LETTER: Gun lobby’s mantra makes no sense
We use a disinfecting wipe around our house that the label says “kills 99.99 percent of germs.” But you know what? It doesn’t kill 100 percent so we should probably stop using it. Additionally, we should go into our garden and find decaying plant matter and our pet’s manure and spread this mixture all over our counters.
Sadly this ridiculous logic is being used by gun advocates and is being supported by Republican lawmakers on a daily basis.
When even the most basic of gun reforms — such as banning assault weapons, universal background checks, banning high volume magazines, etc. — is introduced, the gun lobby’s first line of defense is always, “It won’t stop all gun crimes.”
And the solution it gives to the politicians? More guns for more people. Make sure that the mentally ill have an opportunity to own several. Allow open carry to prop up people’s fragile sense of self-worth. Concede that people can buy guns in secret at gun shows and through the internet. Put military-designed firearms, which have absolutely no application in the sport of hunting, on the open market for general consumption.
The result? Politicians get rich. Gun manufacturers get rich. The NRA becomes an influence peddler. And, according to the Gun Violence Archive as of Aug. 7, 33,958 instances of gun violence have occurred in calendar 2019, including 254 mass shootings.
Does that sound like a fair trade to you?