RSSPraise Mayors Against Illegal Guns for tackling a problem
Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board
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This editorial appears in the Sept. 16, 2009, Yakima Herald-Republic.
It's hard to fault Yakima's Mayor Dave Edler for trying to do whatever he can to quell gun violence that during this summer alone has left nearly two dozen people wounded, including several by random gunfire.
So he signed a pledge, as have more than 450 other mayors from 40 states across the nation, to find ways to keep illegal guns out of the hands of criminals, the mentally ill and juveniles.
Nothing wrong with that, right?
Not so fast. The National Rifle Association says the Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the nonpartisan group that Yakima's mayor joined, is nothing more than another thinly veiled attempt to limit gun ownership -- this time by trying to regulate private gun shows out of existence.
Yes, the mayor finds himself once again in the crosshairs of controversy. He's already embroiled in a public debate over what he considers as too much political partisanship in City Council races and had earlier been on the losing side of a ballot measure to pay for extra firefighters and emergency medical personnel.
Now he finds himself the sights of the NRA, and he doesn't think it's fair.
"It's an issue of law and order and life and death," Edler said Monday during a meeting with the news media.
The mayor's quote is lifted directly from a mission statement written by the organization's co-chairmen, Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York and Mayor Thomas Menino of Boston, who also said "the issue of illegal guns is not conservative or liberal."
To join the group, each mayor is asked to sign a statement of principles. These goals include punishing to the maximum any criminal who possesses or traffics in illegal guns, targeting irresponsible gun dealers who knowingly sell to straw purchasers and opposing any federal law that restricts cities from accessing gun trace data compiled by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The Mayors Against Illegal Guns has also focused on private gun shows where guns, ammunition and assorted collectibles are bought, sold and traded. Federal law requires people engaged in interstate firearms sales or dealing in firearms have a federal firearms license and to conduct background checks through a nationwide criminal background system. Private sellers, who make occasional sales within their state, are not required to conduct a background check or keep records on the transactions.
However, private sellers at gun shows must follow state laws. Seven states do require background checks. Washington is not one of them.
Edler agrees with his fellow mayors that private sellers at gun shows should have to make the same kind of background checks as licensed gun dealers are required to do. Again, it goes to the core values of the national mayors' group -- to keep illegal firearms off the streets.
Nine years ago the ATF analyzed more than 1,530 trafficking investigations over a nearly three-year period and found gun shows to be the second-leading source of illegally diverted guns in the nation. The No. 1 source was corrupt licensed firearms dealers.
While we stand fully in support of the Constitution's guarantee of the right of gun ownership, we're deeply weary of NRA members' almost blind opposition to principled efforts to reduce the number of weapons that get in the hands of those who are legally banned from owning them.
Rather than having his patriotism questioned, Edler and mayors like him should be praised for taking aim at a very real problem.
* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Bob Crider, Spencer Hatton and Karen Troianello.
"...guns out of the hands of criminals, the mentally ill and juveniles."
There are already Federal and State laws on the books for those exact situations. They aren't in perfect working order.
Not because there is fault with the laws, but the fact that we are dealing with people who have a total disregard for those, or any other laws. That is why we call them CRIMINALS.
What is the point of further legislation? Example: The City of Bellingham passed an ordinance that prohibits gun sales within 500 feet of schools. How absurd. Does anyone really think that this is a deterrent to someone - anyone - from buying a gun, wherever the dealer may be, and bringing it into the prohibited zone? Those who mean to do harm to kids or anyone else will do what they want to do anyway.
Instead, it is a liberal paranoia, or citizen-control issue, that they would pass such worthless legislation, for which I question its legality anyway.
I've noticed in the little over two years I've lived here in Yakima, that most people are more than happy to throw the mayor under a bus no matter what he does. I guarntee that if it would have been reported that he had the opportunity to join this organization and decided against it, there would be a ton of people screaming "He doesn't care about safety" and other such nonsense. I don't know why people are freaking out about this. I don't see it as suppression of my right to bear arms. I own several guns and have also bought guns at gun shows. I use them for hunting. I don't own any ILLEGAL guns, which is what the whole deal is about. The only people crying must be the ones who find it necessary to own an AK-47 to "protect themsleves" with.
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Command of our language is so good that the best we can do is refer to a fellow citizen as a twit. Congratulations for making me think highly of you. Please note that you could not even refer to the user name (homerjay) correctly.
Report ViolationWay to go Mayor Dave! "Doing the right thing" is not always popular. He is not one to wet his finger and stick it in the air or tell people what he thinks they want to hear. WE ARE PROUD OF YOU!!!! Some fellow council members may want to "watch and learn" (integrity and a willingness to serve OTHERS garnishes respect AND votes).
Report ViolationHomer - nothing illegal about an AK4-7, unless it is a FULLY AUTOMATIC, (machine gun) Model.
Please don't carry on the misinformation that SEMI-AUTOMATIC guns are assault weapons or illegal. They are NOT. Only MACHINE GUNS require a special permit and are considered "Assault Weapons". No one can legally own or possess a machine gun unless they have said permit, which is darn near impossible to get.
Besides, what criminal pays any attention to the laws? Only honest people do so, and they don't own illegal machine guns.
There are about 3 in my neighborhood - and they are used nearly every New Year by some dufus who wants to show off or something.
Mayors Against Illegal Guns, what a name that is misleading as what there intentions are.
If it was true it should read Mayors Against Guns in Illegal Hands. The weapons they are referring to are legal firearms and can be purchased, owned and possessed by those who have not lost their right to keep and bear arms.
Do you notice their statement "While we stand fully in support of the Constitution's guarantee of the right of gun ownership" but nothing about the right to keep and BEAR ARMS that shall not be infringed?
See the rest of my post http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2009/09/16/more-detail-about-that-gun-group-debate-among-yakima-council-members
In actuality, the simple requirement for any kind of permit by ANY agency is a violation of the 2nd Amendment. Next, the prohibition of anyone owning any weapon is another violation of the 2nd Amendment - including anything that meets the definition of "Arms", (ie even machine guns). Unfortunately, we have let the governments of various States, Counties, and cities piece away at this right with little innocuous bites that we have ignored and we have finally ended up in a landslide by many ultra-liberals to eliminate the 2nd Amendment altogether.
We need to take that control of our Constitution back and put it back in the hands of the people where it belongs - and OUT of the courts, who, Constitutionally, really have very little to say except to enforce the laws therein. According to the respective laws set forth in the Constitution, the courts ARE NOT ALLOWED to legislate or interpret anything other than the direct word of law in the Constitution, according to MY understanding. A classic example: Abortions. They must have the approval of a vote from the full Congress and ratification by the President first.
Finding ways to keep guns from those who aren't legally supposed to have them is a worthy and noble goal. Doing it in a way that limits any other citizens right to own a firearm in any way is wholly and totally unacceptable.
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