The tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School became a wake-up call for the nation. Something had to be done to get guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill.
Unfortunately the pressure to enact meaningful gun-control legislation has only served to rally the Tea Party and alarm the nation’s paranoid gun nuts who think the federal government will soon be knocking on their doors. They are convinced that there is a conspiracy to abolish the Second Amendment. And their numbers are growing.
For this reason alone, gun legislation on the federal and state level must be carefully worded. That did not happen when the legislators in Albany crafted what was at the time was the toughest-in-the-nation gun law. That title has now gone to Connecticut.
The legislation was rushed through at the last minute. And almost before the ink on the governor’s signature had dried the law was amended.
The law originally banned the sale of magazines holding more than seven rounds. State Assemblywoman Michelle Schimel, one of the nation’s leading voices for gun control, said the law did not account for the fact that seven-round magazines aren’t manufactured. Oops.
The law was amended and the purchase of 10-round magazines is now legal – but gun owners are prohibited from storing more than seven rounds in each one. Said Schimel, “apparently the governor insists that you can only load it to seven.” Try enforcing that.
“I had asked for 10, I was familiar with the manufacturing process, and it’s usually done in tens,” Schimel said. “I don’t know where [the governor] got seven.”
To be effective legislation designed to prevent the next Sandy Hook or the next drive-by gang shooting must be carefully crafted to increase the chances that it will win broad support.
To accomplish that, lawmakers must begin by clearly defining the goals they hope to achieve.
Albany must focus on making it increasingly difficult to bring illegal weapons into New York State that are purchased legally in other states. Find out how gang members are getting their hands on automatic and semi-automatic weapons.
The gun manufacturers should be enlisted in this effort. If they won’t cooperate, hold their feet to the fire. If they threaten again to leave the state, call their bluff.
Federal legislation requiring universal gun registration will be a step in the right direction. If you purchased a gun, you need to explain how it wound up in the hands of a young gang member.
Every state should make it illegal to keep guns in any home where an occupant has been diagnosed with a serious mental disorder.
Hopefully the millions of responsible gun owners who are members of the NRA will soon get tired their president Wayne LaPierre. He has become an embarrassment to his organization.
Last Sunday Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy, during an appearance on CNN, said, “Wayne reminds me of the clowns at the circus – they get the most attention. That’s what he’s paid to do.”
LaPierre is doing the bidding of the gun manufacturers who pay the bills at the NRA, not the membership. His suggestion that his organization arm and train school teachers shows just how out of touch this man is.
Even if it was a good idea – and it’s not – it should be clear by now to the NRA members that arming teachers in the public schools of New York is not going to happen, not now, not ever.
Frequently used expressions such as “Guns don’t kill, people do” are just fog clouding meaningful debate. Guns in the hands of the wrong people – be they criminals or the insane – kill.
Future state legislation should be guided by someone like Schimel who knows what she is talking about. The assemblywoman demonstrated her understanding of the gun problem with her support for microstamping, which would enable police to link shell casings left at the scene of a crime to the person who pulled the trigger.
We believe that most residents of New York, including hunters and other gun owners, deplore the wave of gun violence and would support legislation that is well thought out and carefully explained.
