WASHINGTON — After weeks of sometimes wrenching debate over gun safety, Congress will begin to consider legislation this week that is likely to include expanded background checks for gun buyers and increased penalties for those who purchase guns for criminals.
The best chance at legislative consensus appeared to rest in negotiations between Senators Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, and Tom Coburn, Republican of Oklahoma, over a measure they have yet to introduce that would expand background checks to nearly all gun purchases. Currently about 40 percent of gun purchases do not require them.
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And this type of legislation will help prevent another Sandy Hook tragedy how? There has been no indication that Lanza's mother purchased those guns illegally. No information has been released that she purchased them privately. No information is available that states she was prohibited from purchasing those weapons.
Translation: this legislation has nothing to do with preventing future Sandy Hook events. It really only attempts to keep criminals from obtaining guns. Lanza's mother was not a criminal, nor was Lanza until he committed his heinous crime.
It is time that our congressmen got off their duffs and actually did something and stuck their necks out.
The rabid anti gunners went ballistic and screamed when LaPierre suggested beefing up security at our schools nationwide. They screamed because they hate LaPierre and the NRA, then derided the suggestion with no real subtance behind their shrill attacks.
Our wimpy congress is as much afraid of the shrill anti gunners as it is of the NRA. So they propose legislation like this. It will not protect one child, anywhere. But it is meant as a salve for the shrill anti gunners as they will see it as having made "some progress", gun owners will feel their rights have not been trampled on.
Meanwhile, back at school, there is no protection. But boy oh boy, those congressmen sure made it hard for a criminal to get his hands on a gun, huh? Hardly.
How about congress just tell the shrill, hysterical types that logic will prevail? Here in MA we have armed police officers protecting road construction sites for God's sake! Are you kidding me? We pay for that and are not willing to protect 6 year old kids? How about telling the defenseless road construction guys they are on their own for awhile, cause the cops are going to be busy at school.
Then congress can get busy starting to figure out what to do with DA's who keep plea bargaining criminals through a revolving door, even though they have used a gun to committ their crimes.
It is time the legislators at state and federal levels started to earn their pay, quit dancing and get the job done. And it can all be done without violating anyone's rights.
Our school kids deserve way better than they are getting.
Yeah, and if they ban 1,000 round magazines then they'll want to ban 500 round magazines! Enough is enough!
I am pretty knowledgeable about gun stuff, a 1000 round magazine? Do you have any idea what that would weigh when loaded with ammunition? Got any idea of how large that would be?
To give you an idea, it is more than 33X the size of a 30 round magazine.
"Banning" things is not going to get the job done. "Banning" works on the principle that everyone is going to turn in their "illegal" items. It has never worked in the past. Proponents claim it will reduce the chances, oh great, nothing like playing Russian Roulette with six year olds lives.
"Banning" magazines is probably the dumbest thing that could be done to prevent these atrocities. Even if all "high capacity" magazines were surrendered, the next shooter would be able to use "low capacity" ones. Proponents claim that would give someone an opportunity to disarm the attacker. Really? A 1st grade teacher? That teacher would have how long to get the job done? The attacker has a rifle and other weapons to assault the teacher with, what does the teacher have? A pair of safety scissors?
I want a real solution, a real person, who really knows how to defend against an attacker. A person who has been trained, owns a bullet proof vest and is armed and that is all they do. Those kids deserve no less. Not some half baked "ban" on large capacity magazines.
Meanwhile it is turning out that the Senate Intelligence committeee knows that the fiercely Anti'Gun Obama administration was secretly engaging in a Gun-Running operation to the rebels in Syria. Ambassador Chris Stevens knew about it and complained about it before he was killed in Benghazi, Libya. ..You won't hear about that one from the Boston Globe, or about the fast and Furious gun running to Mexico.