Voters must act to regulate gun ownership

After yet another massacre of young children, this time in a Texas school, President Joe Biden told the nation, “We have to act.” But who is “we?” It’s us. The voters. We have the power to change Congress, to vote for candidates who reject the NRA’s influence and are willing to consider common-sense, actionable gun reforms. We can choose not to vote for those who claim to be pro-life for an unformed fetus, but not for the child already on the playground.

If we don’t act to replace lawmakers who claim that owning an assault rifle is a God-given right, but going to school without fear of being murdered is not, the blood of Uvalde, Parkland, Sandy Hook, Columbine, and dozens more is on our hands. We can’t point to school security and mental health as the problem.

Other countries like England, Australia, Norway and New Zealand with long histories of gun ownership also have citizens with mental health issues, but their combined gun-related deaths are only a fraction of what we see in the U.S. What’s different? In those countries, gun ownership is ”well-regulated” — you know, like it’s stated in our Second Amendment.

Through common-sense regulations, we can have our guns for hunting and protection without putting children, worshippers, shoppers and concertgoers in the crosshairs. “We have to act” by voting for candidates who support gun safety, not the gun lobby.

Sheri Albrecht

Walford