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Raised to be safe with guns

Monday, April 30 at 12:01 AM

This Speakout has not been edited

By Richard Becker, Broomfield

In response to Greg Dobbs’ Rocky Mountain News item of 4-21-07, “Reasonable restrictions might prevent tragedies", tries unsuccessfully to rationalize the gun control he sees as a “solution” to the problem of gun violence. He believes that “.....you can’t legislate against bad behavior, but you sure can make it harder to engage in it. And control is one way to do it. He also states that he has yet to hear of people who were only able to defend themselves with a legally owned guns. Apparently, he does not read or watch the news when several instances have been reported in in the past.

For one thing, guns are not only available from gun stores, gun shows, and pawn shops. Anyone who wants a gun for illegal purposes can easily buy one from individuals. There is always the “black market", as illustrated by the Denver Post front page story of April 25, 1999 the weekend following themselves infamous Columbine shootings. Two reporters went down to the 16th mall and put out the word. In less than an hour, they were presented with fully automatic rifles, live grenades, and many handguns. Some were even presented by minors who were not supposed to possess them as per a long standing Denver law! Anyone barred by laws requiring background checks, but who wants a firearm for illicit purposes, will not be deterred by a waiting period. Once the waiting period for “cooling off” is over, and they take possession of the firearm, there is nothing to stop them from using it to kill or injure others because the resentment of bad behavior can exist a long time, or could flare up later after they have been qualified for a firearm.

For every mentally off individual intent on criminal activity with a handgun, there are thousands of others who possess a collection of firearms but will never use them for illicit purposes. A law abiding citizen possession a firearm does not necessarily mean that he or she is a potential criminal; they know the difference between right and wrong. Gun control requiring people to turn in their guns will not work because only people without criminal intent in mind will comply, but people with criminal intent in mind will will not. Therefore, gun control will work only if a “police state mentality” is established to authorize authorities to raid homes looking for firearms. That would be contrary to the Constitution of the United States! It should be noted also, it was known that the Virginia Tech shooter had mental problems before the shooting took place. He was reported to the administration by students and faculty members. And, a court ordered him to voluntarily seek mental treatment.

But do to “political correctness” laws, that information was not allowed to made public because the court sealed that information. How then could the background check be effective if authorities denied such critical information be made public? While this writer does not think it is reasonable for high school students to be issued a conceal and carry permit, however, teachers and faculty with a permit could respond to violence quicker than police. But college students and others with a conceal and carry permit could take action to stop violence before the police arrived. Had the Virginia Tech students been allowed to carry concealed weapons as per their legal permit, there is little doubt that they could have ended it after the first two in the dorm. And, responsible and intelligent people issued a conceal and carry permit after firearms training can thwart criminal activity. I am not concerned about people with a conceal and carry permit. I am concerned about people who illegally carry a concealed weapon to be used to settle disputes.

Now approaching 72 years of age, I remember the days when everyone had firearms in the home. But there did not exist the public mayhem as exists today. Schools shootings were unheard of, and mass killings were few and far between. But then, it was the day when kids were raised to respect the rights and lives of others. Kids were instructed in safety with firearms, and reminded that it was it was not acceptable to point the firearm at people. And, that was before all the violence in video games, television programs, movies where scores were settled with firearms. The VT shooter, according to television news accounts, posed in the manner of a violent Korean film.

My dad, when I was 11 and my brother was 9, bought us a .22 single shot rifle and .22 short ammunition for it. With a short lesson in guns safety, we were given free use of it. We hunted gophers in the fields, and used it for target practice shooting at bottles and paper targets. We did not become potential killers because of the way we were raised.

READER COMMENTS

Back in the day when parents cared about their kids as well as for their kids, & taught them the meaning of respect, and responsibility, these types of problems did not exist. But today, the parents are either both working just to make ends meet, and thus can't supervise or educate their kids as they should be; or they are so busy chasing the fleeting American dream, that the kids are not supervised and end up like Klebold and Harris. Maybe the problem isn't the guns, but the way parents set their priorities. This doesn't even go into all the single parent housholds where the kids run amok after being let out of the government operated indoctination and baby sitting centers called public schools. If the parents of our society could change their focus away from "what imported trinkets can I get today" to "how can I raise my kids to be responsible citizens" then maybe the issue of gun control would become irrelevent, along with teenage pregnancies, suicides, and other forms of behaviour we would all be better off without.

Posted by Jay on May 1, 2007 09:02 AM