What Does Gun Control Means To you?
The recent events in Colorado have reignited an age-old debate: does America need more gun control or less? Would tighter restrictions have prevented this incident from taking place or if more people in that theater were allowed to carry handguns, would he have been taken down before so many people were hurt or killed?
These are questions that, in my opinion, can not be easily answered. Politics and personal opinion will keep this, and many, debates alive and unsettled for the foreseeable future.
But what happens if we try to step away from the totalitarian views of "gun control" and "freedom under the 2nd Amendment" and dig down a little deeper ion search of a more centric definition. Is it possible to both support the 2nd Amendment and restrictions at the same time? I think yes, we can.
James Holmes, a low-key all-around "nice guy", quiet neighbor, top of his class academic, spent four months purchasing guns, including semi-automatic rifles, protective gear and over 6,000 rounds of ammunition. The fact that he was freely able to so, and mostly online, raises certain questions. The fact this activity didn't raise any flags somewhere raises more. Had the police been alerted and acted upon such a warning, maybe - just maybe - this tragedy might have been averted.
Still, there is a concern: would tighter restrictions affect only law-abiding citizens while criminals, or those intent on breaking the law, continue to do so freely? Can we work on a system that addresses this issue as well without impacting those who carry licensed firearms legally?
I think, again, there needs to be some movement on both sides of this issue in order to reach some agreement on this issue. Is that even possible?
So what does 'gun control' mean to you? How do you define the issue? What would you see done to prevent incidents such as the Theater Massacre from happening again? Can it be avoided or is it the price we pay for certain freedoms?
Happy debate!