WARREN D. GRANT: More gun laws won’t stop violence

I knew it was going to come. The mourning of the students hadn’t subsided when the anti-gun hawks went on a screaming rampage that hasn’t stopped. I can take most of the ludicrous objections because I realize that there are those who never will get it. One in particular, is Eugene Robinson, doesn’t seem to get anything. Why ink and paper are wasted on his drivel is beyond me.

The school shooting was a complete travesty, but so is any shooting that’s not justified. But why does anyone in their right mind think one more law will solve the problem? How many laws we already have on the books did the young kid break? First and foremost, it’s against the law to kill someone. So, when shooting someone happens, we just make another law and that satisfies the hunger from the public for more control and it makes the politicians look great.

There are numerous studies that show strict gun laws don’t work. New York and Chicago are good examples. Killing goes on in those cities that have almost a total ban on guns. In the ’60s and ’70s, Russia, with a total gun ban, had more killings that the U.S. (Kates and Mauser) They simply used other means to kill.

I’ve owned guns since I was 16 and have yet to point a gun at anyone, let alone shoot them. Me and my guns haven’t killed as many people as Ted Kennedy and his Oldsmobile. Maybe that’s why GM stopped producing it?

It takes interaction for a gun to do damage of any kind. Produced and left alone it will only rust. If those who want total gun bans think it will solve the problem, then outlaw all guns and shut down our police force except those needed for speeding violations. See how far that gets you. Taking firearms from law-biding citizens will only make criminals out of many, and the already-criminals will celebrate because they know we will be unarmed. It will be like shooting fish in a barrel.

If someone wants to kill, they will find a way, with or without guns. Ask Timothy McVeigh. Maybe we need to include 50-gallon drums, fertilizer and diesel fuel bans while we’re at it?

WARREN D. GRANT

Albany