Now that Congress has issued the usual platitudes of “sympathy and sorrow” for the victims of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High and then gone on a two-week Easter vacation, the chances of any meaningful legislation occurring is, thanks to the power of the NRA, doubtful at best.
The “party line” seems to be “more guns, more school security and some action on mental health issues.” In the case of the latter, I suggest members of Congress acquaint themselves with the statistics regarding gun violence and mental health. According to Psychiatryonline.org, “Mass shootings by people with serious mental illness represent less than 1 percent of all yearly gun-related homicides.”
Yes, the 17 deaths at Parkland, Fla., are an extremely small portion of the 38,658 United States gun deaths in 2016 reported by the CDC. And CDC also reported that the gun violence archive count for 2017 was 3 percent higher — an ongoing trend.
Maybe it’s time to consider that 300 million guns are just too many for the nation to abide! And maybe retired Justice John Paul Stevens was right — it’s time to abolish the Second Amendment, whose original justification was to eliminate the need for a standing army.
Kermit Heid, Salt Lake City