30,000 dead each year from gun violence: Is this the country we want to be?

by Rob Howard
Political Columnist

News alerts started rolling in at 3 a.m. June 12 about a mass shooting in an Orlando LGBT nightclub. When the shooting was over, there were 49 dead, and more than 50 injured. LGBT people across the country mourned the deadly attack. President Obama identified the attack as both a hate crime and an act of terrorism.

“Today marks the most deadly shooting in American history,” the President said. “This massacre is … a further reminder of how easy it is for someone to get their hands on a weapon that lets them shoot people in a school, or in a house of worship, or a movie theater, or in a nightclub.  And we have to decide if that’s the kind of country we want to be.  And to actively do nothing is a decision as well.”

The shooter purchased both guns legally, without a background check. He had a concealed weapons permit, and Florida law does not impose restrictions on gun purchases for those with a concealed weapons permit, according to the Miami Herald.

Horrifying as the Orlando shooting was, it and numerous mass shootings over the past several years are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to gun violence in the United States.

Between 2005 and 2015 over 300,000 Americans were killed by gun violence. Terrorist attacks and mass shootings get most of the attention, but in the same period only 71 died in our country from terror attacks; mass shootings are only two percent of gun deaths.

These statistics, reported by The Trace, which is dedicated to expanding coverage of guns in the United States, are outrageous, chilling, and reveal the real, catastrophic toll on our country from gun violence.

They also reveal an equally serious problem. Congress refuses to pass meaningful gun control legislation. After each mass shooting, Democrats in Congress typically call for additional controls on gun purchases, and Republicans, urged on by the National Rifle Association (NRA) and other gun rights groups, fail to do anything.

The NRA says the Second Amendment to the US Constitution completely allows anyone, for virtually any purpose, to own firearms. They oppose bans on assault weapons, like the semi-automatic rifle used in the Orlando massacre. They oppose expanding the background check prior to purchasing a firearm, even for people on the US terrorist watch list.

Supporters of gun control want bans on assault weapons and comprehensive background checks that include searches for domestic abuse cases, persons who have mental health problems or are on the terror watch list, and have checks required for all transfers of gun ownership.

This is merely chipping away at gun ownership. Short of completely banning ownership of handguns, like the United Kingdom did after a horrific school shooting in 1996, the United States could adopt laws that require an affirmative reason for wanting to purchase a firearm.

As a start, the Ninth Circuit Court recently ruled that the Second Amendment doesn’t require the issuance of concealed carry permits. The court upheld a California law that says applicants must cite a ‘good cause’ to obtain a concealed-carry permit. Typically, being stalked, a celebrity who fears for their safety, or routinely carrying large amounts of cash, are considered ‘good cause.’

In most other industrial countries, handguns and semi-automatic assault rifles are either banned or strictly regulated; to get even a rifle or shotgun you have to prove why you need it. Many state and local laws already restrict gun ownership, and courts have affirmed the constitutionality of smart gun laws.

Do we want to be a nation with 30,000 deaths from gun violence a year, and multiple incidents of mass shootings? It’s time the United States passed comprehensive gun control laws that don’t let anyone buy any gun for any reason, or no reason. As the President said, “to actively do nothing is a decision as well.” 

The Gayly - 7/4/2016 @ 8:39 a.m. CDT