An Open Letter to Pro-NRA Legislators

High profile gun “tragedies” seem to be a weekly occurrence in this country. After Sandy Hook, when NOTHING happened to address this problem, when expanded background checks, which are supported by the vast majority of Americans, were voted down in the Senate, I felt the futility of this situation. If someone used a gun to mow down 20 six-year-olds and 6 educators, and this was considered acceptable "collateral damage" to support the NRA in its defense of the 2nd amendment, then I felt there was little hope that legislators would ever think critically or see reason on this issue. However, I am writing you today anyway to implore you to re-think siding with the NRA in its hard stance on opposing common sense gun legislation. 

At the time of this writing, there have been over 87,000 gun deaths in this country since Sandy Hook. In response to this jarring statistic, I would like to refer you to an opinion piece by Andy Parker, father of slain WDBJ reporter Alison Parker...

"This is domestic terrorism. The NRA and the Republican Party have blood on their hands. Anytime anyone suggests gun legislation, their immediate reaction is that we are trying to take their guns away. That is not what we are trying to do. Even most NRA members are in favor of sensible gun legislation, such as background checks. That's all we are suggesting." ~Andy Parker

You may disagree with the concept of enacting any law that might potentially reduce the profits of the gun industry, but please don’t bother to trot out the same handful of tired, ill-informed arguments...

• This tragedy shouldn't be politicized
• Any basic prevention legislation will lead to the government “taking all guns away.”
• Law-abiding people need guns for protection. (Nope)
• Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.
• More people are killed by cars than by guns. (Nope)
• It’s a mental health issue (No, it’s not: “In all of his work, Swanson has found one recurring factor: past violence remains the single biggest predictor of future violence. ‘Any history of violent behavior is a much stronger predictor of future violence than mental-health diagnosis,’ he told me. If Swanson had his way, gun prohibitions wouldn’t be based on mental health, but on records of violent behavior—not just felonies, but also including minor disputes.”)

I could offer many counter-arguments to each of the above statements, but I won’t. I’d rather you take a few minutes to consider, just consider, exploring one or more of the following ideas. For your consideration:

1. Expand the background check system - Close loophole laws that allow prohibited individuals to access firearms through unlicensed dealers, or “private sellers” and require background checks at gun shows and online in order to keep guns out of the hands of those prohibited by federal law. According to Americans for Responsible Gun Solutions, “In states with background checks on all handgun sales, 46% fewer women are killed by intimate partners, there are 48% fewer firearms suicides and 48% fewer law on-duty police officers are shot to death.” More than 90% of Americans, including gun owners, support this. 
2. Prevent domestic violence homicides - “The mere presence of a gun in domestic violence situation increases the risk of homicide for women by five times. We need federal legislation that strengthens our nation’s guns laws and further prevents domestic abusers from accessing guns…by extending current firearms prohibitions to abusive dating partners and those convicted of misdemeanor stalking."
3. Strengthen the national instant criminal background check system - “More must be done to incentivize and support states in their work to improve their records reporting laws and systems. 11 states and the District of Columbia still have no reporting requirements laws, while 12 states have reported fewer than 100 records to NICS. Congress must continue to work to ensure that all records of prohibited purchasers are submitted to the background check system.” 
4. Enact strong laws against gun trafficking and stiffen penalties for straw purchasers - “Currently, prosecutors have no clear and effective statute to use to punish gun traffickers. Straw purchases provide a major source of guns for organized crime organizations in the U.S. and Mexico. Congress should work to make gun trafficking a federal crime and ensure enhanced penalties for kingpin gun traffickers, corrupt gun dealers and straw purchasers.” 
5. License gun owners – Nationally consistent licensing laws would provide a clear method for closing the “private sale loophole.” One time licensing of gun owners would not be heavily burdensome, and law abiding gun owners could easily obtain a license.
6. Register guns and hold owners accountable for crimes committed with them - Any gun used in crime could be tied to a registered owner who could also be held accountable, even if they didn’t commit the crime. This would foster personal responsibility for safe gun practices in the home and it would also address the straw purchasing problem.
7. Require gun owners to purchase liability insurance - We need to incentivize gun owners to take precautions to avoid accidents

Please, please consider re-thinking your alliance with the NRA. Someone on the right needs to be the first to stand up against the biggest special interest in Washington. I’m going to close with a quote from this powerful Salon piece by Oregon teacher Melissa Duclos…

"The next time you have an opportunity to sponsor or vote on common-sense gun legislation, instead of fearing the attack ads the gun lobby will undoubtedly launch against you, the lost campaign revenue, or the threat to your job, I hope that you think of me and my students, of the rest of the educators and students across the country, who have been asked to stand up to gunmen because you are too scared to stand up to a handful of lobbyists."

Want to try to make a positive difference? How about reaching out to Gabby Gifford’s organization, Americans for Responsible Gun Solutions or to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, to work together to try to draft and enact some actual legislation that might help save lives rather than stonewalling for the sake of gaining a good rating from the NRA.