It has become evident that anti-gun groups have a rapid-response strategy to any shooting in the news, no matter the consequences. They’ve got #GunControlNow hashtags at the ready, never again giving some time to the families before making tragedies political. Certainly, some on the right are too quick to react politically to tragedy, but it doesn’t seem as organized or orchestrated.
The question gun control advocates struggle to answer is: What specifics laws would have stopped this attack?
Vast numbers of social media posts and politicians’ statements called for closing loopholes. The Orlando attacker obtained his guns legally, without a loophole. Some are calling to strengthen mental health checks before gun purchases, but that may be difficult to implement. Others want longer waiting periods or universal gun permits.
The most reasonably sounding suggestion, at first glance, is to reintroduce the assault weapons ban. The argument goes that, without the 30-round magazines and the AR-15, the attacker would not have killed so many people. While it’s almost impossible to do a side-by-side comparison, a trained pistol user (which the attacker was) can double-wield handguns and fire off just as many rounds into a crowd and re-load with little difficulty.
Further, all reports confirm he had explosive devices. Overseas, we frequently see explosive attacks and suicide bombers. Can anyone really say a bomb would have done less damage than an AR-15?
If someone wants to kill a lot of people in a crowded room, there are many, many ways.
We always want easy answers to society’s toughest problems, but simple bans and closing “loopholes” will fail to achieve their intention. Terrorists and mentally unstable individuals will find creative ways to kill large numbers of people if they truly want to. Bombs are already banned, yet the attacker got his hands on the materials he needed.
Should we give up looking for answers to stop these vicious acts? Never. But let’s have an honest and realistic discussion. That discussion isn’t a rapid-response list of demands from Everytown, MDA, or the #WearOrange crowd. That isn’t to say smart gun regulations and different techniques for background checks shouldn’t be on the table. But it also means having a frank discussion about Islamic terrorism and mental health.
Honest Americans are getting frustrated and saddened by these attacks and want action, but this action will not be found in 140 characters and a hashtag.
