{"id":2820,"date":"2019-08-06T03:40:54","date_gmt":"2019-08-06T07:40:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/?p=2820"},"modified":"2019-08-04T15:49:42","modified_gmt":"2019-08-04T19:49:42","slug":"cmon-were-better-than-this-pt-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/2820","title":{"rendered":"C’mon; we’re better than this!!! Pt 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A couple of days ago, I uploaded part 1<\/a> of this series. This is a continuation of Part 1<\/a>…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what the HE double hockey sticks is going on here?  America is the shining beacon of the West; how could this happen in this great land?  How can one NOT feel safe in this country?  Let me step onto my soapbox. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I concur that the two most common denominators, as pointed\nout by Mr. Hemenway (Prof of Health Policy), are an abundance of the\navailability of weapons and weak gun laws. \nI encourage you to read Mr. Hemenway\u2019s article here: Off\nthe Cuff: What don\u2019t we know about the causes of gun violence? Almost\neverything.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, let\u2019s tackle the availability of guns.  I am a supporter of the second amendment.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. With that being said however I do not believe\nthe common citizen needs assault style weapons. \nIs the answer to ban and take away assault style weapons, no, it\u2019s\nimpossible to take them away from current owners.  My personal opinion is that assault style weapons\nshould not be sold. <\/li>
  2. There is an article, Assault\nWeapons and High Capacity Magazines<\/a>, sponsored by Everytown Research, which\nis very interesting.  They make a very\ncompelling case for the banning of high capacity magazines (magazines which\nhold >10 rounds).  One of my weapons\nhas a high capacity magazine, specifically a 15-round magazine; which is common\nfor hand guns.  Mr. Hemenway used the\nexample of Virginia, the Old Dominion to drive his point home.  From 1994 \u2013 2004 there was an Assault Weapon\nBan in Virginia.  During this time,\ncrimes committed with high capacity magazines were down to an all time low of\n10% in 2004.  After the ban expired, the\ncrime rate with high capacity magazines had increased to nearly 22%.  I found that very interesting.  I do believe high capacity magazines which\nhold more than 15 rounds should no longer be sold.  <\/li>
  3. Removing Assault style weapons will not stop\nmass shootings, not by itself.  There are\nother factors involved (too many for today\u2019s discussion, but I think prohibiting\nthe future sale of assault style guns and high capacity magazines will have a positive\nimpact.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Before going into the second, and I believe the more\nimportant of the two, I\u2019d like to do a small refresher on the history of our\nnation\u2019s gun laws, courtesy of the Gifford\u2019s\nLaw Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    1. The National Firearms Act (NFA \u2013 1934).  Passed as part of the Internal Revenue Code\n(loosely called the IRS), a set of standards on the manufacture and transfer of\nfirearms.   Currently the NFA imposes an\nexcise tax and provides registration requirements.<\/li>
    2. The Federal Firearms Act (FFA \u2013 1938).  Created the Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL)\nprocess and the requirements for them to maintain customer records and\nprohibited the transfer of arms to certain classes of persons (think felons).  The act was repealed in 1968, but many provisions\nremain.<\/li>
    3. The Gun Control Act (BDA \u2013 1968). Revised the\nNFA and repealed the FFA, while keeping many of it\u2019s provisions. Required all\nfirearms be affixed with a serial number, and expanded the people prohibited\nfrom owning firearms.  It also impacted\nammunition, introduced background checks, provided dealer regulations, and expanded\nthose prohibited to purchase firearms.<\/li>
    4. The Firearms Owners\u2019 Protection Act (FOPA \u2013\n1986). This act \u201cliberalized\u201d many of the restriction\u2019s sellers had.  The act limited the number of inspections the\nATF could perform without a search warrant. Prevented the federal government\nfrom maintaining a central database of firearms dealer records.<\/li>
    5. The Brady Act (Brady Act \u2013 1993).  Imposed a 5-day waiting period to allow law\nenforcement to review a prospective handgun purchaser\u2019s background information.\nThe act incorporated shotguns and rifles in 1998.<\/li>
    6. The Federal Assault Weapons Ban (AWB \u2013 1994).  Prohibited the manufacture, transfer, and\npossession of semi-automatic assault weapons. \nThis act also prohibited the transfer and possession of large capacity ammunition\nfeeding devices (magazines > 10 rounds). This act banned 19 types of\nweapons, and any semi-automatic firearm with at least two specified military\nfeatures coupled with the ability to accept a detachable magazine.  This act expired on September 13th<\/sup>,\n2004.<\/li>
    7. The Protection of Lawful Commerce In Arms Act\nAnd Child Safety Lock Act (PLCAA\/CSLA \u2013 2005). \nProvided the gun industry with immunity from most tort liability.  Mandated that the transfer of any firearm had\nto be accompanied by a secure storage or safety device.  The CSLA also immunized any person who\npossesses or controls a handgun and who uses a secure storage or safety device\nfrom civil liability action, as a civil action for damages resulting from the\ncriminal or unlawful misuse of a handgun by a third party and if the handgun was\nused by an unauthorized person, the handgun had been secured properly.<\/li>
    8. National Instant Criminal Background Check\nSystem Improvement Amendments Act (NICS \u2013 2007).  This act did away with the Brady Bill\u2019s 5-day\nwaiting period, provided the FFL was registered in the NICS database. It also\nprovided financial incentives for states to provide data to NICS.  This act also introduced mental illness into\nthe prohibited persons list.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      And this my friends brings us to the second, important part\nof today\u2019s reading, weak enforcement of our laws.  According to the Gifford\u2019s Law Center, Virginia Scored a D<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      1. There are far too many laws on the books\nnow.  In general, I don\u2019t think we need a\nrash of new laws.  I think when a new law\nis passed, the law it amends should be repealed and replaced by the new law, a\none for one swap I\u2019m ok with, but I don\u2019t feel the need for a bunch of new\nlaws.<\/li>
      2. I think there should be a waiting period, bring\nback the 5 day waiting period; I also think the number of handguns a person is\nable to be purchased should be restricted to an x number per month. <\/li>
      3. I believe in universal background checks, and I\nthink it is OK for a doctor (read mental health) to put a temporary hold on a\nperson\u2019s ability to own a firearm.  Otherwise\ncalled \u201cRed\nFlag<\/a>\u201d laws.<\/li>
      4. If a weapon is lost or stolen, it should be\nreported to the police as soon as possible. \nMake it a misdemeanor or something.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        Would you like to know the sad truth?  None of these actions will prevent gun violence.  Stay tuned for part 3 of this series. How would you prevent gun violence? What should we do?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        A couple of days ago, I uploaded part 1 of this series. This is a continuation of Part 1… So, what the HE double hockey sticks is going on here?  America is the shining beacon of the West; how could … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2819,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"kt_blocks_editor_width":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[8,4,16],"tags":[50,80,91,82,59],"class_list":["post-2820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life","category-politics","category-rants-raves","tag-america","tag-duty","tag-responsibilities","tag-rights","tag-security"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/word-cloud-3261119_960_720.png?fit=960%2C642&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":935,"url":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/935","url_meta":{"origin":2820,"position":0},"title":"American Gestapo","author":"DR D","date":"April 23, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"With the recent shootings, and the bombings in Boston, MA, there have been new calls for gun legislation, immigration reform and prosecuting the bombing suspects as terrorist.\u00a0 We (as a country) need to be very, very careful about the precedents we set.\u00a0 Look at what we got from our rush\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Rants & Raves"","block_context":{"text":"Rants & Raves","link":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/category\/rants-raves"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":905,"url":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/905","url_meta":{"origin":2820,"position":1},"title":"My take on gun control..","author":"DR D","date":"April 9, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Good morning everyone!\u00a0 My cat and I were in a deep discussion yesterday regarding all the ranting going on over gun control. It is my stance that there are already enough laws on the books regarding gun control, and that, prior to establishing new laws; it would be a good\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Politics"","block_context":{"text":"Politics","link":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/category\/politics"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":15068,"url":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/15068","url_meta":{"origin":2820,"position":2},"title":"Time to strap in and buckle up!","author":"DR D","date":"January 20, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Today is January 20th, 2025, Inauguration Day, which, by all accounts, should be a peaceful turnover of power from the current democratic president to a recycled republican president (yes, the lower cases are intentional). It would be really nice, if we could say this is the 46th peaceful turnover of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Life"","block_context":{"text":"Life","link":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/category\/life"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/20150703_121740-e1435963001338.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/20150703_121740-e1435963001338.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/20150703_121740-e1435963001338.jpg?fit=675%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2790,"url":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/2790","url_meta":{"origin":2820,"position":3},"title":"Reality show government","author":"DR D","date":"October 7, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"This morning, my cat and I were watching Fareed Zakaria's show, GPS (Global Public Square) on CNN; yes - I still watch CNN, and really try and watch Mr. Zakaria's show whenever possible.\u00a0 Today he had on two former Secretaries of State, General Colin Powell and Madeline Albright.\u00a0 It was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Life"","block_context":{"text":"Life","link":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/category\/life"},"img":{"alt_text":"We The People....Not we the Lobbyists","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/WeThePeople-300x208.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":15086,"url":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/15086","url_meta":{"origin":2820,"position":4},"title":"Unity, Strength and Fairness… NOT!!!","author":"DR D","date":"February 23, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Mr. Trump has been in office for just over one month, and his stated theme for this presidency is \"Unity, Strength, and Fairness\" (his words, not mine). 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He hasn't wasted anytime in convincing me that nothing has changed, except this time\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Politics"","block_context":{"text":"Politics","link":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/category\/politics"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":940,"url":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/940","url_meta":{"origin":2820,"position":5},"title":"What\u2019s a Poor Congressman To Do?","author":"John Sweeney","date":"April 25, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"My congressman sent out an e-mail in which he was inexplicably whining about some backlash he\u2019s gotten from his constituents over some recent political decisions.\u00a0 He appeared genuinely perplexed at why we would be upset, and went on to wonder if compromise and \u201cgetting along\u201d would ever be possible in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AoM"","block_context":{"text":"AoM","link":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/archives\/category\/rants-raves\/aom"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2820"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2820\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2824,"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2820\/revisions\/2824"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2819"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dansdigitaldive.com\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}