Watching the Fallout from Virginia Tech

Even though it will’hopefully’be old news by the time you read this, as we go to press in late April, I can’t help but make a few observations on the recent tragedy on the Virginia Tech campus. As expected, the anti-gun lobby has seized on the situation to advance their agenda, which, as we all know, is to restrict the constitutional rights of ALL citizens in a misguided effort to protect us from the actions of the few.

Perhaps our friends at the National Shooting Sports Foundation said it best in a recently released statement: "All of us in the firearms industry were stunned and appalled by the horrific events at Virginia Tech University, perhaps even more so than most Americans since firearms have special meaning for us and are at the core of our hunting, shooting, and outdoor traditions.

The terrible actions of Cho Seung-Hui, a deeply troubled individual, should not be associated in any way with tens of millions of Americans who responsibly use firearms nor the lawful commerce in firearms. Although no one was surprised that groups like the Brady Campaign and newspapers like The New York Times would shamelessly use the tragedy to advance their anti-gun campaigns, many Americans have decried this opportunism, and rightfully so.

None was more vehement in his disdain for such insensitivity than Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, who said: "People who want to take this…event and make it…their political hobbyhorse to ride, I’ve got nothing but loathing for them. This is not…something for a campaign or for a fund-raising mailing. The Governor’s sentiments were reaffirmed by sensible writing about the incident in a number of publications, including the mainstream media.

For example, an editorial in The Wall Street Journal decried the "torrent of pop sociology and national psychoanalysis," saying, "There are evil and psychotic people in this world willing to do great harm to others if they aren’t stopped. The dilemma in a free society is how to stop them." The Journal" s followup article puts into perspective how much the argument for gun control has shifted in America over the last 15 or so years, coinciding, not surprisingly, with the steep decline in violent-crime rates.

On the campaign trail, the candidates who have taken anti-gun stances in the past’both Democratic and Republican (Giuliani) seemed to duck the issue. I was very pleased, however, when Senator and presidential candidate John Mc Cain weighed in early with a "no gun-control" statement. In the end, we can only remain unsettled by the events in Blacksburg, Virginia, and at the same time remain watchful of those who try to achieve political and legislative gain from such a sad affair. Editor Keith Lawrence Technical