Commentary on colleague’s Blog #8

     On May 1, 2015, Pedro Ragoytia wrote a blog titled “The Wild Wild West.” In this blog he talks about responsibilities that come along with fire arms (pistols, rifles). Ragoytia starts off with a strong defense towards fire arms in his first paragraph; “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” Which I would have to agree, the gun itself is not capable to go off and harming someone, it is but the human behind the gun who is doing all the work.

     He then refers to a CNN article titled “Capitol cops left guns in bathroom stalls.” Instantly, I was shocked to hear that police officers are just leaving fire arms unattended. This leads me to question the level of oversight our civil force has, as these people are responsible for the prevention and detection of crime. In this CNN article it then talks about young children who have found loaded pistols on government property. Are we not responsible for teaching young children about the potential dangers of fire arms? Children in our society are learning fast, but we are responsible for setting a good example, and carelessness when it comes to firearms is unacceptable.

     I do agree with Ragoytia when he later states, “People should be registered to hold any concealed gun.” Times like these I would suggest looking at gun laws in the state of Texas for example. Gun laws in Texas go about specific rules/procedures to ensure as much safety as possible. Texas gun laws allow; carrying license, open carry for long guns etc. It also contains safety laws such as, designated range areas to practice safe weapons handling and the “Peaceable Journey law,” which states that a person may carry a loaded handgun without a permit while heading directly to a motor which they own/control. The state of Texas also has something called a Concealed Handgun License (CHL). CHL requires people to go through many different procedures before issuing a license to the potential holder. One must go through various gun safety courses to learn all about the “Do’s and Don’ts” about fire arms, learn and understand the legal laws that include fire arms, training requirements that include an instructor, and of course go through a criminal history background check. If states go through these procedures it can possibly increase responsibility and knowledge for a firearm owner. This is most definitely a serious topic and must be taught wisely and carefully to ensure safety for everyone.