Admit it: America has a gun problem

Guns don’t kill people, people kill people. Outlaw guns and only outlaws will have guns. Banning guns won’t work. Why not just ban mass shootings? It will be just about as effective.

The rhetoric after each mass shooting is predictable.

But as any law enforcement person will tell you, laws are tools the authorities use to fight crime. Changing laws to meet changing needs is the job of responsible leaders.

And good leadership is defined as identifying a problem and doing something about it.

Simply banning assault rifles won’t end gun violence. But defending any and all gun ownership is irresponsible. Many of us own guns. Most of us won’t start a massacre.

But we know there’s a problem. American’s love of guns has been causing problems forever.

Remember the good old days when people had guns all the time and nothing ever happened? Those days didn’t exist. Just ask the family of Loretta Hoskins. She died from gun violence at the hands of her husband, who was trying to cover up his infidelities … in 1967.

There are readers of the Pine Knot News who would like to ban all guns. There are readers who will resist any gun control whatsoever.

But after a short and cautious discussion among us, it will be easy for us all to agree: gun violence and mass shootings are a problem that needs to be addressed.

Admitting we have a problem is the first step. We have a problem.

We hope the next steps are fruitful.