By JOHN HUBBARD – Viewpoints Writer
With violence in America increasing at a rapid rate, it’s important not to point fingers at firearms, but focus on practical solutions.
Incidents such as the shootings in Newton, Conn. and Aurora, Co. have caused political figures in Washington to introduce gun control reforms at a rapid pace.
In order to prevent the abuse of weapons, we should increase security on background checks as opposed to eliminating the use of weapons. Cartoon by Gabe Harper.
Banning firearms in the U.S. is not a rational step for making America safer. More practical steps should be taken, such as eliminating background check loopholes and cracking down on other forms of illegal gun purchasing.
A popular idea seen in the media all too commonly are assault weapon bans. Banning these rifles, or “assault weapons” as media refers to them as, will have little to no effect on the murder rate in the U.S. Very few homicides are committed with these, and they are more expensive than most firearms. Rifles that are considered an assault weapon range from $600 to $3000 in price.
The FBI Murder Circumstances Report determined assault rifles killed 365 people in 2011, yet 12,664 people were killed altogether that year. It seems we need more effective steps to end violence in this country.
A gun ban will not give Americans the solution they are looking for.
To take a step in the right direction, consider how people access guns. If people with harmful intent are planning to use a gun, they have to buy them. What’s stopping a criminal from getting his hands on a gun legally? Background checks.
According to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, Georgia law requires federally licensed firearm dealers to implement a background check during a gun purchase, but not private citizen sales. If a person is looking to buy a firearm and has a concealed carry license, they are exempt from any background checks.
Straw purchasing is another common practice for criminals to access guns illegally. A criminal can walk into a gun store with a friend or family member, point out a gun, and that person can purchase the gun for them. This way, a person with a criminal background can evade the routine checks in a gun shop.
We should require a background check for anyone looking to purchase a firearm, regardless of the circumstance.
Choosing our path carefully in the fight against violence in America needs to be done through practical steps. We need to stop the problem at the source, the purchase of the firearm, instead of creating a nationwide ban.
