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Comment By John Darling For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By John Darling For the Tidings Posted Aug. 27, 2015 at 8:22 PM By John Darling For the Tidings Posted Aug. 27, 2015 at 8:22 PM » RELATED CONTENT • Should the U.S. normalize relations with Cuba? • How can we secure 'Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness'?... • Should tree be removed to make way for affordable housing? • What does Uncle Foods weekly dinner mean to you? • What would attract you to Mt. Ashland during the summer? » Social News Ending gun rampages — the kind where an angry and mentally unbalanced person takes a gun to town and starts using it — has become one of those contentious problems that won’t get better and won’t go away. It seems to happen every week, nearly every day in less dramatized outbursts which don’t make the national news. We all remember the big ones — Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech, Columbine, the Aurora movie house, the Wisconsin mosque, the Tucson shooting that killed six and wounded Congresswoman "Gabby" Giffords. Do you even remember one at the high school in Springfield, Ore., or the mall in Clackamas County? Probably not. Only two people got taken out in each of those. It's been pointed out before, and repeated recently by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, that more Americans have been killed by guns since 1968 (the year Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. were assassinated) than in all U.S. wars (about 1.5 million Americans have died of gunfire in those years, including suicides, versus the 1.4 million who've died in or as a result of combat since the nation's founding in 1776). Like abortion and gay rights, gun control has become politicized, a polarized pawn in the cultural wars with the right defending their Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms based on the need for a well-regulated militia (and to oppose eventual tyranny) — and the left crying out for the broader need of the community to be safe from the easily abused handiness of a gun in the hands of a nut or just a very upset person. Is the conundrum just an acting out of the world scene where nations feel that if they disarm, they will be destroyed — and will at least have nothing to bargain with? Many thought there would be big changes after Sandy Hook, when a couple dozen small children and teachers at a Conneticut elementary school were shot to death just after President Barack Obama won a second term. Despite all the tears and rhetoric, the gun interests stood firm, blocking efforts that included a proposed ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines. In the wake of the Monday shooting in Virginia of a young journalist, newly engaged, on live TV, and her cameraman, we asked Ashlanders, “Given this deadlocked political situation, with new gun rampages every week, what should be done?” Christine Crawley — Control guns! Period! Ban them. Every gun has to be reined in and identified. Cut back and control them. It’s what Britain did. No one has a gun there, not even police. We need to get rid of the Republican-led majority that’s keeping Obama’s hands tied. Amber Tony — (declined photo) I try not to believe we should ban guns. It’s hard to say guns are causing the problem. I don’t know. It seems suspicious to me. It could be a secret government thing, triggering people to do these acts. I don’t know how to make it safer. Lisa Denny — (declined photo) We need to get rid of video games. They make young guys impersonal. They can’t engage. I work with kids. Once they go to school, they have a hard time relating. The games are not natural. It’s not the guns’ fault. If you get a license to drive a car you should need a license to drive a gun. I don’t know if Congress can do anything. Steve Bowman — That’s a good question. If I were emperor, I would restrict access to guns, but that’s not politically feasible. You have to have a background check and appropriate waiting period. Safety could be taught in the classroom. Hopefully the violence would be reduced. What just happened with the news anchor on TV was outrageous. My first thought was it was some kind of hatred associated with politics, but it was love. Everyone has fears, anger. I was shocked at my knee-jerk reaction. Linda Jo Strouse — This isn’t going to sound reasonable, but it seems above being changed until the power of the NRA is dramatically reduced. I don’t see that change happening. They have the power to keep something as simple as background checks from happening. Their ability to influence the government is simply out of control. Charlotte McKernan — Restrict guns more. Make it harder to get guns. Background checks. A three-day wait. Who can’t wait three days? But do gun dealers care if someone passes a background check? John Darling is an Ashland freelance writer. Reach him at [email protected]. By John Darling For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By John Darling For the Tidings Posted Aug. 27, 2015 at 8:22 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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