Here we are, only a few weeks removed, and things are slowing down again, just as they do after every school shooting. Or so it seems. The plot seems to go like this: outrage, movement, debate, time, inertia, and then . . . nothing much. The story just stops. Like a book with the last half-chapter torn out.
Somebody said the other day that if this were easy, Americans would have solved it by now. Yes, when it comes to guns, and any restrictions thereof, nothing's easy. Not in a country with a Second Amendment in its founding rulebook and a culture of gun ownership that dates back to before Daniel Boone. But even we Americans have put the brakes on some craziness. Fully automatic weapons make their only appearance in movies. Felons can't get guns (legally). Sawed-off shotguns are verboten. Why can't We the People take other important steps?
• Why aren't there more cops in schools? Where is the legislation to pay for this? How come it has not been introduced by, say, yesterday?
• For those schools that can't afford cops, and might be rural enough to be a half-hour away from the nearest sheriff's office, why can't certain teachers (who volunteer, and are trained) carry weapons to defend our children?
• Why hasn't the national background check bill--the "Fix NICS" bill--not been approved by Congress? So as to require more federal agencies and states to report criminal activity and so deny more felons an opportunity to arm up?
• If handguns cannot be sold to somebody under the age of 21, and they can't be, then why not raise the age from 18 when these young men, and they are always young men, try to buy so-called assault rifles?
Here's one more piece: Why the so-called Gun Show Loophole?
It's a so-called loophole because it really doesn't have to do with gun shows, not necessarily. Private sellers are not required to perform background checks on buyers. And a lot of these folks meet up at gun shows, thus the name.
It makes zero sense to have sellers at Walmart or Dick's or your local pawn shop perform these checks, and when a red flag is raised on a buyer, that buyer simply goes online. Or to a gun show or to his friends--or a friend of a friend who might know this guy. Heck, for those who know their background is sketchy, they might not even start at a licensed vendor. Why not go to the guy who surely won't turn you down the first time, and doesn't have any kind of waiting period to bother you with?
We think most of this is common sense. But as our betters in Congress and the White House keep showing, common sense gets less common every day. Until we can say that about school shootings, we'll keep hammering away at these points.
cc: Arkansas' congressional delegation
Editorial on 03/07/2018