Gabby Giffords Wants Everyone To Pass Background Checks Before Getting A Gun, Just Like Her Attacker Did

The man who shot Gabby Giffords passed background checks, yet Giffords continues to push for legislation that would make every single gun purchase require these very same background checks. It should be quite apparent now that background checks cannot and do not stop the mentally unfit from acquiring firearms.

I typically go out of my way not to publish the names of gunmen, mass shooters, etc., but a point needs to be made. With that said…

Yes, [Jared] Loughner acquired his firearm via a background check, as did Jerad and Amanda Miller (Las Vegas), Elliot Rodger (Santa Barbara), Ivan Lopez (Fort Hood 2014), Darion Marcus Aguilar (Maryland mall), Karl Halverson Pierson (Arapahoe High School), Paul Ciancia (LAX), Aaron Alexis (DC Navy Yard), James Holmes (Aurora theater), Nidal Hasan (Fort Hood 2009), among others.

There is a better solution, and it’s to bring things back to our society that we used to embrace. One of those things is teaching firearm safety in schools. It used to be a regular thing, and gave kids the opportunity to learn the fundamentals of firearms, how they operate, and most importantly how important it is to respect them and how to handle them safely.

Another logical solution would be to have more responsible citizens carrying firearms. I can’t say it enough: these bad guys don’t want a fight, and they certainly don’t want anyone in the immediate area to be armed. Remember, an armed society is a polite society.

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An even better move would be to shut down the media’s demonization of firearms, because they aren’t scary. What is scary are the people who abuse them by killing others. It should be no different if a person kills another with a gun, or they kill another with a crowbar. The scary part about it is that this mentally-ill person killed someone. Period. The method in which it was done carries no weight.

It’s past the time to put more focus and emphasis on firearm safety for our youth, and it’s well past the time for the media to stop making the firearm the bad guy.

I get that she wants to stop violence, so do I. This however, isn’t the way to do it. Time, energy and money would be better spent with the three suggestions above.

But what do I know.