Pitchroom

After Arizona and Aurora, will more guns make us safer?

By

July 25, 2012

Weapons confiscated by police on display prior to a news conference in City Hall addressing the proliferation of illegal guns in Philadelphia. AP Photo/Mark Stehle

On July 20 in Aurora, Colorado, 24-year-old James E. Holmes entered a sold out midnight screening of “The Dark Knight Rises” armed with an extensive cache of weapons and ammunition. Donning body armor and a gas mask, Holmes carried a semiautomatic assault rifle, at least one .40-caliber semiautomatic pistol and a 12-gauge shotgun into the theater.

The roomful of moviegoers eagerly awaiting the highly-anticipated Batman sequel quickly degenerated into a nightmarish scene, as Holmes opened fire and began shooting indiscriminately, killing a dozen and wounding 58 others, many of whom remain in critical condition.

As the nation begins to grapple with this seemingly senseless act of violence, both President Barack Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney have avoided calls for new gun laws.

A long-time proponent of more stringent firearm regulations, New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg admonished both the President and Governor Romney on the John Gambling show. “Soothing words are nice, but maybe it’s time that the two people who want to be President of the United States stand up and tell us what they are going to do about it,” he said. “There are so many murders with guns every day; it’s just got to stop.”

In a statement, Dan Gross, President of the Brady Campaign echoed Bloomberg’s call. “This tragedy is another grim reminder that guns are the enablers of mass killers and that our nation pays an unacceptable price for our failure to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people,” he said. “We are outraged.”

Meanwhile, pro-gun activists contend that lessening impediments to legally carrying concealed weaponry may be the answer. Luke O’Dell of the Colorado-based group Rocky Mountain Gun Owners told the New York Times that, “Potentially, if there had been a law-abiding citizen who had been able to carry in the theater, it’s possible the death toll would have been less.”

Following the 2011 Arizona shooting – when shooter Jared Loughner killed six and left former U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords and 13 others wounded – Need to Know sat down for a second time with proponents of the “Open Carry” movement, who contend that more guns on America’s streets will make us safer.

“It’s like a fire extinguisher. Until you have a fire, you don’t need it. But you have it,” said one open carry advocate in our report.

Watch Guns Battle: The Fight Over Gun Control Laws on PBS. See more from Need To Know.

Do you agree? Can fewer rules restricting concealed weapons improve our safety? Or should greater regulations be placed on obtaining guns in the first place?

Let us know your thoughts and questions by reaching out on Facebook, Twitter, or share your opinion in the comment section below.

Last modified: July 25, 2012 at 12:50 pm
 

Comments

  • Retro144

    It seems obvious to me that since all these shootings that keep occurring happen in areas where guns guns are prohibited… 

  • the

    Guns will always get into the hands of criminals. The more guns law abiding citizens have, and the more concealed carry that is allowed, the safer everyone is

  • the

    Guns will always get into the hands of criminals. The more guns law abiding citizens have, and the more concealed carry that is allowed, the safer everyone is

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Sandy-Carrington/100000981816881 Sandy Carrington

    One out of two people own guns in Switzeland and they have the lowest crime rate in the world….

  • Anonymous

    i dont see how it can make us safer or less so
    theres no way to guard against the actions of a lone shooter, like theres no way to guard against any crazy person whether he wants to shoot you or eat your face. the only option in many cases is the ability to curtail the actions and limit the damage once the attack starts

  • http://www.facebook.com/bryan.murphy.12 Bryan Murphy

    if there HAD been more guns in that theater, someone could have dropped that nutcase before he did so much damage.

  • Hphamti

    A movie theater is dark and crowded. Do you think most concealed carry people are prepared mentally and physically to handle a chaotic situation? What happens if a the killer grabs a hostage? What if the conceal carry people accidentally shoot innocent people or get confused if they saw other concealed carry? 

    I’m all for freedom to have guns and conceal carry, but I hope people have extensive training and a mental background checks beforehand.  Wasn’t it like 40% of guns don’t require background check? A paranoid schizo could walk into a shop and buy a gun with the current system. With great power comes great responsibility. Gun owners should be responsible for having the power to save as well as the power to kill. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001923282183 Dawn Wiley

    This is not Switzerland, and we have a problem.  Why is is fine for US troops to encourage other nations with a zealot weapons problem to turn in guns, but it’s heresy to call for it here? Why?  Most concealed carry permits are NOT required to defend our country for military purposes as in Switzerland, they are fearful people hiding behind a powerful killing machine; is that what we want roaming the land?  Fewer guns, fewer deaths by guns.  Anything else is simple escalation of the problem. A gun is not a fire extinguisher, you can put the lid on a pot and the fire goes out.  More guns, more mafia, more armies, more war, more death, less peace, less health in the community, more fear and stagnation in our nation.

  • Harvey S. Cohen

    I agree that “Potentially, if there had been a law-abiding citizen who had been able to carry in the theater, it’s possible the death toll would have been less.” But what if there had been two, or four, or twenty? How do they each distinguish between good guys and bad guys when everyone is shooting? The police wear uniforms partly so that they won’t shoot each other.

  • Harvey S. Cohen

    Ah, the old Switzerland canard! The overwhelming majority of those gun owners do not have any ammunition in their possession. Look it up.

  • David

    The ability for anyone to go to a gun show table and purchase any weapon without a background check, a waiting period, and a gun safety course is insane.  How about a hefty tax on guns to help pay for qualified gun specialists to review folks who wish to purchase a gun.  Virginia Tech, Tucson, Aurora.  We have a gun glut and it doesn’t make me feel any safer to know that there are folks in my town who may carry a concealed or an openly displayed gun. 

    We are a very fearful country; gun carriers, wannabes, and non-guns alike.  Who will step forward to bring us to our senses?  How about asking our candidates what their plan for gun controls is as a checklist item as we think about our stop at the polls in November?  What do you think?  Do we have a national moral problem that implicates all of us?

  • Wizout489

    All I know is people Who plan on hurting others Will always be able to get their hands on guns. So let’s “Not” make it harder or near impossible for good law abiding citizens to obtain guns, Or make more gun free zones Because I agree if a law abiding Citizen was there with their concealed carry gun and permanent of course That the death toll And injuries could and probably would have been decreased dramatically.

  • Wizout489

    Plus gun free zones might as well be labeled as massacre zones because its basically saying hey if you’re going to snap and kill some people come here less chance of retaliation.

  • Bowlingrus69

    where to start… Well i liked everyone’s comments in support of freedom for gun owners and as for the topic. Guns are tools, just like any tool there are good and bad ways of using them, and like with anything the user determines its use. So hence there are more good law abiding citizens then criminals so less likely for this sort of thing to happen as long as there are no gun free zones.

  • Bowlingrus69

     Personally i feel that our government is out of line with any gun laws restricting american’s the right to own, buy, or process any firearm.(Now background checks for violent offenders is a must.) One good way to stop this non-sense is for every law that takes our rights away from us also includes the police and military as well. How safe would you feel then???? I thought so, which why there would be no laws restricting us.

  • Bowlingrus69

    i agree totally. it calls out open season. very dangerous these no gun zones!!!!

  • LP

     I own a hunting rifle, and do not oppose gun ownership (though basic safety training prior to the ownership of a gun might be nice–like exists for hunting licenses)  But I must admit, I have a difficult time understanding why people believe guns makes the world a safer more peaceful place.  I understand it might make a person feel more empowered, but that is not the same thing.  If you believe that guns do not kill people-people do– then don’t you also need to say that that guns to not protect people–people do?  Why is there no discussion of finding ways to keep guns away from people with a certain mental diseases, or or with certain criminal records?  Is the only solution really to hand a gun to every man woman and child in the neighborhood?

  • AzRedShoe

    Take guns away from American citizens; all you need is to look down south. Mexico doesn’t allow citizen to have hand guns and the only people to have them are thugs and police, and you can’t tell them part sometimes. Mexico is also the number one country worldwide for be-headings. Is this what we want for America?

  • Bowlingrus69

    Mexico is a prime example of what it would be like here if guns were outlawed. The cartel rules in mexico and citizens are in danger everyday. Murders go unpunished and   their government wont and sometimes cant do anything about it. To take guns away from Americans would be like handing the criminals the keys to the country!!!

  • Bowlingrus69

    LP, I have a question for you. Do you think we as a country would be #1 if we did away with all weapons and just relied on talking to our enemies to stop them from breaching our borders??????? If so then you could kiss Democracy goodbye. I mean this is a right given to us by our fore-fathers and a lot of people would like to through that right away. That right is to protect us from invaders, intruders, and even our own government  If they ever try to break our constitution or just take our rights away from us. Our country was built and works on principle of guns, as does the world…

  • Bowlingrus69

    As for mental disorders what determines mentally handy caped. With research all ways looking to explain we now have A.D.D. and Bi-polar which all i keep seeing is used for excuses and stamped on everyone so drug companies can sell more drugs. And for the topic of knowledge or gun training why are we not teaching kids in school more about guns and gun safety. I had a hunters education class will I was in school that talk mostly about rifle and shotgun safety along with surroundings or area safety. Schools are a good inexpensive way to instruct kids or young adults gun safety since most will come into contact with guns at some point in there lives.