In October, I received a reply to a petition or newsletter that I signed online to be sent to Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth. I’ll just post a few paragraphs from her reply.
Over the past two decades, after the expiration of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, the number of mass shootings deaths tripled. I will never accept a status quo that forces our country to watch helplessly as individuals, on a recurring and shockingly routine basis, purchase semi-automatic rifles and ammunition designed to inflict maximum damage on internal organs. They then use these weapons of war to carry out mass murder in a matter of minutes at grocery stores, live event venues and worst of all, elementary schools. Yet, if we do nothing, innocent lives will undoubtedly be lost.
After decades of inaction, I am proud to have joined both Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Senate in finally breaking the log jam and passing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act – a bipartisan gun safety package that will enhance background checks, help states implement red flag laws, work to close the boyfriend loophole and, ultimately, save lives – by a vote of 65 to 33 on June 23, 2022. The U.S. House of Representatives passed this legislation by a vote of 234 to 193 on June 24, 2022, and President Joe Biden signed this bipartisan bill into law on June 25, 2022.
“I spent a career carrying, typically, either an M16 and then later, an M4 Carbine, and an M4 Carbine fires a .223 caliber round, which is 5.56 millimeter, at about 3,000 feet per second. When it hits a human body, the effects are devastating. It’s designed to do that. And that’s what our soldiers ought to carry. I personally don’t think there’s any need for that kind of weaponry on the streets, and particularly, around the schools in America. I believe that we’ve got to take a serious look – I understand everybody’s desire to have whatever they want – but we’ve got to protect our children, we’ve got to protect our police, we’ve got to protect our population. And I think we’ve got to take a very mature look at that.”
It was a long email response and basically, she was showing her support for gun restrictions and red flag laws,etc.
Here’s my response to her email that I sent on October 10th:
Senator Duckworth,
First of all, there is no such thing as gun violence as guns do not commit violence. It is individuals and groups of individuals who commit crimes and shoot others. Hand guns are involved in more shootings than AR-15s in many crimes including mass shootings. The gang violence in Chicago is a great example of that. Just so we are clear, AR-15 does not stand for Assault Rifle. The AR designation stands for Armalite Rifle where that original design was created by Eugene Stoner. Red Flag laws do not work and in many cases have caused someone who has committed no crime to be punished and had their Constitutional Rights taken away under the 2nd Amendment without due process of law. Also, I’ve read about different cases where police have kicked in the door of a person’s residence without a warrant and in some of these cases, the homeowner has been killed. Where is the justice in that? Shouldn’t law enforcement as well as anyone else who in any government agency including the ATF and FBI be held accountable. Once someone is killed in that manner, shouldn’t these so-called law enforcement officers be charged and prosecuted as well. Also, if they are using AR style weapons, should that be considered an attack on the innocent who committed no crime and was caused by someone who made a false statement so the Red Flag law would be used. Where is the justice in that?
If the average citizen is not allowed to have such weapons, then police and others in government should not be able to own them either. Since you mentioned Registration as keeping a Registry of gun ownership is already something that is not allowed and should not be allowed. There are already enough laws on the books and no need for any new ones. Just enforce the ones we have. New laws have done nothing to prevent what you call gun violence or gang violence. None of the laws have kept any guns out of the hands of criminals.
We have a Constitution for a reason that protects the rights of everyone in this Country. While we are on the subject, you work for the people who elected you and not for your own self interests to get brownie points from others. There have been some very tragic situations, but not easy answers. New laws and Red Flag laws do not work. They just make it appear that you are doing something when in fact there is no progress on taking guns out of criminal hands. Oh, and by the way, a .223 or 5.56 millimeter is not much bigger than a .22 caliber. Just because a rifle looks military style does not mean it is more dangerous. It gets old when politicians and news media call AR-15s assault rifles which they are not. It also gets old when violence and shootings are caused by individuals and then refer to it as gun violence.
