PerryScope
By Perry Diaz
By Perry Diaz
Wayne LaPierre
When the National Rifle Association (NRA) broke their silence four days after the heinous massacre of 20 children and six adults, they issued a brief statement that they were prepared to offer “meaningful contributions” to help make sure this would never happen again, the details of which were to be given at a “major news conference” scheduled for last Friday, December 21 in Washington, DC. And to add some dramatic effect to their announcement, they said, “The National Rifle Association of America is made up of four million moms and dads, sons and daughters – and we were shocked, saddened and heartbroken by the news of the horrific and senseless murders in Newtown. Out of respect for the families, and as a matter of common decency, we have given time for mourning, prayer and a full investigation of the facts before commenting.”
On the day of the much-anticipated “major news conference,” the NRA’s Executive Vice President, Wayne LaPierre, took to the podium and without any fanfare struck at the heart of the issue of gun control. Instead of offering tighter gun control laws to make sure this would never happen again, he proposed more guns in the hands of “good guys” to combat the “bad guys.” Obviously, LaPierre is still living in the “Wild, Wild West” of the 1800s in places like Dodge City and Tombstone where lawmen fought it out with gunslingers.
Indeed, arming teachers and employing armed guards in every school was what LaPierre had in mind. With close to 100,000 public elementary and secondary schools in the United States, LaPierre was talking about a new industry consisting of armed men and women that would be bigger than the total number of combat-ready American troops deployed in Afghanistan and other trouble spots around the world. Add the number of teachers carrying guns and you’re looking at several million more people added to that industry, which would increase the demand for more guns. Clearly, it would be an economic boon to the gun industry for which LaPierre’s NRA is lobbying for.
Virtual war zone
Could you imagine the kind of environment created when children — ages five through 14 — see their teachers packing guns and armed security guards patrolling the school grounds? Kindergartners and first-graders are at an impressionable age and exposing them to gun culture would definitely influence their psyche, which would affect how they grow up.
And how about the teachers? In a profession where the majority are women, do you think that requiring teachers to learn how to shoot and tote a gun in the classroom would attract more people into the teaching profession? Or, would it deter them from pursuing a career in education only because of their fear of carrying guns, let alone shooting to kill another human being? And when an intruder armed with a lethal rapid-firing assault rifle attacks the school, are they in a position to stop that intruder? But if they tried to fight that intruder, what were the chances of bullets flying all over with children running and screaming? And in the midst of such pandemonium, the children could become collateral damage.
The massacre of 20 children between six and seven years old at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut last December 14 could be the tipping point in the battle for gun control. With LaPierre digging in and defending the manufacture and sale of assault rifles to private citizens as within the purview of the Second Amendment, there is a groundswell of support for banning the sale of assault rifles and high-volume ammunition clips.
People are now beginning to question the extent of the Second Amendment’s guarantee. It must be remembered that when the Second Amendment was adopted in 1791, the common weapon was the musket, which fires one pellet at a time and takes a minute to reload it with gunpowder. Today’s typical assault rifle can fire 400 rounds per minute and can be fed with a 100-round ammunition clip. Obviously, our forefathers didn’t foresee that the art or science of musketry would evolve into the use of hand-held rapid-firing killing machines today.
High-volume ammo clips
Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia
During an appearance at “Fox News” on July 29, 2012 in the aftermath of the shooting that killed 12 people and injured 58 in Aurora, Colorado, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was asked whether lawmakers have the right to ban high-volume ammo clips without violating a person’s Second Amendment right to bear arms. Scalia replied that there are “undoubtedly” limitations to a person’s Second Amendment rights. However, he said that future court cases would have to determine what limitations are permissible in today’s weaponry.
It’s interesting to note that it was Scalia who penned the 2008 Supreme Court decision in the District of Columbia vs. Heller, which ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to possess a firearm and struck down the District of Columbia’s ban on handguns. However, the Court also ruled that the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited, which would leave a little opening for future court cases to delve into.
Gun control
In the wake of the Sandy Hook elementary school massacre, Sen. Diane Feinstein is poised to introduce on January 1, 2013 a new legislative bill that would ban the sale, transfer, importation, and possession of assault rifles and high-volume ammunition clips.
With LaPierre gunning for the “bad guys” by arming the “good guys” and Feinstein bent on banning assault rifles once and for all, we are going to see a gigantic clash between proponents and opponents of gun control in the new Congress. But unlike in the past where the NRA won most of the legislative battles, this time around the proponents might prevail.
The Sandy Hook elementary school massacre opened our eyes to the horrible consequences of the proliferation of firearms in the United States. And it smacks right into those we dearly care for – our children.
Gun culture
(Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
According to the 2007 Small Arms Survey,“civilians in the United States own roughly 270 million small arms, which is more than the next 17 countries combined (the runner-up on the list is India, with 46 million firearms. The rate of ownership in the United States — 90 firearms per 100 people — is also the world’s highest (again the runner-up, Yemen, is a distant second with 60 firearms per 100 people). The report notes that there are around 650 million civilian-owned firearms in the entire world, which means more than 40 percent of these are in the United States, and that about 4.5 million out of the roughly 8 million new firearms manufactured annually are purchased in the United States. Keep in mind that the United States represents less than five percent of the world’s population.” (Source: America’s Exceptional Gun Culture, December 19, 2012)
Putting it in simpler terms, Americans make up 5% of the world population but they own 50% of the world’s firearms. And LaPierre wants to arm millions of teachers? He must be off his rocker.
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