Guns, Guns and More Guns
By Dr. Henry Flores, NewsTaco
The term cabezudo (for those of you who do not speak the beautiful language) means hardheaded or someone not willing to listen to reason. Well, when it comes to gun policy that is what our law makers are “¡todos son cabezudos!” They are all a bunch of “block heads!” You can present all sorts of empirical evidence about the dangers of putting guns into the hands of the public and they will give you any number of reasons as to why gun prohibition laws are not “good.” Some will argue that it violates our constitutionally protected right to bear arms, others will argue that “people kill people, not guns,” and others will declare that having more guns available in society creates a deterrent to gun usage for criminal reasons. In every case they are wrong—plain and simply wrong.
[pullquote]If you read the second amendment to the constitution one will discover that it’s not clear what the amendment says. [/pullquote]Constitutional Protection
The courts have never indicated that all of us have a constitutional right to bear arms. This issue is cloudy at best and confusing at worst. If you read the second amendment to the constitution which is cited as the protective language for this purported foundational right one will discover that it’s not clear what the amendment says. Some argue that it only refers to “militias,” which in this day and age translates into National Guard units. When the constitution was written it referred to a core group of individuals within the community who could be mustered expeditiously to ward off attacks of invading armies or “ruthless Native Americans.” Actually, if one digs further into the dust-bin of history one may find that it also referred to a bunch of white men who could protect themselves against black people escaping from the bonds of slavery. Whatever! It does not pertain to all of us civilians. Each of us, who are not in the military or some commissioned police department do not have the right to bear arms, concealed or openly. This is a fabricated myth, fabricated by the gun industry.
[pullquote]Each of us, who are not in the military or some commissioned police department do not have the right to bear arms.[/pullquote]People Kill People, Guns Don’t Kill People
¡No me digas! Really! Really! How quaint! If you deconstruct that obtuse declaration you will find that people can, indeed, kill people without guns. This happens daily, unfortunately, throughout this country. But people handling guns also kill people. Think of all the gun accidents we have in America today. From drunken shooters like Dick Cheney to overenthusiastic gun instructors to idiots who clean their loaded weapons that go off accidentally killing some innocent bystander. These are only the “innocent” killings. How about all the killings that occur all the time in schools, this month alone there were shootings on two college campuses. Remember all the school massacres such as Columbine that have devastated communities? How about guns used in robberies, assaults, murders for hire, gang warfare, drug smuggling and so forth? People use guns to kill other people in these instances. They certainly aren’t throwing rocks or using sticks, they are using guns to perpetuate their crimes resulting in loss of life.
[pullquote]”… each of us, who are not in the military or some commissioned police department do not have the right to bear arms.”[/pullquote]Guns as a Deterrent
Bueno so when has this worked? It seems to me that the more guns we put into the streets the less of a deterrent they become. Nope, there is no evidence to support this at all. As a matter of fact each of us, who are not in the military or some commissioned police department do not have the right to bear arms Even if a shooter were to appear on the scene there would be mass chaos and innocent people could be killed as everyone sprays bullets trying to take down the shooter. Worse, police arriving on the scene would be confused and maybe shoot the wrong person while the perpetrators escaped. Nope deterrence doesn’t make any sense at all.
[pullquote]They don’t care about your purported second amendment rights or any other reason other than gun control would be bad for business.[/pullquote]So, Why Can’t We Have Gun Control Policies that Work?
The gun lobby, National Rifle Association (NRA), created and financed by the gun industry doesn’t want gun control because then it will cut into their bottom lines. They would lose money! They don’t care about your purported second amendment rights or any other reason other than gun control would be bad for business. I really feel that the only good gun control is to outlaw all guns. ALL GUNS! Shut down the gun industry altogether and take all guns off the streets. Then and only then will we be able to reduce crime rates, reform our prison systems, and redirect much-needed resources into other constructive areas of society.
Henry Flores, PhD, is the Distinguished University Research Professor, Institute of Public Administration and Public Service; Director, Masters in Public Administration (MPA); Professor of International Relations and Political Science at St. Mary’s University. He is the author of Latinos and the Voting Rights Act: The Search for Racial Purpose.
Latinos and the Voting Rights Act: The Search for Racial Purpose.
