Gun Logic

Premise:  Guns don't kill people. People kill people.
Anti-premise: People use guns to kill people.
Conclusion: Fewer guns means fewer killings.

   Some politicians say, "Our thoughts and prayers are with you."
   Families of victims respond, "Thoughts and prayers are no defense against automatic rifles."

   Other politicians say: "In this time of grieving, now is not the time to talk about gun control."
   Survivors answer: "When will it be time? How many children must die before the laws are changed?"

   In a year when there is a mass shooting with multiple deaths every day -- more than 200 so far this year -- if we must wait until the crisis is over, the time to talk about gun control will never come.
   Advocates of the Second Amendment to the American Constitution ignore the first phrase of that amendment, which cites "A well regulated militia" as being "essential to the security of a free state."
   They also ignore the existence of local police, county sheriffs, state police, National Guard units (read: militia), Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and Air Force personnel when they claim the need for a home arsenal of automatic weapons.
   "We need guns to protect against invasion," they insist.
   From where, Canada? Do farmers in Iowa need guns for protection against newcomers seeking jobs because there is no work in their home countries, as well as corrupt governments and constant war with criminal gangs?
   In populated areas, police respond within minutes to warnings of active shooters at schools and shopping centers. But some folks claim that if teachers and store clerks also had weapons, they could protect students and shoppers from invaders.
   But if these so-called invaders did not have an arsenal of numerous weapons -- semi-automatic rifles as well as pistols -- there would be no need for armed security forces to protect teachers and children.
   In short, more guns means more killing. Conversely, fewer guns will mean fewer deaths.
   That is the reality in other nations with a similar English-speaking cultural history -- Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain and Ireland. They all have strict gun control laws, and therefore there are fewer mass shootings and killings.
   This is true both numerically and in terms of guns and killings per capita.
   In America, there are more guns than there are people.
   Fewer guns will mean fewer killings.
   This year alone, there have been more than 200 mass shootings in America, and it's only the middle of May. That includes two in Texas in a single week recently. In one incident, five people were slain at a private home, and in another, eight in a shopping mall. By definition, a mass shooting is an incident in which four or more people are killed or wounded.
   There are an estimated 390 million guns in private hands in America. That number is larger than the total population. In other words, there are more guns in America than there are people.
   And people wonder why there are so many gun-related deaths in America.