To the editor:

A contributor to the Times last week inferred that guns were safe because a gun show took place and no one was shot. By this logic the United States should be the safest country in the world because we possess over 300 million guns. If only that were true.

We have enshrined the right to bear arms in the second amendment, but it is not an unlimited right. It was explicitly expressed (“…well regulated militia”) that this right would be restricted through regulation. It is logical to balance the right to own weapons with measures aimed to protect our citizenry. The Brady Bill (background checks and a five-day waiting period) and the 1994 ban on certain extended magazines and certain semi-automatic weapons were common sense measures that at one time were not seen as a strictly partisan issue. For example, when voted on in the House the Brady Bill received over 184 democratic votes and 54 yes votes from republican House members. The Federal Assault Weapons Ban expired in 2004 green-lighting the purchase of AR-15 type weapons and at the same time we have witnessed mass shootings tick up at an exponential rate frequently using the AR-15.

The issue of gun control is sometimes framed by suggesting that gun deaths and injuries are inevitable, so we shouldn’t do anything to prevent them. We know, however, that if we methodically pass common sense legislation and stick to it, over time we will reduce gun deaths and injuries. Requiring universal background checks, waiting periods, registration, licensing and raising the age limit are a few measures that are reasonable.

The U.S. statistics for gun deaths and injuries (combined at over 100,000 per year) is a phenomena unseen anywhere else in the world. It is a national health crisis. I remember recoiling a bit when a pediatrician asked me about weapons in my home. The American Medical Association or “AMA” see guns as an obvious health crisis and are addressing guns with their patients. I now see the logic and common sense for doctors to address this health issue.

As a retired judge advocate of over 26 years of military service, I was often struck by how rigid the military was when it came to private gun access on military bases. The reasons were obvious to the military. What seems obvious to me now is that common sense gun limitations are necessary. No prospective 18 year-old shooter should be permitted to purchase a military style weapon without a background check and walk away with an AR-15 on the same day they want to purchase said weapon. We can do plenty to address this rolling national tragedy.

Robert J. Stewart

Barrington

Mr. Stewart is a retired judge advocate who teaches law and history in a public high school.