By Roger Caldwell
In America in 2019, there is something fundamentally frightening about leaving your home, because you are not sure you will return. You can be on the way to the park, the supermarket or the movies, and you may meet up with a crazy man dressed in body armor, and an assault rifle.
According to Dayton’s Mayor Nan Whaley, since August 9, 2019, there have been over 250 mass killings, and it does not matter where you live. The Gun Violence Archive, an independent research and data collection organization, defines a mass shooting as a situation in which four or more people are shot.
On Saturday August 3, 2019, at a Walmart store in El Paso, 20 were killed and 40 were injured by a single gunman with body armor and an assault rifle. Just hours after the first mass shooting, shots rang out in Dayton Ohio, early Sunday morning, where a lone gunman used an assault rifle, killed 9 people, and injured at least 26.
With over 250 mass killings in the country, and our lives being so advanced, it would appear our leaders have a plan to make the country safe. As Christians we go to church every Sunday, and we talk about love and Jesus Christ, but in many of these ladies’ pocketbooks, and under men’s suits, there is a weapon with a concealed license. In many of these Christians’ homes there is an arsenal of weapons, and many children at 10 years old know how to operate their parents’ guns.
There are over 5 million supporters in the National Rifle Association (NRA), and it is one of the three largest lobbying groups in the federal government. The NRA is a key donor to many Republican senators. The association indicated in a statement last week, that it will oppose any further gun restrictions.
“I’m not inclined to discuss private conversations with President Trump or other key leaders on this issue. I can confirm that the NRA opposes any legislation that unfairly infringes upon the rights of law-abiding citizens. The inconvenient truth is this, the proposal being discussed by many would not have prevented the horrific tragedies in El Pasco and Dayton,” says NRA’s chief executive, Wayne LaPierre.
It is obvious that assault rifles is the weapons of choice for the majority of mass shooting, and it would make sense to ban these gun. Assault weapons have no place in a civilized society and our legislators have a responsibility to make our country free from local and national terrorists.
In 2019, there are numerous killers who dwell among us, and do not respect life or the living. Their minds are full with hatred, and killing is their only satisfaction. We have accepted rudeness, insults, and bullying as normal behavior, and much of it starts with our leader and chief, President Donald Trump.
Mass shooting has changed the way Americans think, shop, entertain, travel and live. Everyone is looking and watching what people are carrying, and at anytime they could have an assault weapon or a knife, and it can occur anywhere.
There are just too many guns in America, and it must start with banning assault weapons, and high-capacity magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds. There would be a major reduction of mass shooting if the 1994 federal assault weapons ban was re-introduced by the federal Congress and signed by President Trump.
During the 10 years the ban was in place shooting fell by 37% and the number of people dying fell by 43%. When the ban ended in 2004, numbers increased by 183% in massacres, and deaths increased by 238%.
Professor Louis Klarevas of the University of Massachusetts says, “We have found that when large-capacity mags are regulated, you get drastic drops in both the incidence of gun massacres and the fatality rate of gun massacres.” There are just too many guns legal and illegal in America, and the citizens calls themselves civilized.