I think the president is right. Those shooters are mentally ill, and they had easy access to guns. You can’t take guns out of the equation. You can’t just say the problem is mental illness. Without guns, the mentally ill would have to find some other means of killing; but there is nothing to compare with guns with magazines that can hold up to 100 rounds and can kill a lot of people in just a minute or two.
It wouldn’t matter if someone in the neighborhood of the killer also had a gun. The shooter has the element of surprise and can kill a lot of people in a matter of a minute or two before anyone can react and determine where the shooting is coming from. Often the shooting takes place at night or in dark places. So more guns isn’t the answer. You’re not going to stop the initial onslaught of a mass-killer.
We have to get rid of the semi-automatic assault rifles and the magazines that go with them. And we have to have background checks that might screen out some of the demented people. Nothing will be perfect, a million assault rifles are already out there. But oftentimes the shooter just recently bought his weapon.
USAToday on Aug. 5 had an article that said more than 520 people have been killed so far just this year in mass killings and at least 2,000 injured. They define a mass killing as at least four people killed in an incident. There have been 251 mass shootings in just 216 days.
No, I won’t accept the president’s idea that mental illness and video games are the problem. You can’t leave guns out of the equation. And so far, he hasn’t mentioned guns.
BOB BOWSER
Flagstaff
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