Too quickly, opponents of the Second Amendment have turned the Virginia Tech shootings into a gun-rights issue. Media questioners forced White House spokeswoman Dana Perino and John McCain into restating their support for Second Amendment rights, statements which are then reported to make the conservatives sound callous and ideological. I should not have to argue that it is inappropriate for either side to make political capital out of this event at least until the dust settles.
Our 'friends' the Europeans have immediately jumped to blame the victim. A Der Spiegel column (in English) chronicles the spite. When my foreign colleagues asked me to explain why America has so many shootings, I came to the conclusion: this is what our violent types do instead of bombs. We have far fewer bombings than Europe; they have far fewer shootings. Perhaps the biggest difference in reaction is that nobody here will suggest kicking all the Koreans out or fingerprinting every student as a response.
At least one writer has had the more logical thought process about guns that I had: where were all the gun-toters? If the Europeans are right about the pervasiveness of firearms, someone of the hundreds of southern, rural Virginians who were in the vicinity of Norris Hall yesterday would have been armed! The problem is not the pervasiveness of arms, but their scarcity: only those who are planning to use them take the time to get them. We want guns in the hands of those who would deplore using them - but are able and willing if it's necessary to save life.
Generally, I'm in favor of gun control. There are a lot of other situations where guns would not stop a crime, or - as in gang warfare - where both sides are already armed. But this particular crime should not be held up as an example for those in favor of stricter gun control.
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