In my last critique I took a
defense towards responsible people to open carry fire arms because it’s proven
that guns don’t kill people that people kill people. But after recently reading
an article on CNN, “Capitol cops left guns in bathroom stalls” I said, you have to be kidding me! What is the point for
citizens to carry a fire arm if people like the police can’t seem to remember
where they had placed their weapon? Are we ready to have more fire arms on the
streets if people keep misplacing them?
According
to the article on CNN, there were two incidents in which one involved on officers
leaving their Glock pistols in bathroom stalls. The other one accrued when a
member of House Speaker John Boehner’s police detail left a gun after using a toilet in the
speaker's suite of offices in the Capitol. The guns was loaded and found by a
young child, two congressional sources told CNN. Again, Are you kidding
me! In an article on Slate.com, it says that The United States accounts for nearly 75 percent of all children murdered in the
developed world. Children between the ages of 5 and 14 in the United States are 17 times more likely to be murdered by firearms than children in other
industrialized nations.
We are fortune to live in a country that allows us to have freedom, but after hearing about these recent actions it makes me hesitant if we’re ready to carry fire arms around. I would be open towards the idea in people carrying fire arms if they were safer, as in the only way the gun could fire is if the person registered towards it was holding it.
On May 1, 2015, Pedro Ragoytia wrote a blog titled “The Wild Wild West.” In this blog he talks about responsibilities that come along with fire arms (pistols, rifles). Ragoytia starts off with a strong defense towards fire arms in his first paragraph; “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” Which I would have to agree, the gun itself is not capable to go off and harming someone, it is but the human behind the gun who is doing all the work.
ReplyDeleteHe then refers to a CNN article titled “Capitol cops left guns in bathroom stalls.” Instantly, I was shocked to hear that police officers are just leaving fire arms unattended. This leads me to question the level of oversight our civil force has, as these people are responsible for the prevention and detection of crime. In this CNN article it then talks about young children who have found loaded pistols on government property. Are we not responsible for teaching young children about the potential dangers of fire arms? Children in our society are learning fast, but we are responsible for setting a good example, and carelessness when it comes to firearms is unacceptable.
I do agree with Ragoytia when he later states, “People should be registered to hold any concealed gun.” Times like these I would suggest looking at gun laws in the state of Texas for example. Gun laws in Texas go about specific rules/procedures to ensure as much safety as possible. Texas gun laws allow; carrying license, open carry for long guns etc. It also contains safety laws such as, designated range areas to practice safe weapons handling and the “Peaceable Journey law,” which states that a person may carry a loaded handgun without a permit while heading directly to a motor which they own/control. The state of Texas also has something called a Concealed Handgun License (CHL). CHL requires people to go through many different procedures before issuing a license to the potential holder. One must go through various gun safety courses to learn all about the “Do’s and Don’ts” about fire arms, learn and understand the legal laws that include fire arms, training requirements that include an instructor, and of course go through a criminal history background check. If states go through these procedures it can possibly increase responsibility and knowledge for a firearm owner. This is most definitely a serious topic and must be taught wisely and carefully to ensure safety for everyone.