No Walls For The Small

In light of the recent massacre in Arizona, where 9 year old Christina-Taylor Green was shot and killed, and the murder of two teens in Florida by their mother, I thought this week we should explore kids and gunfire in America.  It is more than a problem, it is a tragedy.  Some terrifying facts from the Childrens Defense Fund State of America's Children 2010 report:

• In 2007 17,523 children were shot in the USA, suffering non-fatal injuries.
• 8 children a day are killed by gunfire in the USA.
• On average 50+ children a week are shot to death in the USA.
• Since 1979, gunfire has ended the lives of 110,645 children and teens in America.

17,523 shot children in one year.  That is a huge heavy number.  Each of those children, survivors of gunfire, bear the scars, both emotionally and physically of gunfire.  In a nation that prides itself on being "the best in the world" I find these numbers appalling.  Based on these numbers alone I think it is safe to say that we have a major problem with gun violence in this country.

The second amendment reads:  A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

The key phrase is "a well regulated militia." IT is the entire purpose for this law, designed to give states a means to protect themselves from tyranny in government.  Constitutionally there is no other reason to own a gun.

This is a blog about solutions...and I would love to hear your ideas as to how we can end the massacre of children in this country.  8 a day die by gunfire.

Here are a few I have come across...

• ban gun shows...they are the pipeline to unregulated gun sales
• tax bullets so they are utterly unaffordable (Chris Rock pointed out if bullets were $5000 a pop there wouldn't be any wasted on innocent bystanders)
• institute a government buyback program (Australia did this after a massacre in the 90's.  Over 650,000 guns were turned in to the government, who in turn gave each gun owner a rebate check)

Me personally I think handguns make killing people too easy...and killing people should be hard.  Really hard. The only reason people have handguns is to use them against other people with handguns.  If you take the handguns out of the equation you have solved the problem.   People are much less likely to murder in general if stripped of guns, and much less likely to harm innocent bystanders, or take their own lives.  Where there is a will there is a way, but why not make the way as hard as possible given the nature of the consequences.  But that is just my humble opinion. 

This much can be said though, if guns were outlawed tomorrow 8 children in the USA would live to see another day.  For me, that is reason enough.