When I looked at my computer this morning, the first thing I saw was that there had been a mass shooting in California, but not many details were known. The second thing I saw was that my home state senator Chris Murphy was already blaming the shooting on the inaction of Congress to pass gun control legislation. Murphy was just re-elected earlier this week, so he wasn't pandering for votes. No, he was telling the world his true views on gun control, and that is truly frightening.
Think about it. Murphy didn't know who the shooter was. He might have been a terrorist sent by ISIS for whom gun laws would have just been a joke. Murphy didn't know why or how the shooting started. It could have been a gang dispute, and angry spouse, a robbery gone bad or something else. Murphy didn't know what sort of gun was used. It could have been an AR-15 or a hand gun. Murphy didn't know if the guns were licensed or not. The truth is that Murphy didn't know anything except that some people had been shot. For him, that was enough to politicize the matter and blame Congress.
We now know that the shooter was a former marine with mental health issues. He used a legally obtained hand gun that he bought in California which has some rather strict gun legislation. The genesis of the shooting is unclear, but it seems to be an attack at random on the people in the bar. In short, what we know is that nothing short of the confiscation of all guns in the USA (which is not going to happen) would have prevented this shooting. Put another way, it may be politically expedient to blame Congress for this, but that is far from the truth.
I don't feel that strongly about gun control one way or the other. I do think that a senator ought to behave in a responsible adult manner. With Murphy, however, he never does.
Think about it. Murphy didn't know who the shooter was. He might have been a terrorist sent by ISIS for whom gun laws would have just been a joke. Murphy didn't know why or how the shooting started. It could have been a gang dispute, and angry spouse, a robbery gone bad or something else. Murphy didn't know what sort of gun was used. It could have been an AR-15 or a hand gun. Murphy didn't know if the guns were licensed or not. The truth is that Murphy didn't know anything except that some people had been shot. For him, that was enough to politicize the matter and blame Congress.
We now know that the shooter was a former marine with mental health issues. He used a legally obtained hand gun that he bought in California which has some rather strict gun legislation. The genesis of the shooting is unclear, but it seems to be an attack at random on the people in the bar. In short, what we know is that nothing short of the confiscation of all guns in the USA (which is not going to happen) would have prevented this shooting. Put another way, it may be politically expedient to blame Congress for this, but that is far from the truth.
I don't feel that strongly about gun control one way or the other. I do think that a senator ought to behave in a responsible adult manner. With Murphy, however, he never does.
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