Looking for ways to explain America’s epidemic of mass shootings -- including Friday’s murder of 27 people, including 20 children, at a Connecticut elementary school – many pundits are blaming the country’s “culture of violence” and its preference for “protecting guns over children.” But the majority of Americans favor strict gun control laws. No, let's not burden Americans with collective guilt. The problem is more narrow -- and more fixable -- than that.
Looking for ways to explain America’s epidemic of mass shootings -- including Friday’s murder of 27 people, including 20 children, at a Connecticut elementary school – many pundits are blaming the country’s “culture of violence” and its preference for “protecting guns over children.” But the majority of Americans favor strict gun control laws. No, let's not burden Americans with collective guilt. The problem is more narrow -- and more fixable -- than that.
The long list of killings is due in large measure to the political influence of the National Rifle Association and, in particular, Wayne LaPierre, who for the past 21 years has been the NRA's executive Vice President and chief political strategist.
The blood of the 26 victims of the Connecticut shooting, including 20 young children, is on LaPierre's hands. Of course, LaPierre didn't pull the trigger, but he's the NRA's hit man when it comes to intimidating elected officials to oppose any kind of gun control and the nation's most vocal advocate of gun owner rights.
Although LaPierre likes to portray the NRA as representing grassroots gun owners, the bulk of its money comes from gun manufacturers. LaPierre is a corporate lobbyist. He doesn’t speak for most gun owners, a majority of whom favor stricter gun laws, according to surveys.
The United States ranks first in the world -- by a wide margin -- in gun-related civilian deaths and injuries. We have the most guns and the weakest gun laws.
We've almost become used to a regular diet of gun-toting rampages. The most visible of them -- like Columbine, the Virginia Tech killings, the murders in the Aurora, Colorado movie theater, and the Arizona shooting that nearly claimed the life of former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and left six others dead -- stick in our minds, but there are many others.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2011, there were 15,953 murders in U.S.; 11,101 (30 a day) were caused by firearms. Suicides and unintentional shootings accounted for another 20,000 deaths.
Adam Lanza -- the 20-year old man who walked into the Newtown, Connecticut school with two firearms (a Glock and a Sig Saurer) and had another gun (a 223 Bushmaster) in his car - is no doubt deranged. If we make it easy for crazy people to obtain guns, they are more likely to translate their psychological problems into dangerous and deadly anti-social behavior.
Most gun-related deaths are committed by people who purchase their weapons legally. Others purchase or steal them illegally, but their ability to get access to guns is due to our lax laws on gun ownership.
LaPierre's job is to make it easier for people to buy and use guns. And so far he's been very successful. Since the 1994 assault-weapon ban expired in 2004, Congress hasn't enacted any major gun regulations.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, since 1990, the gun lobby, led by the NRA, has contributed $29.2 million to candidates for Congress and president, 87% of it to Republicans. In the most recent election cycle, gun rights groups donated $3.1 million to political candidates and spent another $5.5 million in lobbying.
In contrast, since 1990 gun control groups have donated only $1.9 million to politicians, 94% to Democrats. In the most recent election cycle, these groups contributed only $4,000 to candidates and spent only $420,00 on lobbying.
Under LaPierre’s leadership, the NRA has aligned itself with the most reactionary political forces in the country, including the Tea Party.
In a speech earlier this year to the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, LaPierre said that President Obama was part of a "conspiracy to ensure re-election by lulling gun owners to sleep."
LaPierre added: "All that first term, lip service to gun owners is just part of a massive Obama conspiracy to deceive voters and hide his true intentions to destroy the Second Amendment during his second term." He also warned that everything that "gun owners across America have fought to achieve over the past three decades could be lost" if Obama won a second term.
Well, Obama did win a second term. On Friday, Obama called for "meaningful action" to curb gun violence. "Meaningful action" does not mean educating young people about bullying and violence. It does not mean instructing gun owners to be more responsible. It means pushing for strong gun control laws.
If Obama does take this kind of leadership, he will have the support of an overwhelming proportion of Americans who support stricter guns laws. About 80% of Americans support limiting the sales of military-style assault weapons, background checks on private sales of guns, and requiring a police permit before the purchase of a gun.
Until we tame the NRA’s power, we can expect more killings like the one in Connectuct as well as the deadly daily diet of murders throughout America committed by angry and in some cases crazy gun-toting people whose "freedom" to own weapons of mass destruction LaPierre and the NRA defends.
Peter Dreier is professor of politics at Occidental College. His new book, The 100 Greatest Americans of the 20th Century: A Social Justice Hall of Fame, was published by Nation Books in July.