Federal Ban On Assault Weapons Expiring
I am not going to wax philosophical about the overall effectiveness of the assault weapons ban, which expires today. It was hardly a perfect solution to begin with, but it was a step in the right direction. Now, police departments will face the reality of these deadly weapons and their accoutrements being far too readily available.
We elect leaders to do the bidding of the people, not the NRA and weapons manufacturers. Unfortunately, money talks in politics, and there are far too many members of Congress up to their ankles in gun money. It’s a despicable state of affairs, and one not likely to change any time soon- not as long as the NRA has Congress by the short hairs.
The powerful pro-gun lobby argues that the ban, which prohibits the sale of 19 particularly lethal weapons, along with magazines of more than 10 rounds, is merely cosmetic. They claim no direct link exists between the assault weapon ban and the reduction in gun violence since the ban was signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1994. And, they predict, there won’t be any increase in gun violence after the law sunsets.
Plain logic says that’s wishful thinking. Even if true, what advantage would an open market on assault weapons offer to justify the risk of renewed violence.
Already, giddy gun manufacturers and retailers are ratcheting up their production of the prohibited weapons and add-ons, such as large-capacity ammunition clips and flash suppressors, that boost these death delivery devices’ firepower or make it difficult to detect the point of fire. A Houston gun dealer and shooting range manager crowed to the Chronicle that, “Sales are going to go through the roof.”
No, the assault weapons ban was not a perfect solution to the problem of weapons designed for the sole purpose of killing people. It was, nonetheless, a start, a first step in trying to clean out streets of these weapons. Yes, you could make the argument that when guns assault weapons are outlawed, only outlaws will…yadayadayada…. Does that mean our only option is to give in to what you see as the inevitable and allowed unfettered trade in and access to these weapons? What possible purpose is served by legalizing access to high capacity magazines and weapons designed to fire these large clips?
These are not “sport” weapons. No one is going to take an AK-47 or an SKS squirrel hunting- assuming of course, you actually want there to be something left of the squirrel. No, these weapons have one use and one use only- TO KILL PEOPLE. How many people are going to have to die before our elected leaders stop suckling the financial teat of the NRA and pass legislation that will protect Americans from assault weapons. Oh, sorry…I almost forgot…IT’S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY, STUPID! Silly me; WHAT was I thinking??
