If you have a weed growing in your garden, do you clip it its base and wait to see if it returns? Or do you pull out the root completely?
President Barak Obama’s gun control agenda does not fix the issue of mass shooting, but simply allows Americans to keep mowing their weed covered lawns rather than having the green plush grass we all really want.
The proposal President Obama is attempting to spearhead through Congress consists of four key subsections: law enforcement, the availability of dangerous firearms and ammunition, school safety and mental health.
The bill would also reinstate the 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Ban and limit magazine capacity to 10 rounds.
Reinstating the assault weapons ban which was first enacted in 1994 and eradicated in 2004 would take away the right to manufacture, purchased and/or transfer assault weapons in any way, shape or form.
According to “Live Science Magazine,” the “Obama definition” of an assault weapon is any semiautomatic rifle with a detachable magazine and at least two of the following five items:
A folding or telescopic stock
A pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon
A flash suppressor or threaded barrel
A grenade launcher
A bayonet mount
These five items, all related to rifles, will have more of an effect on irritating weapons manufactures and gun enthusiasts than keeping our streets safer.
According to the FBI crime log of 2011, deaths by blunt objects (hammers, bats) superseded deaths by rifles 496 to 393 with only one death related to a sniper rifle.
Does this mean we should require background checks for construction workers? Perhaps forcing hammer manufacturers to place a serial number on each of their products along with mandated registration of hammer enthusiasts will keep our streets safer.
One major flaw in this bill pertains to those who already own assault weapons. Individuals who own and register their assault weapons before the bill passes will be allowed to keep their assault rifles.
There is also no clause in the bill which would enforce harsher terms for those selling assault weapons on the black market.
Many conservative Americans argue the true concern for safety lies in mental health rather than guns themselves.
According to the Center for Disease Control, drug overdose death rates in the United States have more than tripled since 1990.
In 2009, 15,000 people in the United States were killed by prescription painkiller overdoses. Over 50 percent of these deaths were related to mental illness.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 26.2 percent of Americans 18 and older suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder.
President Obama discusses mental illness as part of his ban on assault weapons. Of the 23 separate executive actions ranges addressing legal barriers associated with background checks during the purchase of a weapon to clarifying what Medicaid plans must cover. However, nowhere in the plan does it clarify how individuals suffering from mental disorders will be helped.
America used to be a place where songs were written for its natural beauty. “From the mountains, to the prairies, to the oceans white with foam…”. We now have a nation overgrown with weeds due to no one willing to get dirty and find the root.