Extraordinary ‘solution’ to US gun crisis
Trump’s running mate sparked backlash after offering a controversial solution to reduce school shootings in America during the VP debate.
JD Vance lamented that “psycho” students storming schools and committing mass shootings was a “fact of life” just a few weeks ago.
The blunt remark rocked conservative America, with school shooting survivors and gun safety advocates accusing the Republican vice presidential candidate of burying his head in the sand.
At the VP debate with Kamala Harris’ running mate Tim Walz on Wednesday night, Vance offered a controversial solution to minimise school shootings.
“Unfortunately, I think we have to increase security at our schools. We have to make the doors lock better, we have to make the doors stronger, and we have to make the windows stronger,” he said.
Speaking to news.com.au in the US, the father of one school shooting victim endorsed this plan, saying campuses needed to be made safer to prevent gun violence.
Walz, who boasted about his record in Minnesota of passing enhanced background checks while selling firearms, was quick to seize on Vance’s suggestion.
“Do you want your schools hardened to look like a fort?” he asked the millions of viewers who tuned in to watch the likely final debate before the presidential election in November.
Social media was awash with posts from concerned viewers who took issue with Vance’s stance.
“JD Vance says we cannot simply take guns out of the hands of bad guys and instead we need to make school doors lock better,” wrote American author and attorney Jill Filipovic.
“Every other developed wealthy nations has indeed simply taken guns out of the hands of bad guys (and most guys) and they aren’t debating school door locks,” she added.
Gun violence prevention activist Shannon Watts was incensed.
“JD Vance says instead of passing stronger gun laws, we should just turn schools into fortresses guarded by armed police to protect them from gunmen,” she posted on X.
“He neglects to mention that over 80 per cent of school shooters are students, not strangers who walk in out of the shadows.
“The reason America has a 25 times higher gun homicide rate than any peer nation is easy access to guns.”
Surprising support for ‘stronger windows, doors’ idea
Fred Guttenberg, whose beloved 14-year-old daughter Jaime was shot dead in the hallway of her high school during the Parkland massacre, told news.com.au Vance’s suggestion wasn’t actually as far fetched as it may have seemed.
“I agree (with Vance),” he said.
He pointed to changes that had been made at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School where his daughter was slain alongside 13 other students and three teachers in 2018.
He said the school had since fitted out “self-locking, bulletproof doors” with “recessed glass” and “well-marked safety corners” in classrooms.
“That’s the kind of stuff we need to do,” he said.
He did take issue with Vance’s suggestion that schools needed more guns.
“You have about 115,000 schools in America. Up until 2018 there were fewer than 100 school shootings a year out of the 115,000 schools,” he said.
“Since 2018 we’re between 400 and 500 school shootings a year. Now that’s a big increase … (but) it’s not an argument for adding a whole lot of guns onto school campuses.
“It’s an argument for doing things to prevent guns from being able to get onto campuses, and making campuses better able to prevent gun violence.”
“Abhorrent lie’: Vance’s ‘cartel’ claim debunked
Mr Guttenberg was far less accepting of what Vance said next during the debate.
Many viewers agreed it crossed a line.
“Thanks to Kamala Harris’ open border, we’ve seen a massive influx in the number of illegal guns run by the Mexican drug cartel,” Vance continued.
“This epidemic of violence, the gross majority – close to 90 per cent in some of the statistics I’ve seen – of the gun violence in this country is committed with illegally obtained firearms.”
NPR’s fact-checking service was quick to shut down the claim, asserting there was “long-standing evidence showing the gun smuggling route is going in the opposite direction”.
The publication quoted data from the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that found 68 per cent of traced firearms in Mexico originated from and passed through the US.
Reuters also disputed Vance’s claim, citing research funded by the National Institute of Justice that found “most public mass shootings between 1966 and 2019 were carried out by legally obtained handguns.”
“The data (from 2001) showed 77 per cent of those who engaged in mass shootings purchased at least some of their guns legally... while 13 per cent of the mass shootings involved illegally purchased firearms,” the news agency wrote.
Mr Guttenberg was also scathing in his criticism.
“It was an abhorrent lie,” Mr Guttenberg, who has dedicated his life to gun control advocacy in the wake of his daughter’s death, wrote on X.
“The vast majority of gun violence in this country is in fact committed with legally obtained weapons,” he continued. “The facts and evidence on that are clear.”
Mr Guttenberg said the cartel claim was “bulls***.”
“In fact, we are a net exporter of guns to the cartels. Guns go from America to Mexico, not the other way around,” he said.
FBI agent’s solution to America’s gun crisis
One woman who knows America’s struggles dealing with gun violence better than most is Katherine Schweit.
The 64-year-old former Chicago prosecutor turned FBI agent spearheaded the bureau’s Active Shooter initiative immediately after the Sandy Hook tragedy in 2012.
Ms Schweit said a perfect storm of factors were to blame for America’s problems with guns.
“Today, we have twice as many guns as we did 20 years ago,” she told news.com.au.
“Political and social unrest, and outright lies to gun owners, has successfully stoked the fear that guns will be confiscated.
“This has prompted some gun owners to buy more and more guns, and stockpile ammunition, and prompted people who never owned a gun to believe they must have one to protect themselves.”
She said gun owners and non-gun owners had been tricked into seeing each other as “enemies of their causes” who were “too afraid to speak to each other to clear up the myths and look for common ground”.
Ms Schweit said the notion of enacting a national firearm ban in America – like Australia did in 1994 after the Port Arthur massacre – would never happen due to the Second Amendment.
“America’s history is tied to the practical and romantic notions of a nation built by fearless adventurers who moved from the eastern part of the country 2000 miles west,” she said.
“Our cultural icons in movies and television, and politicians funded by gun manufacturers and the National Rifle Association, perpetuated the myth that guns are the answer to every conflict.
“Unfortunately, many, many Americans believe that, stoked by exaggerated fears that a shooter is around every pillar.”
During a TedX talk earlier this year, she offered her advice for how America can turn the tide on gun violence.
“How are we going to change our culture? I’m not sure. There is no perfect path or single solution,” she said.
“If you don’t own a gun, maybe stop sanctimoniously vilifying gun owners while you watch your action films and play your video games.
“If you own a gun, maybe stop thinking everyone wants to take away your gun when no one has done that in 200-plus years, and just discuss and demonstrate gun safety.
Violent crime at 50-year low in US
Rates of violent crime in the United States fell last year, according to annual Federal Bureau Investigation (FBI) statistics released last month,
Contributing to a three percent reduction overall, the report showed a nationwide 11.6 percent decrease in murder, a 9.4 percent drop in rape and a 2.8 percent fall in aggravated assault.
Attacks on property fell by an estimated 2.4 percent, but in one notable exception, vehicle theft, which is included in the category, cases jumped 12.6 percent.
Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, who is running neck-and-neck with Republican candidate Trump in the November election, welcomed the fall in violent crime.
“(The) new data submitted to the FBI confirms that our dedicated efforts and collaborative partnerships with law enforcement are working,” she said, citing more support for local authorities, crime prevention and gun control efforts.
“Violent crime is at a near 50-year low. While we have made great progress, we are not stopping now,” she added.
- With AFP
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