

Michael A Goodfellow, Sebastian


Seventy-one people were shot at a movie screening in Colorado. Twelve died. As if on cue, and mirroring the reaction to the Gabrielle Giffords shooting, some are again blaming the Republicans, the Tea Party, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, et al.

Just as the Giffords tragedy was the responsibility of one gunman, this was the responsibility of just one person, someone who was reported to have an AR-15 with a 100-round magazine, a shotgun, and two handguns. Many in the pro-gun crowd ask why nobody was carrying a gun that could have ended the situation. From what I've read, people in the theater thought the gunman was part of the "show" and didn't take it seriously until it was too late. Some said they'd have taken the gunman out.

It's impossible to say what someone would do in that situation until actually in that situation. The anti-gun crowd asks why guns are in people's hands in the first place.

From where I sit, the question should be why 100-round magazines are available at all. Don't get me wrong, I believe in the Second Amendment and the right to keep and bear arms, but a 100-round magazine?

One of those killed survived a Toronto mall shooting in June. Jessica Ghawi, a Fox Sports intern who used the on-air name Jessica Redfield, was killed by multiple gunshots. There are those who will try to give excuses for the accused gunman's actions but let's be clear, there is nothing that would even begin to explain why this was done.

Outlawing gun ownership will not serve to solve this problem nor will more guns. The entire nation should mourn those who died simply because they went to a movie.