"We Can't Have More Tucson" - Gun control editorial from the Erie Times News

[0hW0rd]

Found this article in the Erie Times News this morning. I should know better by now than to read any article dealing with guns in this paper as it only ever leaves my blood boiling and my dog covering his ears as I yell at the newspaper.
Editorial can be found here as well as below. I'm not sure if there is a comment feature on the paper's site to respond to the article, but I will most definitely be responding via a letter to the editor or emailing him (Higgins) directly. Higgin's email address can be found at the bottom.

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By JAMES HIGGINS
Contributing writer
E.J. Dionne
Kathleen Parker

Our nation once again is mourning and asking questions over another terrible mass shooting, this time in Tucson on Jan. 8. Do we as a nation have the resolve to address the problems represented by this shooting? What can we do about this and other horrible examples of gun violence?

- A Political Problem. Gun violence for America is almost entirely a political problem that can be solved by our elected representatives. If we took action at the federal level to close various loopholes and had a framework at the state level for the licensing and registration of all handguns, and of rifles used for other than hunting and self-defense, we would vastly reduce the number of murders, including mass killings, and injuries.

If you think this is hollow speculation, consider that, in 2003, guns murdered 9,484 people in the U.S. But in other Western democracies, where private ownership of guns is strictly regulated, for the same year, murders were at barely detectable levels. Just 17 people were murdered in Finland by guns in that year; 35 in Australia; 39 in England and Wales; 60 in Spain; 194 in Germany; and 200 in Canada (source: Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence).

- U.S. Laws. Instead of meaningful gun regulation, what we have in America is a patchwork quilt of weak statutes full of loopholes so broad as to allow purchase of guns by many grossly unfit people who only need to pass a quick background check under the National Instant Check System.

Arizona is the paradigm of the weak legal framework in the states. Tucson shooting suspect Jared Loughner's reported purchase of his semi-automatic handgun was easy because all he had to do was pass the NICS check on the gun outlet's computer, which only carries felony convictions, stalking and domestic abuse orders, and drug and mental instability adjudications. Records of mental confinements or reports of mental illness short of adjudication, and information from the armed forces about a person's irrational behavior regularly don't enter the database.

In some states, such as New Jersey, Loughner would have had to acquire a concealed weapon permit that allows the police to check on sources outside the NICS database -- for example, with employers, school officials or neighbors. But not in Arizona. A law enacted in 2010 allowed Loughner to conceal and carry his Glock without a permit.

Congress should prohibit a person buying a weapon with an ammunition magazine holding over 30 bullets. When the federal Assault Weapons Ban was in effect (1994-2004) no magazines in excess of 10 rounds could be sold. In Loughner's case, after 10 rounds, he would have had to stop and reload, affording someone in the crowd a chance to subdue him.

In that case, allegedly he might not have wounded 14 people and killed 6, including a federal judge and a 9-year-old girl. Loughner was unfit -- he was not allowed to enlist in the military, was asked to leave community college because of behavior, and was considered "very disturbed" (according to former classmates) -- and should never have been allowed to purchase the gun.

- Proliferation of guns. America's second gun problem is the widespread availability of firearms -- about 283 million guns in America, per a study by Hemenway, D., et al., "The U.S. Gun Stock: Results from the 2004 National Firearms Survey," Injury Prevention 13 (2007). Also, according to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, each year, about 4.5 million new firearms, including about 2 million handguns, are sold and thus added to the U.S. private stockpile.

When we combine these figures with the set number of individuals in a nation of 306 million people who are mentally unstable or have irrational political or personal motives, it is a recipe for tragedy. And when we overlay the unregulated sale of guns at gun shows and at private sales -- where no NICS check is required -- we have potential tragedies compounded.

- Congress and the states need to act. We can stop future tragedies. At a minimum, we need to re-enact the federal assault weapons ban, including the ban on large magazines. We need to pass a federal law mandating background checks at gun shows. Moreover, we should have state legislation (including Pennsylvania) requiring registration and licensing of handguns and non-sporting and non-self-defense rifles.

America has too few laws to protect our families and communities from the carnage caused by firearms, and the laws we do have are riddled with loopholes.

If our elected legislators don't have the will to act, I fear we will have more tragedies like Tucson. And each time we will react in horror.

Until we as a nation demand and get action, the pain and mourning spawned by another act of violence will repeat itself.

JAMES HIGGINSis a member of the board of CeaseFire Pennsylvania. He is a native of Pittsburgh and currently practices law in Wayne (jchiggins40@verizon.net).

[victory]

You have a problem with people from central Italy?

[0hW0rd]

Good catch; thanks...It's been a long day.

[IronSight]

9,484 murderous guns

283 million total

These numbers are from different years, but let's do some math anyway.

9484/283000000 = ~3.52e-5

Round the numbers for simplicity (rounding favoring the author of this article by rounding up murders and down total firearms, severely!)

10000/250000000 = 0.00004

So that would leave 99.996% of firearms not used in murders (and given the rounding, that would be an underestimate).

In other words, despite the authors attempt to use numbers to support his view, he does not clearly support his argument that:

"we need to re-enact the federal assault weapons ban, including the ban on large magazines. We need to pass a federal law mandating background checks at gun shows. Moreover, we should have state legislation (including Pennsylvania) requiring registration and licensing of handguns and non-sporting and non-self-defense rifles."

...

We what know is this: a small percentage of the population sees fit to murder someone else every year, and out of that group a good number use a firearm. The problem isn't the weapon, it's the fact that these people have made the conscious choice to end the life of another (or lives of others). Taking away one weapon by law just means they'll grab a knife, or just ignore the law and grab a gun anyway, to carry out that crime.

However, what is also patently clear, is that far more people own firearms without criminal intent, for lawful purposes. We also know that according to the FBI violent crime is down despite the upsurge in civilian ownership of firearms.

When James Higgins tells us that "guns murdered 9,484 people" he reveals to us that his focus is on the weapon, on the instrument of crime, and not on the perpetrator of that crime. It's obvious that he wants us to believe the guns are the problem, not the murderers, and he either hopes we won't realize that his numbers support our views or he figures we'll never check the numbers for ourselves.

If we do the due diligence we realize ever so clearly that gun control can't promise to make us safer than we already are, and it has great potential to make us less safe.

[Connal]

Wait a minute. He is connected with ceasefire?

I am shocked. They can register/control my firearms when they pull my boot from their . . .

Sorry, have to stay composed.

Here is an article.

Man found with head up ass.

James Higginns, a local moron working with a group of crybabies was found today. Due to a case of ASSphyxiation. EMTs who were on the scene reported, that his head was so far up his ass, that he could no longer breath. Several handguns, with high capacity clips filled with explosive hollow point rounds were seen in the area before Mr. Higginns' body was discovered. They are being asked to come forward with any information related to this event. Another pompous ass from ceasefire was heard saying this. "James Higginns was a noble man, we should melt down all the machine guns that criminals use in the one million related machine gun deaths each day, and make a stature out of his likeness." There is no word on who will be commissioned to make this stunningly awkward statue, as many artists do not want their names associated with a statue with such evident rectal cranial inversion. An investigation is still pending to see if the three brain cells are enough to stick your head up your own butt, or if more were needed.

The previous was made in jest as a parody, and in no way is made to reflect any person, legal, or deceased.

Little much? If they would stop blowing smoke up people's rear ends, and look at the factual information, or use common sense and understand that criminals are not going to start following laws, then maybe I would take them seriously. They are about as useful in stopping gun violence, as a "Please do not shoot pedestrians" sign.

[The_War_Wagon]

"We Can't Have More Tucson"

Damn straight! Arm EVERYBODY!

That way, the next time your friendly, neighborhod, loner goes postal, 20 good law-abiding, heatpackers, can all reduce him to a grease stain on the pavement for the coroner to wet-vac up.

[Stooperzero]

THe nicest thing I can think of

[truecrimson]

They just want to get you all fired up so you'll pay the $2.99/month subscription to be allowed to comment.

[0hW0rd]

They just want to get you all fired up so you'll pay the $2.99/month subscription to be allowed to comment.

I didn't see that but it would explain why I could not figure out how to comment...crazy that they would charge for online content like that.
The paper along with the people in Erie have been superrrr anti gun for as long as I can remember and the daily Letters To The Editor always contain at least one "gun owners are psychotic nuts/guns are uncontrollable killing machines/outlaw guns" letter, especially after any shooting makes the news. Very frustrating paper to read but I guess thats not exactly out of the ordinary.

Back on topic - anyone who cites the brady campaign to support their "facts" automatically loses any respect and/or the ability to be taken seriously.

Have any of you emailed Mr. Higgins at all?