Seventy-Six Days

It has been seventy-six days since the mass shootings in Newtown, Sandy Hook Elementary School.  While that shooting has managed to capture the attention of the nation, having an effect on the Chicago, Illinois,  Democratic primary election, as well as probably responsible for legislative hearings on gun legislation in the U.S. Congress, the very sad reality is that in those seventy-six days since Newtown, approximately two thousand three hundred twenty four other Americans lost their lives to gun violence.  In seventy-six days, more Americans were killed in America, by other American citizens and residents than in the eleven years of the Afghanistan war.  American taxpayers have spent an estimated trillion dollars to protect the country from harm from al Qaeda, the Taliban, and other middle-eastern terrorists who have not come close to inflicting the damage on our country that guns in the hands of Americans have caused.  The Second Amendment states, "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."  This Constitutional Amendment does not, however, say anyone and everyone may keep and bear arms.  The Second Amendment specifically limits this right to a well regulated militia.  It does not even grant the right to bear arms to any militia, but only to a well regulated militia.  Members of Congress, be they Republican or Democrats have taken an oath to uphold the Constitution.  By not well regulating they fail to keep that oath.  While the NRA may claim guns do not kill people, the fact is that bullets fired from guns have managed to kill 2324 people in the past 76 days.  The NRA says people kill people but they did not throw those bullets at the 2324 dead people, they shot those bullets from guns.   The NRA says the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is with a good guy with a gun.  Many of the 2324 who died in the last 76 days probably wondered where were the 2324 good guys when they were needed?  The time for action to prevent more gun violence is now not another seventy-six days from now nor after a further loss of two thousand three hundred twenty four more lives, but NOW!.