Opinion

Child gun access allows shootings

Ben White
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by Ben White
Monday, October 15, 2007 00:00

To turn on national news coverage this past Wednesday was to see an all too familiar sight: another school shooting, this time at a high school named "SuccessTech," no less. With the epidemic of school violence arising so frequently in the United States, it's hard to be surprised when another incident happens. It has become part of our news cycle, a regular occurrence in which young people are exposed to death. The obvious and repeated question is why? Thousands of scholars research the issue, spending millions of dollars in the search of what causes these people to commit such reprehensible acts. Psychologists point out the effect bullying has on the psyche, while sociologists point to the desperation caused by modern-societal structure. Others blame video games and an overly-aggressive media that thrives on broadcasting violence. The problem with each of these explanations is that similarities are rarely found among different school shooters; they have different backgrounds, motivations, social statuses, living situations, personalities and upbringings. What must be focused on is the one similarity that they all share — the United States, a nation that allows children easier access to murderous weapons than it does to health care. While the tragedy at Columbine High School stands out as a prime example, there have been at least a dozen other incidents involving gunfire inside our nation's schools since April 20, 1999. It is certainly easy to dismiss such events as things that "would never happen here," but the rash of school violence has affected the state of Wisconsin, most notably in September of last year at Weston High School in Cazenovia: a school that saw its principal shot and killed by a 15-year-old freshman. These events are anything but rare; the carnage at Weston High took place two days after another Colorado school shooting and only three days before a crazed man lined up a group of Amish school-children in Pennsylvania and systematically executed each one of them. There is no inherent reason why American kids kill their classmates more often than those in the rest of the world. It is hard to believe there is any more bullying in American high schools than those of our European counterparts, and much of the world is exposed to the same media and video game outlets that American children are. The factor that causes our nation's children to commit fatally murderous acts is simple: access to advanced weaponry. A study done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that between 1950-1993 "the overall firearm-related death rate among U.S. children aged less than 15 years was nearly 12 times higher than among children in the other 25 [industrialized] countries combined." So why do American children kill each other so often? The answer is straightforward: because it is easy to do so. The commonwealth of Virginia allowed a mentally disturbed man, described as potentially violent, to purchase two guns within a month. Those guns would later be used by Cho Seung-Hui to brutally murder 32 Virginia Tech students and faculty. In what other developed country in the world is this possible? Simply because our Constitution, a document written well over 200 years ago, allows a citizen to "bear arms," we should let ourselves be subject to random violence? The handguns that Mr. Cho used are ones not suited for hunting, so what is their purpose and why do we allow them to be purchased so easily? It must be conceded that loose gun-control laws are not the sole reason behind senseless school violence. If a student in Britain had a strong desire to obtain a gun in order to kill his classmates, he could do it. There are pathways around every law and all items are attainable. But, often times the violent students don't even look that far for their weapon of choice. Under normal circumstances, it is legally obtained by a family member and nestled safely in the confines of their home. This can mean easy access for a confused and impulsive teenager. Or, even worse, as CNN reported last week, you have mothers like Michele Cossey, a Pennsylvania woman who is now being charged for legally obtaining "a .22-caliber handgun, a .22-caliber rifle, a 9mm semiautomatic rifle and black powder used to make grenades," for her 14-year-old son, who was allegedly planning a "Columbine-like attack" on his school. These items are not suited for anything but murder and destruction. Yet it is our country, the United States, which stands alone in allowing such an easy pathway for our children to obtain such havoc-inducing material. So let's not blame a violent film or a graphic video game for causing real-life mayhem; we must examine the system that allows our nation's kids the ability to unleash fatal aggression. Ben White (bwhite2@wisc.edu) is a junior majoring in political science and sociology.


Feedback
Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 7:26am):

Dear gun owners: if your gun finds its way into a crime, you should be at least partially guilty for the offense.

You claim to be "responsible gun owners," but we have seen over and over that this claim is often false.

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 9:58am):

"we must examine the system that allows our nation's kids the ability to unleash fatal aggression"

Poor parenting is the "system" that aloows this. You need a license to go fishing or have a dog but nothing to have a child.

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 10:04am):

Guns are used in self defense 3 times as often as they are used for crimes. What you also fail to point out is that all of these shootings occur at "gun free zones." Obviously these killers didn't see the signs that told them they weren't supposed to carry guns to school. Or maybe they just don't care.

The 2nd Amendment is about self defense and personal responsibility. In 1975 in DC 3 women where raped for 14 hours. Even after calling 911 twice, the police officer did nothing more than knock on the door before leaving. The women tried to sue the police, but the court said the police were not responsible. So the government says they are not responsible for our protection, and the state of Wisconsin says you are not allowed to carry a weapon to defend yourself. What is your solution?

Britain has outlawed handguns, but still has a high gun crime rate. Criminals will get guns the same place they get drugs, which are also illegal.

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 10:14am):

Simply because our Constitution, a document written well over 200 years ago, allows a citizen to "free speech," we should let ourselves be subject to random nonsense?

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 10:32am):

"The factor that causes our nation's children to commit fatally murderous acts is simple: access to advanced weaponry."

The access to weapons is the main cause? I would suggest that US's modern public school system itself is the root cause. Our schools are driving kids to crazy acts. We take up their time, we take away their privacy, we deprive them of creativity, and we dissolve family cohesion. We teach parents to relinquish responsibility to the "experts" to train children.

All this, combined with having ready acess to weapons, is the problem. The last sentence says makes a key summary: "we must examine the system that allows our nation's kids the ability to unleash fatal aggression."

So why are our kids having so much pent-up agression compared to other nations? What is different about our public school system? Do you really think it is simply access to weapons? Isn't an automobile a much more deadly weapon than a handgun? A couple tons of metal and gasoline on wheels? In the US, we're nearly handing out licenses to teenagers for operating motor vehicles (in other countries, the process of getting a driver's license costs $$$ and takes much longer). The issue of gun control seems moot in this context. So, if it's not the weapon, then what is causing our kids to go crazy in schools?

Douglas Maki (October 15, 2007 @ 12:31pm):

Ben White: You captured part of the issue, but typical of young students, you have not experienced enough on this earth to articulate a sensible solution.

Until you poly-sci students begin screaming AT the media, ABOUT the role of materialism and lacking religion, and AT the society that believes that a father figure is unnecessary in a family unit, you will never prove yourselves useful as social problem solvers.

As a father, I would feel safer if you spent time in a 3rd world country for a few months, where you would finally understand how deviant minds dominate the violence problem around the globe.

I thank God Himself that the REAL science community has not drifted away from common sense as has Wisconsin's poly-science "educated" student base, if your above article characterizes your peers' judgment as well.

You need to think deeper into this problem, my friend, before wasting the readers' time with an easy but ineffective solution.

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 1:18pm):

I am always appalled at the intellectual dishonesty of liberals. The 2nd amendment is not about hunting, it is about self defense both from criminals and from tyrannical governments. The same way that you dismiss the 2nd amendment we can dismiss all civil liberties, after all the constitution is just an old piece of paper. Please at least maintain a small amount of honesty.

Guns are a good target to blame, they are inanimate. Liberals can simply write off all problems on them. Crime in a city is out of controls, because the mayor is an incompetent twit, blame guns. Why not?

Access to firearms is not unique in America. Contrary to popular liberal lies. With the exception of England, guns (and yes assault weapons, and yes .50 cals even in England!!!) are readily available in Europe, and most industrialized countries, with only a trivial amount of paper work. In deed many European countries still allow citizens to purchase machine guns (unlike the US). Yet Europe does not have the same level of school violence that US does. Why is that?

Instead of being cowards that blame inanimate objects and misrepresent US law. Lets have some courage and hold the public school system accountable. Lets make them explain to us why nearly a third of US students are on psychiatric medication? Is ADD or depression contagious? Why have the levels of diagnosed mental disorders increased dramatically in the last fifty years? Could it be that the US public school system is creating a nation of chronicle depressed idiots?

Also of note. Today USA has the toughest most stringent gun control laws the nation has ever had! That is a fact. Even thirty years ago it was not uncommon for high school boys to bring riles to school, for hunting. In the not so recent past kids had .22 rifles and BB guns, and it was not uncommon for adolescent boys to hunt. Yet there where no school shootings. Why is that?

The problem is flawed schools, and not inanimate objects.

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 3:12pm):

"The 2nd amendment is not about hunting, it is about self defense both from criminals and from tyrannical governments."

Text of 2nd Amendment:
"A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed."

Criminals? It seems like "security of a free State" was extrapolated to fit your agenda. They did not say security of a free State AND free people," did they?

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 4:06pm):

To the above.

Arguing semantics is the dishonesty I am talking about. The only agenda here, is victim disarmament, by self proclaimed liberals.

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 4:12pm):

In "security of a free State", the "state" is not the central government - it is the state, that being the unit of government charged with maintaining freedom from tyrany, and failing these days.

Anonymous (October 15, 2007 @ 5:42pm):

"the right of the people to keep and bear Arms"

Seems clear to me that they were talking about individuals - not govenment controlled troops.

Anonymous (October 16, 2007 @ 9:35am):

So if guns are only suited for murder then I suppose every person who has ever defended their life with a gun is a murderer then? And police officers carry guns to murder people? Get real. A gun is a tool; an inanimate object that does nothing on it's own. It's equally capable of causing violence and death as it is stopping violence and death. If somebody could invent a magic want to get rid of all the guns at once, would the world be a better place? Probably, but that's fantasy and has no place in a mature honest debate on gun control. So long as criminals and The State have guns, the people have a right to be armed.

Anonymous (October 22, 2007 @ 6:22pm):

can you possibly explain why it happens so much more recently as opposed to years ago.no sir,those weapons are not suited for"nothing but death and destruction"you are obviously ignorant of firearms.a better question might be,waht kind of society have we created where people feel free to act like a spoiled infant at any age?

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