Guns Don't Kill People...

Trey Smith

I have heard this sad refrain my whole life and, frankly, I submit it is not true! Guns DO kill people.

If I point a salami at you and squeeze it, about all that will happen is that I'll end up with a bunch of chewed up meat on my hands. If I point a rope at you and squeeze it, about the worst thing that might happen is that I end up with a rope burn. But if I point a loaded gun at you and squeeze the trigger -- provided I'm a halfway decent shot -- you will wind up injured or dead.

While I will be the legal/moral cause of your injuries or death, I will not be the biological cause. No, the actual cause of your injury or death will be the gun and the bullet[s] fired. The gun provides the force and the bullet does the rest.

Yes, a gun does take a person to operate it -- hence the rejoinder to today's title...People kill people -- but it is the gun and its projectiles that kill. Other weapons and everyday objects can be utilized by people to kill too, but in most cases, these things don't kill as many as efficiently and as quickly.

And then, for me, there is one other key factor. Many other objects that we humans utilize to injure and kill have constructive uses. While a knife can be used to stab someone, it can also be used to peel potatoes. While a rope or necktie can be used to strangle someone, both can be utilized for a variety of nonlethal purposes.

The same cannot be said for guns!! You can't peel a potato with a gun and you can't paint your garage with one either. The sole purpose of a gun is to damage or destroy something, be it a target, a tin can, an animal or another human being.

I am far to the left of your average bleeding heart liberal. While many liberals cry for tougher gun control laws, I personally favor something far more controversial. If I had my druthers, guns would be outlawed for personal use. Since that's not gonna happen, I then side with those who call for tighter gun control laws.