GUNS ARE IN AMERICA'S DNA

Case Study 1: United Kingdom

Hungerford Massacre 1987: 16 people died by a lone gunman. Result: semi automatic and pump-action weapons banned. Registration mandatory for owning shotguns. And the bucks doesn't  stops here:

Dunblane, Scotland 1996: One unspeakable coward bastard (sorry for my language) entered the gymnasium of a primary school (yea friends primary school) and  opened fire from his handgun resulting to the death of 15 children aged between five and six along with their teacher. Outcome: UK lawmakers, resulting in some of the toughest anti-gun legislation in the world, passed a ban on the private ownership of all handguns in mainland Britain. Though it took 18 months!

Case Study 2: Australia

Port Arthur massacre: After the tragic incident, former Australian President John Howard said, " We have an opportunity in this country not to go down the American path." And the opportunity was taken: weapons that can kill many people quickly _ semi automatic rifles and shotguns were banned. Though a waiting period of 28 days was implemented, for thorough background checks and authentic justification to own a gun. While gun violence did not end, Australia, cut off roughly half since 1996 and there has never been another Port Arthur since.

I will not focus on any further incidents, as it may divert my principle object of this article, making it a lengthy one. Let's begin and go through the main issue.

But before I proceed, let me make a humble request to you all: I am not in a mood to give lectures neither I have the ability to do so, nor I am to suggest my American friends what to do and, I really, really do not want to hurt the sentiments of anyone alive under the sun. All my words are the outcome of the pain, that happened in Florida school recently, which could have happen anywhere, even in my country too. 

Please treat this article as an open letter to all, even you, who are responsible directly or indirectly for the tragedy. 

If you all, my friends agree to my statement written above, do read further, else quit, I swear, I would not mind. Wanna stay tuned? OK...

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The United States: Facts & Figures

There has been 17 shooting incidents at schools in USA in the first month and half of 2018, some were intentional, some accidental, one was suicide and some resulted in no injury or death, but 22 people died and many more injured. There have been  290 school shootings since 2013, as of this writing. But the odds: Will United States ever ban the outright approach of Firearms?

My Odds:, virtually nonexistent. From where I sit, there are two dominant reasons as I presume, which have the weight of history behind them.

The right to bear arms is guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the  Constitution:

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

The interpretation of the scope of that statement, in the absence of the people who framed it, is being examined in courts on a continual basis.

Firearms are an integral part of our nation’s history.

For better or for worse, the nation’s history depended on firearms. The expanding frontier and the uncertainties of life in a lawless country made owning a firearm (or an armory) often meant the difference between survival and becoming a nameless skeleton on the prairie.

The fact that guns are written into America’s DNA, has allowed the NRA, to morph from an organization for sports enthusiasts into a powerful political entity – one which seems determined to preserve and expand its influence at all costs. And their “cold dead hands,” any weapon, any time, any caliber, any size, any magazine, any bump-stock philosophy has been adopted by a significant portion of the citizenry, including a significant number of the legislators, who take obscene amounts of money, all the while sending their “thoughts and prayers” to the victims without being willing to do anything about the carnage.

The recent shooting at Parkland left 17 people dead. I haven’t even mentioned other gun-related deaths, such as the one in Las Vegas that killed 58 people and injured 851.

It’s time for a change!!

Yes, the 2nd Amendment still guarantees citizenry the right to bear arms, but I do not believe, rather I will not believe, being a part of an another democratic country, that the writers of that amendment ever meant for a single individual to own something like this, unless the zombie apocalypse were a real possibility, Huh!!

I personally believe that the writers of the 2nd Amendment would be shocked if they saw how that little bit of the Constitution was being interpreted and argued and implemented today, especially if they viewed the daily carnage in a nation with between 270 million to 310 million firearms, depending on whose estimate you believe.

As long as the 2nd Amendment remains in force,  citizens of this country must balance a right to bear arms with an end to the daily death toll which has reached untenable proportions – indeed, has been unbearable for decades.

I have many gun-toting, sharpshooting, hunting, and reloading friends who will disagree with my opinions, but that’s how America works. This is a highly-charged issue that I debated about, but I will always support civil discourse on difficult issues. Ignorant and trollish comments will be ignored and deleted without ceremony.

The old monk has spoken.....