The Press Enterprise - EDITORIAL: Shooting blanks about gun violence lyrics

Exploiting tragedy for political gain is nothing new, but the efforts to convert mourning over incidents like the shooting at the Inland Regional Center into support for vaguely defined gun control proposals are particularly ill-conceived. Among the guests at the U.S. Capitol for tonight's televised State of the Union address by President Barack Obama are individuals affected by the tragedy, including loved ones of those k**ed and a 911 dispatcher who handled many of the calls over the shooting. The cynical use as political props of people who deserve every bit of empathy and respect is an unfortunate reflection of the sorry state of public policy discourse in this country, especially over gun control. Fundamentally, those who advocate gun control policies have failed to provide arguments beyond appeals to emotion and the desire to “do something,” regardless of the desirability or effectiveness of such action. On Friday, Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-San Bernardino, exemplified this by lamenting that Congress just holds moments of silence after ma** shootings. “We owe it our communities from San Bernardino to Newtown to do something,” he said. “While one single law could not have prevented the horrific events in San Bernardino, that doesn't justify a refusal to take action or to make our communities safer.” Mr. Aguilar's lack of specificity in talking about gun control isn't surprising. The political discourse over gun violence overemphasizes ma** shootings and so-called “a**ault rifles,” a focus which always overlooks the fact that the gun homicide rate has fallen for over two decades and fails to identify specific lapses in policy which can be reasonably corrected. This same problem has afflicted Rep. Mark Takano, D-Riverside. Mr. Takano argued that we “cannot afford to do nothing” on guns. “I call on my colleagues to accept our responsibility for protecting American lives and pa** legislation to address the crisis of gun violence in America,” he said. Setting aside that there isn't a crisis, Mr. Takano has unfortunately engaged in rhetoric that almost entirely boils down to vague claims about safety without offering evidence that any particular policy is necessary or capable of curbing gun violence. Mr. Takano, for his part, also invited the wife and daughter of a San Bernardino shooting victim to the State of the Union. If policymakers have constitutionally sound, evidence-based solutions in mind to tackle gun violence, we're all ears. While we're sure the impulse to “do something” comes from a well-meaning place, all we've seen is political gamesmanship and hollow talking points.