Call me naive but why is there so much effort on enacting more legislation instead of enforcing the laws already on the books? Is there some "movement" to work on this social dilemma or am I missing something? Passing more laws must be cheaper than enforcing the ones we have.
Tragedies with guns and children are horrible. As a mother this is a serious concern of mine - knowing that my daughter has seen a gun in school and in discussions with my own fourth grade class over 90% said they could get their hands on a gun within a day if they were so inclined. (Note: I do not teach in an inner city - actually a nice suburb on the upper side of a middle class neighborhood - very active parent involvement in school - no gangs on campus etc. etc.) These are all "good" kids, yet guns are accessible to them. As a teacher - does this scare me? With some of the most troublesome kids - sometimes yes. But am I an advocate of more legislation to control the sale of handguns? No - what I am in favor of is education - for these kids - for their parents - and for the people who think that yet another law is going to protect us. The ink on the bill will not protect us from the guns already out there. The ink on the bill will not keep the criminals from scoring a gun when they want one. But educating these kids on gun safety - and lobbying for enforcing to the full extent of the law the consequences for crimes committed with guns will.
I've read that most violent crimes are actually committed by repeat offenders. Too many stories are in the papers almost daily about some scumbag with a record for violent crime, out on parole or early release - has "done it again." Why isn't there an outcry on this? Why is so much effort being made on restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens (the only ones affected by all the new legislation it seems) to protect themselves from those who hold themselves outside the law as it is?
Again I ask - am I missing something here?
Please do not hesitate to post an opposing view - I may moderate this forum but it doesn't make my opinion the only one. It only gives me the pleasure to delete offensive or insulting (or too inquisitive
) posts. Dissention and discussion of the topic at hand always welcome. If you are in favor of more gun control - please post and enlighten me. I am truly interested in finding out what I'm missing here.Safe journey,
Lori
Here's the link mentioned above: http://www.people-press.org/may00rpt2.htm
Excerpt below:
<blockquote>More Men Favor Gun Owners' Rights
Since March, most of the movement on gun control has come among men, who now narrowly favor owners' rights over gun control (49%-46%). Men over age 50, in particular, are much more supportive of the rights of gun owners. Fully 55% say those rights are more important than gun control, up from 37% just two months ago. Women of all age groups remain strong supporters of gun control.
The partisan gap on this issue is also substantial. Republicans narrowly choose protecting gun owners' rights over controlling gun ownership (50%-46%). In March, GOP adherents opted for gun control by a 55%-40% margin. Democrats continue to strongly endorse gun control. Two-thirds say (67%) it's more important than protecting owners' rights. Independents come down on the side of gun control, but the percentage supporting owners' rights has increased significantly (41% now, up from 28% in March).
Regardless of where they stand on the gun issue, Americans are somewhat dubious about the prospects of major gun legislation this year. Only 14% say it is very likely Congress will pass major new gun control laws this year, another 34% say it is somewhat likely. Nearly half (46%) say it is not too likely or not at all likely that legislation will be enacted.
Supporters of gun control are slightly less optimistic than opponents about the passage of new gun laws. Among those who say gun control is more important than gun owners' rights, 47% believe it is likely there will be new laws this year, while 48% say this is unlikely. Among those who favor gun owners' rights over gun control, 50% say there will likely be new laws, and 43% expect no new laws.
The public has not yet heard much about the Million Mom March. Only 10% have heard a lot, 42% have heard a little, and nearly half (48%) have heard nothing at all. Even among mothers, only 11% have heard a good deal about the march; half have heard at least a little. Roughly one-in-five women (21%) and slightly more mothers (28%) say they would be interested in attending the march. Not surprisingly, those "interested" women overwhelmingly support gun control. Eight-in-ten (81%) say controlling gun ownership is more important than protecting gun owners' rights, this compares with 73% of all moms. </blockquote>
)! You are correct that we really do not disagree... (Oops, and a double negative to boot!) I just said the same thing backwards.
