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What if background check gap was applied to other safety issues?
So it has happened, the post-Newtown gun legislation has been defeated in the U.S. Senate.
And now as before, 40 percent of the gun sales in this country (i.e., gun shows and over the Internet) will go on with no background checks.
But that begs the question; in what other context would the Senate and House find such a 40 percent gap acceptable regarding the safety of their own families? Would it be OK if the FAA only inspected 40 percent of the airplanes for safety, or if the FDA left 40 percent of our food uninspected? Would the NRA devotees in the U.S. Congress feel safe if the airlines only screened 60 percent of the luggage going on board our flights? Probably not.
President Obama was spot on when he said to those who would consider this a victory “a victory for what a victory for whom?” Well those against this legislation, ignoring the actual wording of the bill might well answer; for the survival of the Second Amendment. Really? How about considering the survival of our country’s second grades.
Norman L. Bender
Woodbridge
And now as before, 40 percent of the gun sales in this country (i.e., gun shows and over the Internet) will go on with no background checks.
But that begs the question; in what other context would the Senate and House find such a 40 percent gap acceptable regarding the safety of their own families? Would it be OK if the FAA only inspected 40 percent of the airplanes for safety, or if the FDA left 40 percent of our food uninspected? Would the NRA devotees in the U.S. Congress feel safe if the airlines only screened 60 percent of the luggage going on board our flights? Probably not.
President Obama was spot on when he said to those who would consider this a victory “a victory for what a victory for whom?” Well those against this legislation, ignoring the actual wording of the bill might well answer; for the survival of the Second Amendment. Really? How about considering the survival of our country’s second grades.
Norman L. Bender
Woodbridge
posted by Matt DeRienzo at
6:25 PM
1 Comments:
The 40 percent figure quoted by the writer is a false statistic. It was gleaned form a study of 254 peope exiting a gun show in 1991 (before the Brady Bill and background checks. The actul figure was 38.6% but it included people who just didn't know if a background check was done. A more accurate statistic if from the US Department of Justice survey. They estimate that only between 6 & 12 percent of gun sales are done without at background check. The majority of these are sales and tranfers between family members (fathers and sones or daughters etc.) Of gun fleons surveyed in prision on 2% said they got their firearms from gun shows.
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