Dear Editor,
America is a divided country: blue states (progressives/liberals) versus red states (conservative).
On the conservative side, 27 states have enacted voter suppression laws to restrict or prevent minorities from having political equality with white folks.
They have enacted antiabortion laws that will now come into effect since the US Supreme Court overturned Rove vs. Wade, the landmark court decision which legalized abortion in America. Those laws will deny women the right to choose their own destinies.
The same “red states” have passed or are passing laws that will prevent teachers from discussing the problems of racism and bigotry in America. We’re seeing the same states banning books in schools and in public libraries.
Those same “red states” reject any kind of meaningful legislation concerning gun violence in America. Why? Answer: The gun lobby, the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the Grand Old Party (GOP), often used interchangeably with the word Republican, have sold many Americans the idea that ownership of semi-automatic weapons and military grade weapons (AR-15s and AK-47s, for example) will protect Americans from “the bad guys”.
Is America safer than Canada or any other democracy because it allows civilians to buy such weapons or to participate in unregulated armed militias?
Hmm? Right now, the U.S. experiences 1.5 mass shootings (four or more people killed and or wounded per incident) per day. In 2021, 45,030 Americans lost their lives to gun violence.
So far this year (2022) 23,701 Americans have died from gun violence (source: Gun Violence Archive). Of those, 176 children (birth – 11 years of age) have died, 651 teenagers have died and 32 police officers have died.
Consequently, no one is safe in America. Not in churches. Not in schools. Not in shopping malls. Not at concerts. Not on the highways. Not at social events and not even when attending funerals or weddings.
So, why do the conservatives and the gun lobby push their gun agenda? Bottom line: To sell fear and to sell guns. The gun industry is big business. Consequently, Americans own more guns than any other people on this planet, and, as a result, suffer more deaths and wounded than any other people except for those involved in wars (the war in the Ukraine, the proxy wars in the Middle East, or the sectarian/religious wars in Africa).
The individual who wrote the article “Should terrify any thinking person” is an example of a person selling fear and misinformation. In my opinion, he wants to see Canadians have the same access to deadly guns as the Americans.
The writer fails, like the GOP and the gun lobby, to tell the people that they can still purchase pistols, rifles and shotguns. No one is suggesting otherwise, but the gun lobby continues to push the ‘fear
factor’.
George Thatcher
Trochu, Alta.
