Gun Control — is MORE really the answer?

The debate over gun control isn’t cooling down and it shouldn’t. Gun violence in this country is a problem that could affect you or your loved ones at any moment on any day. Since I have been back in CA over the past week and a half — there have been several major news stories here in LA area involving guns and loss of innocent lives.

There is a real problem here. Who can come up with a real solution? Who can come up with an idea to start the decline of gun violence. I don’t think taking away guns from Americans who have legally purchased them is the answer.  I don’t think more gun control is the answer either, after all, we already have countless gun laws in place (some estimate there are at least 20,000 gun laws in the U.S.) and those laws have NOT prevented the violence so far. Bad guys will find ways to get their hands on guns no matter how many laws we have in place trying to prevent it. On the flip side, just because someone is a legal gun owner doesn’t mean they won’t use their weapon to commit murder.

Here’s an example of the problem: Ali Syed, a 20-year-old from SoCal, is accused of killing a 20-year-old woman in his home early Tuesday morning, then leaving and going on a random shooting spree through Orange County. Syed is accused of killing two men (one execution style) and injuring two others before turning the gun on himself. Why? That’s all I can think about this. Why? Authorities say Syed had his gun legally. Good to know, but if he had stolen it would the families of those killed Tuesday feel any better? I doubt it.

Don’t get me wrong, I believe in the Second Amendment, but in a discussion with a good friend the other day..he asked me to exclude the Second Amendment from my argument as to why Americans should be allowed to own guns and assault rifles.  For the sake of the argument I agreed to come back with some answers that did not involve our constitutional rights. I’ve been thinking about it….Thoughts?

Check out the info graphic at the bottom of this post — pretty interesting how small the percentage is for deaths by rifle compared to handguns. 

More than 6,000 people are killed by gun violence every year in our country. A question that keeps coming to my mind: WHERE did the guns come from in all 6000 deaths? It seems like such an easy thing to figure out.  Obama ordered the CDC to start doing research on gun violence — but who knows when that will start because they need money to get the project started..and that could take a while.

Many Americans, including myself, want action now. Let’s start a universal background check system and keep tabs on every gun in a national database. Our cars are registered by state — why not register your gun? You can choose to have your info kept confidential and only accessible by law enforcement.  If you don’t like that idea — give me a better one.

In a day where an insurance company can tell my doctor how much and what kind of drugs he may prescribe to me…in a world where dozens of people are killed by guns every day — it’s time to find a way to protect ourselves, protect our Second Amendment rights, and prevent guns from getting in the wrong hands. 

Something has to be done, I’m sure we can all agree on that.  I don’t know what the solution is, but do yourself and future victims a favor and call your local representatives and tell them what you think. It won’t take much time, but if we all do it, it WILL make an impact. 

http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml