Opinion

Editorial: Mass shootings. They can happen here. Common sense action is needed now

Monday, Aug. 5, 2019 -- The state's congressional delegation needs to support for common-sense laws that keep weapons of mass destruction out of civilian hands and away from the public. Our senators should back the common sense House-passed bill to require background checks for nearly all gun purchases or exchanges. The state legislature should show it's as concerned with public safety as it is with currying favor with the NRA and fire arms manufacturers. Pass responsible legislation to require a background check BEFORE the purchase rifles. Prohibit the sale and possession of large capacity ammunition magazines. Require gun owners notify law enforcement when a gun is lost or stolen. These are common sense steps that don't infringe on anyone's rights.

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One Shooting Massacre Follows Another, and a Weary Nation Is Rattled to Its Core
CBC Editorial: Monday, Aug. 5, 2019; Editorial #8450
The following is the opinion of Capitol Broadcasting Company.
After the shooting rampages in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio we are saddened. We mourn the losses to the families of those killed and feel for the injured. These communities will never be the same. The devastation of a few minutes is an indelible memory for the ages.

How could this happen?

We’re angered that, amid the recriminations and speeches, the calls for change and action will be muted by the political maneuvering of the National Rifle Association and gun manufacturers. Soon, it will be back to business as usual for those who should know better and who need to act.

It is past time to get something done.

In much of the world, news of mass killings comes from places in the midst of civil wars, international conflicts or violent rebellion. Weapons of mass destruction are car bombs; explosive vests worn by suicidal partisans; or combatants armed with military weapons.

In the United States news of rampages comes from places of peace where people are doing back-to-school shopping, spending an evening out on the town or celebrating local heritage. The weapons of mass destruction can be purchased at a local sporting goods store by almost anyone.
In a bit more than two months, here’s the grim toll: nine killed, 27 wounded in Dayton, Ohio Sunday morning; 20 killed, 26 wounded in El Paso, Texas Saturday; 3 killed, 12 Injured in Gilroy, Calif. Sunday, July 28; and 12 killed, four injured in Virginia Beach, Va., Friday, May 31. The list doesn’t include all those who died in crime-related mass shootings.
It just as easily could have been revelers on Glenwood South in Raleigh; families at a Walmart in Charlotte or; Peach Festival attendees in Candor. It could have been the General Assembly where just last week a man nearly made it through security with a handgun and extra ammo.

It will be a few days before Republicans wake from their NRA-funded malaise. Then they’ll fall back on their favorite talking points:

  • The Constitution guarantees us the right to own guns.
  • Guns don’t kill people, it’s the person that uses the gun that kills people.

We support the 2nd Amendment -- the right of Americans to be armed for basic self defense and sporting (hunting and target shooting) activities. That’s what the Constitution intended.

But we oppose the notion that anyone needs or should possess weapons of mass destruction. They should be banned.

This is not a radical view. Walmart, Dicks Sporting Goods, L.L. Bean, Kroger and REI all have stopped selling these weapons – as well as even air guns and toys that look like them. Walmart has even raised the age for gun and ammunition purchases from 18 to 21.
As for the mantra that it’s the people that do the shooting that are the problem, not their guns -- that’s not the point.

The point is that powerful automatic weaponry can kill many people very quickly. There is no legal or moral reason that those weapons should be available.

Republicans see it as political – not a matter of life-and-death – but a need to hold their partisan base. They should be ashamed.

North Carolina’s congressional delegation needs to be in the forefront of support for common-sense laws that will keep these weapons of mass destruction out of civilian hands and away from the public. Sens. Richard Burr and Thom Tillis need to abandon their partisan orthodoxy and back the common sense House-passed bill to require background checks for nearly all gun purchases or exchanges. This is a small, but important step in the correct direction.

The state legislature should show it’s as concerned with public safety as it is with currying favor with the NRA and fire arms manufacturers. Pass responsible legislation to require a background check BEFORE the purchase of rifles. Prohibit the sale and possession of large capacity ammunition magazines. There is no need for these – other than trouble. Require gun owners notify law enforcement when a gun is lost or stolen.

These are common sense steps that don’t infringe on anyone’s rights

Don’t let the anger go. It is time to get something done!

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