Guns and family life
There have been widespread killings in America with guns. Schools and universities have been targeted and the death toll has mounted. There is a call to have some form of gun control and if necessary modify the second amendment. President Obama has repeatedly announced that he favors some form of gun control and as a start would like to ban assault and self-loading rifles.
Core Issue
The issue is not so simple in America which is a democracy. A look around will show that the only place where gun control is effective is in a totalitarian state or dictatorship. An example that comes to mind immediately is China a one-party state, tolerating no dissent. It has enforced strict gun ownership laws with the result that even owning an air gun is not possible. This is done by completely banning weapons and regulating the everyday life of the citizens. There is no democracy in China and any infringement of the government laws means a strict punishment and hard labor in a concentration camp.
Such a scenario cannot be enforced in a democracy and for that matter in the USA. Another example will show how difficult it is to control guns. Take a look at India the world’s largest democracy. There is a gun law (Arms Act 1959) that makes it difficult to get an arms license. But is it effective? No, over 40 million unlicensed guns are floating around in India, the largest number in the world.
Democracy and Guns
The point that must be understood is that guns cannot be banned in a democracy. Even if banned the rights of the citizens cannot be infringed, thus enforcing a ban is well-nigh impossible. One can try and restrict and regulate firearms, but the loopholes in a democracy are so many that hundreds of thousands of guns will still escape the law. The Second Amendment probably recognized this and allowed all citizens to own guns as a matter of right. Probably if there was the 2nd amendment, the situation would have been a lot different.
But the reality is that the Second Amendment is very much there and can never be repealed. Another harsh fact is that millions of guns are in the USA and stacked away. It is like the genie that has escaped the bottle never to go back. One shudder as to what any enforcement agency will do with the millions of guns floating all over the country. Any law not backed by a dictatorship of the type led by Mao or Hitler cannot enforce any gun control in the USA or for that matter in a democracy.
The question that Americans must ask is what do they wish for democracy to be replaced by a totalitarian state like in China, where owning a simple airgun can send you to prison? Many gun control enthusiasts are not considering the ground reality. It must be understood that per se guns are not bad. They form an excellent second line of defense. But the spillover of killings and shootings will take place. But we must see this also in perspective. After all, only 0.1% of guns are used in crimes.
Solution?
What is the solution? I do not see any at the moment. People are forgetting that the US society is sick with a high divorce rate and break up of family life. This is the problem not guns. America must address this problem and the use of guns for mass killings will carry on.
