Hi Folks,

 

Forget gun control.  That terminology really is a dead issue.  It's like trying to tell born-again Christians the government should control how they worship.  The 2nd Amendment means more to the NRA and gunowners than the Ten Commandments.  So at a time when the highest priority in the nation is to finally hold the Bush administration accountable for the horrors they've caused, it's understandable the Democrats don't want to pick up an old issue which cost them too many elections in the past.

 

That being said, I do strongly support framing the old issue of "gun control" into a whole new approach.  Why is it easier for even non-citizens to obtain weapons of mass destruction, i.e. assault weapons like the 9mm, etc, than it is to obtain a driver's license?  Driving requires some level of training and testing, including by registered professionals who practically witness how each individual actually drives.  When it comes to driving Mack trucks, the licensing process is even stricter.  Why in the world is there no level of training and testing whatsoever when it comes to owning weapons which can mow down dozens of people within minutes????

 

Look, as far as I'm considered, let the federal laws on hunting rifles and even handguns continue as is.  Don't even go there.  If cities like NYC want to do more, fabulous.  Let them be a local and state issue.  But when it comes to privately owning WMD, red flags MUST be raised.  Everyone should be interested in finding out why someone wants one – what do they want to do with it.  Target practice?  Fine, keep them under very strict lock and key at as many professional shooting ranges as you want.  Protection?  Excuse me?  Who's expecting an army of vicious enemies to enter their home and why?  If there is such a threat, professionals and only professionals should deal with it. 

 

Weapons that are meant to kill masses simply must require a level of licensing that involves testing, testing, testing after training evaluations – by professionals – period.  That doesn't have anything to do with the 2nd Amendment which was written centuries before such technology existed.  9mm's and AK47's are far more dangerous than cars and trucks.  So let's stop calling them "guns" when they really are WMD.  And to use WMD should require far more than an instant background check.  If the American people can agree they need professionals to determine whether or not someone is allowed to drive, what's the problem with getting professionals to determine whether or not a person is qualified to handle their very own private WMD?

 

It's worth pursuing this argument with Democrats, especially right now when so many of us feel embarrassed about the weapons laws in our land being so much more lax and liberal than where we live more safely. 

 

Eva Adams

DA Berlin