Some people celebrate Valentine’s Day by going out to dinner; some celebrate it by carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic weapon to a high school in Parkland.
Nikolas Cruz bought this weapon legally at Sunrise Tactical Supply in Coral Springs, whose owners closed its doors for good and stated they now support more gun control.
According to the World Health Organization, the U.S. has 25 times more gun homicides than other high-income countries. Some countries ban automatic weapons and do not have mass shootings: Norway, United Kingdom, Scotland, Australia and Japan to name a few.
A recent Ledger editorial stated “No one can identify exactly what new law would have prevented ” this. ["Here we go again," Feb. 28]
Let me articulate:
1. Federal law should require someone to be at least 21 to buy any firearm from a licensed dealer or from an unlicensed individual just as it is for handguns and purchasing alcohol.
2. Federal law should ban semi-automatic or automatic guns to any civilian. From 1994 to 2004, there was a federal prohibition on assault weapons and the number of mass shooting victims was down from the previous decade. After Congress let the ban lapse 2004 to 2012, the number of victims doubled.
3. Federal law should require a license to purchase a gun that requires the applicant to pass a battery of written, mental and drug tests.
“March for Our Lives” will be led by Parkland massacre student survivors in Washington on March 24 to decrease availability of automatic weapons to civilians. George Clooney, Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg each donated $500,000 after Florida legislators voted down discussing a ban on assault weapons.
In Florida it will be at Lake Eola Park, 512 E. Washington St., Orlando from noon to 3 p.m. Isaiah 11:6 “A little child will lead them.”
Dorothy Lemmey, Haines City