Once again, America’s enthrallment with guns and a self-serving Second Amendment are prominent in the news cycle. It’s what happens when mass shootings, still unconscionably common, remain a perfect-storm outgrowth of gun culture, gun lobbyists and gun-enamored politicians who equate weaponry with bumper-stickered patriotism. Common sense for the common good isn’t a good enough rationale. Who would have thought the Founding Fathers, in the revolutionary era of muskets and militias, could have presciently foreseen automatic weapons and high-capacity magazines?
But the enablers transcend the NRA and spineless political officials. They also include the judiciary. A federal judge recently overturned California’s 32-year ban on assault weapons, saying it was unconstitutional. That’s not all U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez said. “Like the Swiss Army Knife, the popular AR-15 rifle is a perfect combination of home defense weapon and homeland defense equipment.” That’s how he cut to the chase. Seriously.
Maybe this is what we should expect in a country with more guns than people. The total number in circulation is now estimated as high as 400 million. But, no, bazookas are not available for the average American. Not yet.