Fathers speak on gun safety, control
Two fathers of victims of the 2014 Isla Vista shootings spoke out recently in favor of more expansive gun control measures in yet another attempt to increase gun regulation in the hope of achieving gun safety. Cheryl Sun for the Daily Nexus reports:
Fathers of two victims of the events of May 23 last year spoke at an event titled “Turning Tragedy into Activism: Why We Got Involved in the Gun Safety Movement – A Conversation with Richard Martinez and Bob Weiss” at Isla Vista Theater on Monday afternoon to advocate for gun control legislation across the United States.
…Martinez said, as a member of pro-gun control organization Everytown for Gun Safety, he does not wish to ban guns, but rather to reduce gun-related violence and crime.
“I grew up with guns … Everytown and me personally, we’re not anti-guns, we’re anti-gun violence,” Martinez said. “I’m not out to ban guns from people who are responsible citizens. I want to make sure as much as possible that dangerous people don’t have guns.” Martinez said he wants to ensure criminal background checks are carried out, and improve existing background checks to prevent dangerous individuals from acquiring guns….Martinez said the second amendment and other rights under the Constitution are not absolute, and there are certain exceptions to the right of possessing weapons.
…Weiss said he disagrees with gun lobbyists, and the second amendment is not necessarily applicable in modern-day as it was written at a time when newly independent American civilians required a way to defend themselves against the English.
“The gun lobbyist’s arguments are all bullshit,” Weiss said. “The second amendment — it was written to protect us from the British who were apt to invade our shores anytime because we didn’t have a proper army to take them on. It didn’t have anything to do with protecting yourself from robbers.”
Read the rest of this story at the Daily Nexus.
