Gun Control

The Insanity Of Weapons On College Campuses: How Does It Promote Safety And Security?

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Texas and Arizona are leading the charge in promoting the idea of allowing guns on college campuses to prevent against threats to students and professors, as most infamous in the Virginia Tech massacre of 2006, but also present in other circumstances and incidents over the years.

Anyone over the age of 21 could carry a gun on campus under the Arizona proposal. How would one enforce this, when one considers that the majority of college students are under 21? And how does this save professors and students from a crazed gunman?

Does it not in fact promote the danger of any student unhappy with a grade, or angry at his girlfriend because of a dispute, or just anyone depressed and stressed, from opening up on fellow students and professors?

Would not the extreme rarity of a Virginia Tech event be worsened by exchanges of gunfire within a classroom or in a student lounge, as crossfire could lead to more people being harmed than otherwise? Are we not overreacting to a occasional tragic event, which could better be prevented by having strict gun control laws to prevent unstable people from having the ability to purchase a gun at a Walmart or other place similar, as Jared Loughner did in Tucson, Arizona before shooting Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and killing six victims and wounding twelve people?

By this logic being promoted, then all high school students and teachers and administrators should have weapons on their person so as to prevent another high school massacre as at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado!

Utah is the only state to allow guns on all college campuses, but with the likelihood of Texas and Arizona joining them, the reality is that there will be more tragic shootings and deaths, not fewer.

But this is the gun lobby at its most extreme, and the nation is moving toward more violence, not less, in a country already with the highest death rate from guns in the world!

Arizona Is At It Again, Adding To Its Image As The Mississippi Of The 1960s!

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Arizona, the state of the near assassination of Gabrielle Giffords due to its loose regulation of who can purchase guns; the state denying 96 citizens, who need transplants, of any assistance because of budget cuts, but giving tax breaks to corporations; the state of discriminatory legislation against Latinos and Hispanics that is now being contested in the federal courts; now is adding to its horrible image as the equivalent of Mississippi in the 1960s, despite Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour’s belief that his state was a paragon of virtue in its treatment of African Americans in that decade!

Governor Jan Brewer, a person who evades explanation and responsibility for her wretched administration of the state government, is expected to sign new discriminatory legislation against illegal immigrants within the state, which is being considered by the Arizona legislature.

Under the proposed and likely legislation, illegal immigrants would not be allowed to drive within state boundaries, enroll their children in schools or receive most public benefits. Additionally, their children would have special birth certificates that make it clear they are not considered to be Arizona citizens.

School officials would have to ask for proof of citizenship for students, and hospitals would have to ask for papers of citizenship for those receiving non emergency care.

Also, no licenses would be given to illegal immigrants, including marriage licenses. And if one person in a family was an illegal immigrant, then a family could be evicted from public housing units. Additionally, if caught driving a car in the state boundaries, an illegal immigrant would face 30 days in jail and lose ownership of the car.

These laws are obviously unconstitutional, but the promoters of them hope the Supreme Court, unduly influenced by conservative business interests including the Koch Brothers, might continue their practice of acting in a manner which makes one wonder as to their qualifications to sit on the Supreme Court due to conflict of interest.

These new proposed laws would challenge basic freedoms and rights, which Arizona fails to understand is guaranteed to all who live in the United States, not just citizens.

Arizona citizens, who are decent people and do not promote hatred and prejudice as government policy, are embarrassed and upset as what the Arizona legislature is about to do only adds to that state being seen as a pariah and a disgrace!

And, by the way, if all illegal immigrants were somehow forced out of the state, the effect economically on Arizona would be massive, and the public relations damage done to Arizona’s image already will not be overcome any time soon, if ever!

Gun Rights Gone Mad: Are There Any Limits? :(

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Just three weeks after the tragic shootings in Tucson, Arizona, the gun rights movement is in full swing, reacting to the tragedy by trying to promote gun rights EVERYWHERE without limit! 🙁

Even former Vice President Dick Cheney has expressed the need for some gun control, after never believing in it in the past, and President Obama has stated he will address the issue, after totally ignoring it in his State of the Union address earlier this week.

But meanwhile, many state legislatures are going off the deep end to prevent any restrictions and promote gun rights in every possible location! 🙁

In Florida, a legislator is suggesting that medical doctors should be punished with felony charges just simply by asking a patient about their ownership or use of guns! The punishment for a doctor would be prison time or up to $5 million in fines–absolutely insane! 🙁

In Michigan, a legislator wants someone, anyone, to be able to carry weapons on their person EVERYWHERE–including day care centers, stadiums, schools, churches, bars and hospitals! This is advocated despite the fact of gun incidents reported in hospitals, bars, churches and schools already around the country, but now even where large crowds and young children are found is being promoted–absolutely loony! 🙁

In Minnesota, a bill is being pushed which would no longer allow police to conduct background checks on people who apply for gun permits–again, absolutely nutty! 🙁

Wyoming is considering legislation which would allow it to join three other states–Alaska, Arizona, and Vermont–which do not require a state permit for a concealed weapon–extremely scary! 🙁

Finally, Nebraska has a bill pending to allow school employees to carry guns for protection, and Indiana has legislation being considered to allow employees of any company in the state to carry guns in their cars in the parking lots of the places of employment “in order to defend their lives”–both proposed laws which indicate an element of paranoia in the sponsors! 🙁

Anyone who thinks that such legislation as above will stem gun violence, and cut down the number of deaths and injuries, is living in a dream world of illusion and fantasy! 🙁

A Time Of True Leadership Versus Demagoguery! Obama Versus Ryan And Bachmann!

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President Obama last night delivered one of his greatest speeches as he gave us the State of the Union, not easy for a man known for great oratory.

He appealed to our better nature, speaking up for the DREAM Act, for commitment to modernization of technology, commitment to education, research and development, and to bipartisanship as we face the challenges of dealing with the deficit and national debt.

The only disappointments in the author’s view were his failure to face the reality of the Afghanistan War, and his decision not to use the Tucson tragedy to call for new regulations on assault weapons, magazines, and the need to have new controls on who is able to buy weapons legally.

Meanwhile, the GOP response was, predictably, disappointing. Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, chair of the Budget Committee, came across as an appealing person who really introduced himself for the first time to a national audience, and accomplished the goal of making us realize that not all Republicans are loony and lacking in credibility!

But his ten minute response to the State of the Union Address was broad and vague, and he hid from us the horrific details of his plan to cut taxes for the wealthy and, despite what he claimed, destroy the safety net of the New Deal and the Great Society. What he believes in is seen as radical by most observers, and an attempt to negate 75 years of social and economic reform, and therefore, totally unacceptable, and really dead on arrival in practical terms!

Meanwhile, Michele Bachmann, Congresswoman from Minnesota, could only write her own version of history, a warped view, to say the least, although in her five minute Tea Party Movement sponsored address, she avoided the outrageous historical fantasies that she had enunciated earlier in the day. This was probably a reaction to the bitter attacks and condemnations of observers to her ridiculous and ignorant assertions about slavery in American history a few hours earlier. But she did her cause and that of the Tea Party no favors, because she is a horrible representative for her party and the movement, and the thought of her likely being on the campaign trail for the Presidency is enough to engender a massive headache! 🙁

The Gun Holocaust Going On In America: Some Sort Of Control Of Assault Weapons Essential!

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America is in the midst of a holocaust, caused by gun violence!

Not only have we witnessed the horrors of the attempted assassination of Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, the wounding of 13 people, and the murder of six victims, including a nine year old girl.

We have also seen the growing violence against police officers, with just about a dozen attacked and a few killed across the country just in the past 24 hours!

We have seen the heated rhetoric, particularly of talk show host Glenn Beck, who is ratcheting up the talk of gun violence, promoting images of shooting people in the head constantly in recent days, as he condemns those who he sees as trying to threaten Americans’ rights to the Second Amendment! 🙁

Also, the statistic that on the average, 34 Americans are killed by gun violence in each 24 hour period, makes it clear that we are in the midst of a gun holocaust!

Cannot something be done to crack down on assault weapons, magazines that allow multiple bullets in the dozens in a short time, the ability to prevent mentally ill people from gaining the ability to purchase weapons, and other tactics to lower the gun violence without taking away a person’s right to hunt or to protect oneself with a hand gun?

If we cannot do something to control and limit gun violence, then everyone of us is in constant danger, and why would anyone wish to be a police officer when the threats are so great against their longevity?

It is essential that President Obama call for some reasonable controls on guns, while not taking away the rights of law abiding Americans. If he does not do so in some form tomorrow night, then we face more tragedies like Tucson, and more police victims, and all of us are in a growing dangerous position as we go about living our lives! 🙁

Reflections On The Eve Of Two Anniversaries And The Recent Arizona Tragedy!

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This week marks the birthday and national holiday for the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther, King, Jr., who would have been 82 years old yesterday.

It also is the 50th Anniversary of the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy this coming Thursday.

And sadly, it is just a little more than a week since Jared Lee Loughner opened up fire in Tucson, Arizona, and killed six, wounded nineteen and attempted to assassinate Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords at a Congressional meeting with constituents outside a supermarket.

These three events all are tied together by the connection of gun violence, and by the specter of the plague of mental illness which is so much ignored in this society, as compared to people who have physical illnesses, such as heart disease or cancer.

Besides having reasonable controls on the type of ammunition available, and preventing unstable people from having the right to weapons, we need to recognize that mental illness is a malady which must be addressed, instead of overlooked and ignored until a tragedy occurs.

The need for national health care is ever more important in the midst of this recent tragedy, and the critics of the health care legislation that the Republicans are now trying to repeal must accept that the responsibility of all Americans is to help prevent future tragedies by providing necessary intervention, no matter what the cost in taxes!

The sooner we realize that we all have a responsibility to each other, that this is not just a ME society, but rather a WE society, then we will be able to start healing as a nation with many troubles, trials, and tribulations!

Reality: States With Higher Gun Ownership and Lax Gun Laws Have Higher Number of Gun Caused Deaths!

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The attempted assassination last week of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona, which also led to six people dead and thirteen wounded, has again brought attention to gun control and access laws.

The astounding reality is that states with higher gun ownership and lax guns laws have much higher numbers of gun caused deaths!

It is ironic that the average citizen seems to think that owning and carrying a concealed weapon makes one safer, when in reality it does not!

One of the people in the crowd at the event in which Giffords was shot had a gun, had not pulled it out, and realizes now that he might have , in the heat of the moment, been seen as an accomplice had he done so. Also, others might have been shot in the moment of the anarchy of what was going on.

The idea, as in Arizona, that one can bring weapons to a bar or restaurant, where drinking can lead to arguments and fights, and that such carrying protects you, is a total insanity!

The idea being considered to allow people to bring guns on college campuses is totally unnerving, as an educational institution is no place for such weaponry!

We are becoming more and more two nations, defined by gun ownership and carrying of such weapons. Popularity of guns ownership is much higher in the South and the West, reminiscent of the old tradition in the nineteenth century of the frontier and the Wild West. The Northeast, Pacific Coast and major metropolitan areas in general see much lower rates of ownership and carrying, which is ironic as more people live in these areas, and yet the level of violence is much lower.

The fact that this nation is the most violent in the world, with the highest death rate from guns, should be a sobering point that makes us wonder whether there is not a need for some type of greater controls for reasons of public safety.

And the concept that ownership of guns protects us against a tyrannical government is truly insane, as we do not have that kind of government, and anyone who believes so is indeed dangerous, as he or she is paranoid and schizophrenic–in other words, mentally ill!