by Economist, lawyer, and actor Ben Stein provides an occasional editorial comment on CBS’s Sunday Morning. Today’s topic was gun control. Contrary to what one usually gets on guns from the mainstream media, this was actually good.
Stein felt the calls for more gun control as well as the attempts to demonize the NRA are misplaced. He pointed out that in places like Chicago, LA, and DC which have strong gun control laws there are many more shootings than in a place like northern Idaho where carrying guns is quite common. While Stein is not sure what the correct answer is, gun control isn’t it.
We know that gun control is a failure and that it will never stop madmen. If we want to prevent the aberrant shootings like Virginia Tech and Aurora, Colorado, I think the answer lies in the mental health realm. This is what Clayton Cramer has been saying for a while now and I think he is correct.
Gun control is a complex issue, but as Stein and Cramer both note, most of the mass shootings are by mentally ill perpetrators. If you remove gang shootings(criminal) and suicides, the actual murder rate by gun is very low.
Wholesale bans don't address these issues, more funding for mental health and law enforcement might be a good place to start.
my mother shot herself, and yet, i dont think these deaths should be included in "gun crimes". was it a crime, well, yes, but more or less, its a moral crime that deprives us of loved ones and is usually, not always, but usually, a permanant solution to a temporary problem. people who are bent on suicide will find a way, just like people bent on killing others and cauing terror will cause a way. we are human, and it is a fact that with a little thought, almost anything is a weapon. ive known dozens of people who have been depressed and taken meds, but are some of the best people at heart you will meet. many are in law enforcement. on the other hand, gang violence SHOULD be included, as this is a serious issue that needs to be cleaned up. most places where gang crime is so thick, the criminal gets as many or more rights than the victim, and there are more laws to protect the criminals. it puts the police in a gridlock. you cant bust them for fear of being sued, you cant let them go on a rampage because theyll hurt people… but the laws let them go for lack of ability to act. i think, simply put, that there will always be people who just snap, or are smart enough to get around restrictions. the answer is, more people need to train themselves to be more aware of the situation, dont be in that "it cant happen to me/here" mindset, thats what gets taken advantage of. even if you decline to carry a gun legally, this can save you or others. i do however, believe that more people carrying legally and practicing regularly is worth every second of training, and can cut short, if not stop a tragedy such as those we have seen lately.
Simply brilliant!
Well done Ben Stein… Could not have been said better!
Apparently the Zios have gotten the message that the citizens of the United States of America are not willing to disarm and put complete trust for their personal safety in the hands of easily purchased political types. Do some research on who Ben Stein is and who he represents. If I were of his ilk I would be shatting in me own pants. The realization that the freedoms granted in the Constitution of the United States of America cannot be purchased with pieces of silver and gold must be quite upsetting to the self appointed ruling class.
We have Thomas Jefferson and the boys to thank for these freedoms.
And the many thousands who paid with their lives, and all they would ever be who pledged to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America against all enemies both foreign and DOMESTIC!
We should recognize the elephant in the room, and that is race.
The race of the people in a given area has much more to do with violence & deaths than the availability of guns.
Whittling away at the rights of peaceful citizens in an effort to reduce black savagery is a bad idea.
I am one of the millions who will never relinquish the tools needed for my safety under these misguided, politically correct laws.