The killings at Parkland, Fla., have sparked debate again about guns. Ms. Mandeville has asked for someone to do something. I agree.
However, I don’t agree that Congress, state legislatures, governors, or even the President should do a thing about guns. There are plenty of laws about guns, the selling of guns, and who may possess them.
Being a former service member, present NRA member, hunter, a concealed weapon permit holder, and owner of rifles, shotguns, and a few handguns, both revolvers and pistols, I am well aware of their proper and safe use. I shoot regularly at a range to remain proficient in using my handguns. When not in use, they and all ammunition are properly stored and locked in a gun safe.
All are classified as “deadly weapons” when not used correctly or in a hapless manner. People who are mentally unbalanced (as young Mr. Cruz is reportedly said to have mental health issues, which is quite obvious), he should never had access to any type of weapon, regardless of firearm, ax, machete, etc. It is obvious the FBI screwed up the tips they had about this guy, and now many are dead because of their incompetence and not questioning Mr. Cruz about his obsession and intent.
Another way to kill many people is ramming them with cars and trucks, which seems to the preferred method, especially in Europe. But I don’t hear about vehicle control.
Let’s get serious, the only way to stop this is a good person with a gun stopping a bad person with a gun. The “gun free zones” stops nobody from doing evil if that is their plan, in fact, it probably encourages those sick people to get in the buildings to kill students, teachers and administrators.
Unless these schools understand a handgun is a tool, for good or evil, depending on who is wielding it, these incidents will continue. If teachers, administrators and support people were allowed to carry a concealed weapon and be proficient using it, it would help in stopping this from happening. Especially if the “gun free zone” signs come down and it is known there could be people in the building(s) bearing weapons and they know how to use them. The people intent on doing evil aren’t stupid; they will attack easy victims, because they are generally cowards and don’t want to get hurt themselves.
We have created a sick society with nobody being responsible and everyone is a victim. It’s easier to blame someone or something else for your circumstance or bad behavior.
How many people fess up to their mistakes and say they learned a valuable lesson and move on?
I blame the past 60 years of liberal thought and consequence and the acquiescence by Republicans for going along to get along. They don’t do well at wielding power or pressing the advantage of having the majority.
Democrats know if they don’t stick together, they will stand for nothing. They are bereft of ideas except to raise taxes and spend more money.
It is no surprise most cities and states with Republicans in power are in much better shape than those with Democrats at the helm. Balanced budgets, emphasis on law and order, healthy economies, and low taxes create a healthy climate for families to thrive.
The rotting of America from within continues…
Just a couple of my thoughts on this.
The police visited Cruz’s residence on numerous occasions. If there was some form of physical abuse or even the threat of it, as a cause for those visits, his guns should have been confiscated.
And, I believe he was also being treated for some mental problems as well. If he was unstable, again, his weapons should have been confiscated.
I am not a proponent of people having AK47’s or other type weapons. If anyone thinks, by owning such a weapon, they could withstand an onslaught by our military, should the government turn them loose on the populace, they are being foolish. Those types of weapons were developed and designed for one purpose. And civilian possession should be banned.
However, the right to own a firearm is a constitutional right that should be honored. No laws will prevent some from breaking them. The use of heroin is illegal, but there are more deaths from its use than by firearm.
And finally. The thought that weapons are the cause of such incidents is as ludicrous as to think that a fork is the cause for obesity.
“The rotting of America from within continues…” Love your line, it must be good as it angers so many folks who disagree with your point of view.
Ranger Rick
Finally someone in journalist that writes about firearms and tells it like it is…
Great article..
Come on people, there is no clear cut answer to this dilemma. Don’t you all think something has to happen? I do but I have no solution. Who hunts with an AR – 15??? What about our students? They deserve an education and a right to do so safely! Don’t they?..
A fork and a gun are delivery systems for an intended substance or object. A fork delivers food to a person’s body, but it is not the only delivery system. Hands and fingers work equally well. Thus, it is correct that one cannot blame a fork for obesity. A gun, on the other hand, is devised to deliver a bullet, sometimes to a person’s body. In the case of AR15s or AK47s the intention of delivering the bullet is to kill. I can think of no other delivery system for delivering bullets to human bodies, therefore, guns can be blamed, in part, for the deaths they cause.
In both cases a person must employ the tool.
The tool to deliver the substance that causes obesity hurts the user most directly, and it takes quite a while for the possible death from obesity to occur. The tool that delivers the bullet fired by an AR15 or AK47 hurts another party, and death from delivery of that object is more certain, though it might be argued that injuries sustained from same are a death all their own.
In my considered opinion, one cannot equate these tools for the potential damage they may cause. Thus, it isn’t really as ludicrous to blame the gun as the fork. Get rid of the gun type of delivery system and you get rid of this specific horror.
The only difference between Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida and Wayland Union HS, Thornapple Kellogg HS, Caledonia HS, Hastings HS or Hopkins HS is they have been fortunate enough to not have an unhappy student or former student with access to an AR-15 with multiple 25 shot clips.
No reason to have that style of gun available to the public. Its a weapon with a round that’s intentionally designed to be unstable so it causes more damage upon impact. Not a hunting weapon unless you’re hunting people.
Its going to be funny watching people get angry until one of those angry people shows up with an AR-15 at an area school or a local government meeting unhappy about a decision. Then it won’t be a chuckle fest.
If someone with a gun wants you dead all the weapons in your home aren’t going to save you from a decent shooter with a scope hitting their target, a drive by or walking up to you with a concealed weapon. The idea that the hunting guns in my home will protect me or my family from intruders is far fetched. The idea they will protect me from the mythical government takeover even more so.
The idea that the GOP is a political party beeter equipped than others to keep us safe is refuted by what’s happened at the Pulse Lounge in Orlando FL, 49 dead / 68 wounded (GOP governor), Las Vegas Strip shooting, 58 dead/ 489 wounded (GOP governor) and most recently the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting, 17 dead / 14 wounded, (GOP governor) indicates the author has a very selective memory.
Couchman,
“AR-15 with multiple 25 shot clips” they have magazines not clips, there may be a 25 shot magazine for the .223 but I have never seen one. 10, 20 30 or even more but not a 25 round.
“Not a hunting weapon unless you’re hunting people.” Each and every day good people hunt with an AR15 platform weapon. The .223/5.56 projectile is popular for hunting.
” The idea that the hunting guns in my home will protect me or my family from intruders is far fetched. Happens every day folks protect life and property,
“The idea they will protect me from the mythical government takeover even more so. Please read the Second Amendment to the Constitution.
You are correct Mr. Traxler. I was wrong about the clip capacity. From the factory, depending on the manufacturer there are 5/10/20/30 shot magazines that are standard depending on manufacturers and model. Then there are aftermarket magazines that can have up to a 100 round capacity. Multiple reputable gun sellers also sell clips to marry two magazines. For example two 20 shot magazines can perform like a 40 shot magazine me and so on.
The semi-automatic rifle, one of two weapons used at the Pulse Lounge in Orlando where 49 were killed and 68 were wounded was a Sig Sauer MCX that comes standard with a 30 shot magazine. That shooter also used a Glock pistol with a 15 round capacity.
The shooter in Las Vegas who killed 58 and wounded 489 used AR-15’s with large capacity magazines and a bump stock to make the semi-automatic perform more like a fully automatic (which are already banned).
The former student who killed 17 and wounded 14 used an AR-15 he legally purchased and bought his ammunition and additional magazines from other vendors not to attract attention.
I find it odd that a US Army veteran of 20 plus years who had sworn to protect the US is implying we need semi-automatic assualt style weapons love me the AR-15, Sig Sauer MCX and others of that type to protect ourselves from our own government.
I have read the Second Ammendment and its clear our interprations differ as does mine with the author.
My view matches that of the teacher who was wounded at the FL HS who also hunts. There is no reason for AR-15 style guns to be available to the public. There is no reason the civilian population needs to try to match military fire power and the idea that weapon needs to be available for hunting.
I would suggest you write letters to the 14 wounded survivors along with letters to the 14 parents and spouses of the 3 adults who lost their life Vis explaining why it’s so important to keep seeking AR-15 style rifles for 2nd Ammendment sanctity. Is it because you don’t think rules like 30-06, 7mm, .22 and shotguns are sufficient for hunting choices?
While you are at it enclose a copy of this commentary and explain why you enjoyed the author’s point of view because it angers so many. Especially when anger appears to be a motivating factor in the 3 recent mass shooting I noted in my response.
Mr. Couchman,
Sir,
Your statement “I find it odd that a US Army veteran of 20 plus years who had sworn to protect the US is implying we need semi-automatic assault style weapons love me (sic) the AR-15, Sig Sauer MCX and others of that type to protect ourselves from our own government.” Please read the Oath we all took, it reads in part “I do solemnly swear to support and defend the Constitution of the Unites States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” The Constitution sir, which contains the Second Amendment. Our oath is first to the Constitution and then to the leaders of the nation. Please do not lecture me on my duty to our nation and the sanctity of the oath, an oath that was given to me in 1969 by my late father, who was also a career Army officer, with my late mother also a WWII veteran present, an oath that is still in effect and will be until the day I die.
A 30.06 bullet in the standard weight of 150 grain will do more damage than a .223 cal. or 5.56 mm bullet in the standard weight of 55 or 62 grains. The 30.06 being nearly three times the weight hits a person like a truck, the muzzle energy is not even close, the 30.06 hitting much harder and does more damage upon impact. The .223 is a very good round to target shoot with and to hunt with, the .223 being not much larger than the .22 rimfire most of us learned to shoot using, is inexpensive and accurate with a low recoil making it an excellent target shooting round.
Your statement “I have read the Second Amendment and its clear our interprations (sic) differ as does mine with the author.” Oh, good, you get to say what the Constitution means; your interpretation is better than the original intent of the founding fathers who enacted the Constitution, and recent Supreme Court rulings?
And for the sake of God please tell me what an “assault style weapon” actually is; I will lay odds you will need to google it. Semi-automatic weapons have been in production since the 1890s when John Browning and others developed them. The “Assault Weapon” is a broad term so expansive it is meaningless; the old expired “assault weapons ban” was so weird it banned weapons for in part the color of the stock and if it had the ability to mount a bayonet on it, even the 1903 Springfield 5 round bolt action rifles. The placement of the magazine well or a pistol grip also was used to determine a lawful weapon. None of those items had a darn thing to do with the functioning of the weapon, but who cares? Pastel colors were good, black guns were bad, go figure. A polymer stock was bad, a wood stock on the same gun good; no difference in how the weapon functioned, but who cares, we need to do something.
If you folks were serious you would amend the Constitution, but that would be a hell of a fight and a very dangerous path. Today the Second Amendment, tomorrow the First, then the Fourth — a path we do not want to go down.
I find shameful any argument that justifies the deaths of innocent people, children or adults, by military weapons or the ammunition they employ. Any argument.
And I am absolutely outraged by the red herrings used to distract us from the very real issue of gun violence in the United States of America!
If it were my sister, brother, husband, father, mother or child maimed or killed by an AR15 or AK47 or any of their clones, using the barbaric bullets they fire, outside of an honest to goodness war zone, I would tell you to take your misinterpreted 2nd amendment and (bleep) it up your (bleep).
Angry? You bet your (bleep) I am!
Mrs. Mandeville,
Madam,
Thank you for taking the high ground; your eloquent response is appreciated. Mr. Couchman made an argument that the .223/5.56 bullet is unique in its ability to cause damage. It is not, and I merely pointed out that incorrect notion. Banning a caliber of projectile like the .223 will not change a thing but it may make folks like you feel better. The .22-250 or .222 and many other calibers have the same ballistic envelope, many even vastly more damaging upon Impact. Please allow me to suggest you channel your eloquent writing efforts to changing the Constitution of the United States.
The outward appearance of an AK-47 or AR-15 could be banned, but the operating system, rate of fire and lethality are in hundreds of other weapons designed and built starting in the 1890s. Feel good actions will be politically correct but will not change a thing. Action will be taken to give the appearance to eloquent folks like you that they did something. Please keep in mind that it is easier to blame the tool than hold the murderer accountable.
You are a good person who feels others’ pain; making a cosmetic change to new firearms will make you feel better, I am positive, but it will not change a thing. As perception is reality, banning a firearm for its looks or because it fires a .223/5.56 bullet will make you feel better.
By the way I think you are a good person, not a blanking, blanking, of a blanking person who disagrees with me. I’m sorry that you interpreted my words as justifying the deaths of innocent people. As someone who has saved lives in law enforcement, as a lifeguard, and as a soldier, I find the loss of even one innocent life unacceptable.
I find it truly amazing people keep referring to the AR 15 as a military weapon. The firearms you the public can purchase is a semi automatic firearm that looks like the military version. I’m not sure how some can call the ammunition
they fire as barbaric…
Anyone who was in the service should know one only needs duct tape to double the magazine you do not have to purchase anything special.
Everyone seems to hate the 2nd amendment and not understand the importance of having a armed citizenship in a country.
Want to live a country that bans guns…instead of always talking about Australia why to people fail to talk about Somalia , Columbia, and the other countries where citizens do not have access to firearms… I’m betting no one wants to live there.
We in the United States today fail to realize we are very fortunate for the freedoms we have. Once you start limiting or removing them to try and solve a problem which will in reality will not solve the problem your country will be on the road to disaster. Our founding fathers seemed to be more knowledgeable in regards to establishing and running a country, than all the highly educated today.
No sane person enjoys watching friends, family members, or anyone dying, because of violence or even natural causes.
We have to admit to ourselves that there truly is a problem… the object be it a firearm, knife, bomb, etc is not the problem.
Humans are the problem…. Evil has come to our country.. like it or not we may have to do as countries like Israel do ..armed guards at schools, public places and events, etc.
Until there is a solution to the lack of respect for life… this evil can not be corrected over night. I do not know the cure, but I do know banning objects, more laws and regulations , idle talk..will not solve this problem …
We have a long road ahead …
You said, “Let’s get serious, the only way to stop this is a good person with a gun stopping a bad person with a gun.” Wayne LaPierre has been saying the same thing. You and Wayne and Donald
might want to re-think that a little. As you probably know, there was armed, uniformed deputy on duty at Parkland HS. He didn’t go in. He didn’t kill the child murderer. He didn’t even make a good faith effort. The guy was trained. He would have had to qualify annually in handgun proficiency. There was a bad guy with a gun, and there was a good guy with a guy. Problem solved? Not so much.