown off. The more horrific the better the tastemakers seem to be saying.
A final thought: Data indicate that having a handgun in the house increases many fold the likelihood that a family member will be killed in a home intrusion. They do not make us safer; they actually expose us to more risk.
The President and Congress should take steps, and do it now, to curb this wave of gun killings. The tragedy of Newtown will recur, but that should not lessen our resolve to strengthen the laws that allow the proliferation of weapons. If the fear that the government will seize our freedom if everyone isn’t armed to the teeth is ridiculous. It certainly hasn’t happened in any comparable nation.
In the meantime, all of us should pause and deeply reflect on what has happened. A sign at the Newtown memorial service last Sunday said it well: Heartbroken but Strong in Spirit. All Americans should endorse that thought.
Hayden Hollingsworth
