GUN CONTROL: ‘Common sense of our grandparents’

In 1930s America, violent gangsters were creating havoc across the nation with their Thompson submachine guns and sawed-off shotguns. They were the “mass shooters” of their day. Civilized patriots responded by passing the National Firearms Act of 1934, also known as the “Anti-Machine Gun Bill.” This bill regulated the ownership of machine guns, sawed-off shotguns and short-barreled rifles. By 1937, the sale of machine guns was virtually ended. In 1939, the Supreme Court ruled the law constitutional. While it did not immediately solve all of the problems, the law had a profound effect at reducing the violence.

Just like Americans of the 1930s, we find that weapons of war do not belong on civilian streets. The Second Amendment is not unlimited. It is not the right to carry any weapon whatsoever for any purpose. We need to pass reasonable gun control laws that will reduce the level of mass murders that afflict our country: increase mental health funding; mandatory background checks; requiring a license for gun purchases; red flag laws; and banning sales of assault weapons. None of these proposed changes will immediately stop the violence, but they may well reduce it to a level that law enforcement can limit the damage.

Let us have the common sense of our grandparents and pass reasonable gun control. And if the people we elect will not pass such laws, then elect new people who will.

DOUG STRONG

Rathdrum