The Smoking Gun

Guns have been a big issue in our lives since the recent Sandy Hook school shooting. The whole issue has spiraled out of control bringing opinions and rage out of the wood work to get the issue resolved. This issue brings up a story about a young boy who took his life with a family pistol in Wyoming. Was it the gun...or was it something bigger than that? According to the Harvard Injury Control Research Center, the top three states for highest gun ownership are Wyoming, Montana and Alaska, which also happen to be the top three states for highest suicide rates. Most people seem to believe that guns are main cause of suicide...being the tool, not the reason. Again, the Harvard center claims that guns will kill a suicidal person 85% of the time while pills will only be successful 2% of the time. Arguments are being made about the ordeal. One half saying that the guns are to blame and owners and sellers alike need to find ways to deal with distraught buyers to make sure they won't use the weapon on themselves while others believe that the guns aren't to blame...the person is only to blame. Sharon Wells, a grandmother of another boy who took his life with a gun is convinced that if they can't get a hold of a gun, they'll find a way to do it and I don't believe she's far off by saying this. If a person truly believes there's no more hope for them, they will find a way to kill themselves...it's only a matter of time. Craig Reichert is the father to Kameron, the boy who took his own life, and blames himself for his actions and not locking up the family guns his family keeps in the house. He says that even if the family had had a gun safe, “There would have been two people in the house with the combination, him and me." Even after all the sorrow and trauma of losing a son, Craig still claims that, "I will always believe in guns." So maybe everything comes down to this: Gun Control or Behavioral Control? What will it take and when will it end...if ever.