USA: A Country of Guns

This is not first case of giving priority to corporate interests to the humanity; we are forced to think that for them profit is their sole objective, even if it is at the cost of lives of innocent people. — Swadeshi Samvad

Though United State (US)House of Representatives has passed a bill restricting the sale of guns on June 8, 2022, it’s very unlikely that this bill will become a law. This is so because republicans are determined to oppose the bill in the Senate. Nobody knows for how long ordinary Americans will have to live under the threat that somebody will come and start shooting without provocation. But no doubt in the forthcoming elections, this issue is going to gain prominence.

This bill came after a shocking incident where 5 people were killed by shooting of guns at Tulsa Medical building which was 233rd mass shooting of 2022. Before this a gunman shot and killed 19 young students and 2 teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. Just two weeks before this incident, 10 people were killed and three others were injured during a racist attack at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York. Important point here is that in most of these incidents, the killers were not the terrorists, but they were crazy young men. Some people have started saying that it is much riskier to stay in USA than going to war in Afghanistan.

It is for the first time that any President of USA has used strong words against the system and culture of owing guns. Biden has called on Congress to ban assault weapons or to raise the age to be able to buy one, from 18 to 21 years and other measures to curb gun violence in the United States in his address on June 02, 2022. He has also called for a ban on high-capacity magazines, background checks, red flag laws and a repeal of the immunity that protects gun manufacturers from legal liability if their weapons are used in violence.

A Country of Guns

In United States perhaps, its most easy to buy a gun. Guns are so easily available, and can be purchased almost like vegetables, in thousands of stores, without much background check. In addition, people often buy guns from relatives and friends. To buy a gun, unlike India, a person need not possess a licence in USA. One has to only give some information about one self, by filling up a form. Within minutes of the filling up of the information, verification is done by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and gun reaches into the hands of the buyer.

According to the website of the FBI, in the last one decade, enquiry was sought in 10 crore cases and only 7 lakh people were found ineligible to purchase a gun, that is, less than one percent of the total. We can understand that, almost every citizen of USA is eligible to have a gun. With a spurt in murders in the last few years, it’ s being said that ease of having a gun is causing ease of murders and illegal activities.

Though, it is no good to comment on the cultural traits of citizens of other nations, however, the quantum in which murders are taking place, we are forced to think about insensitivity and intolerance in Americans. In such circumstances, ease in possessing a gun makes it easy to murder others. It is notable that, people of all age groups are engaged in this act of murders, including minors.

Gun Lobby

Though, there is an old history of murders using guns, in recent times, this tendency has accelerated. Demand for restricting guns, has been there for long time, and many political leaders have been trying to make gun laws stricter. However, they have been facing numerous problems in their endeavour to enact strict laws. And behind this, there is strong gun lobby.

Since 1871, there has been a strong organisation, called National Rifle Association (NRA) in USA; which has been directly engaged in political lobbying for weak gun laws, since 1934. Though, there are nearly 50 lakh members of NRA, who contribute for the association, major chunk of financing of NRA comes from gun manufacturing companies. For obvious reasons, this organisation makes every possible effort to thwart any effort to make any strict law against possession of guns. We can gauge the influence of this gun lobby by the fact that NRA spent about $250 million in 2020, far more than all the country’s gun control advocacy groups put together. Banking on its strong financial muscles, this organisation funds Senate members, who make all possible efforts to defeat efforts to curb guns in USA.

Gun Bill

Though, Republicans themselves generally try to keep status quo on gun laws in 2016 under pressure from Orlando massacre, had brought a bill, according to which Department of Justice was supposed to take three days’ time for enquiry. It is notable that though enquiry was made at least twice, about terrorist involved in Orlando violence, even then he was able to fetch gun. Therefore, supporters of the bill say that with this bill becoming a law, it would become difficult for people linked with terror to possess guns.

On the other hand, Democrats didn’t favour this bill and they instead wanted that gun should be denied to people doubtful of terror links and psychological problems. Because of this lack of unanimity about the proposed changes in the gun law, gun law couldn’t be enacted in June 2016 also. Debate is on about whether the government should have the right to deny guns to those with doubt of having terror links or psychological problems or law department has 3 days’ time to say yes or no to the permission and onus of denial be on the government.

NRA has also been opposing the sharing of data about people with psychological problems, citing this to be an attack on privacy.

President Obama also faced a lot of criticism from the gun lobby for issuing some administrative orders, imposing restrictions on purchase of guns. Therefore, whether it’s an issue of making a stricter gun law or taking any administrative action to restrict guns, gun lobby always tries to create hurdles. Sometimes in the name of right to possess guns or on the pretext of privacy, this lobby tries to defeat efforts to curb guns, by soliciting support of senators; or even by legal fights. A senator Bill Nelson who has been vehemently favouring Gun Bill in the Senate, in June 2016, murmured after the bill was defeated, “What am I going to tell 49 grieving families? I am going to tell them that NRA won again.”

Though, this is not first case of giving priority to corporate interests to the humanity; we are forced to think that for them profit is their sole objective, even if it is at the cost of lives of innocent people.

Now, when President Joe Biden has started making renewed attempts to restrict guns, and have also started preparing for a legislation against guns, he also doesn’t seem to be in mood to issue executive order on the subject; and wants a stricter law to be enacted democratically. However, people familiar with the issue hardly have any hope that common people in US will get any reprieve from the problem.            

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