Danny, I'm afraid that on the federal level nothing will change regarding sensible gun control legislation. A basic mis-reading of the Constitution's Second Amendment, which was written at a time when the US had a very small standing army and relied on state militias for national defense, has come to mean that at least according to our Supreme Court, the right of a citizen to own a firearm ("the right to keep and bear arms" ) is inviolate. Some states, like mine (New York) and cities like mine (New York City) have been able to enact laws which have passed constitutional muster (or haven't been challenged) that successfully control gun sales without impinging on "Second Amendment rights." However, these laws are circumvented by people who purchase guns in states with far looser laws and bring them into New York.

The mis-read of the Second Amendment, in my view, goes back to the militias. The first part of the amendment stipulates that a well-ordered militia, being necessary for the defense of the nation... and then goes on to state the right to keep and bear arms. Since World War II, the US has maintained a large standing army and navy and established an air force (1946). Militias became the National Guard, which are maintained by the states but with significant federal funding. We have gone away from the militia model. Yet, the Second Amendment never changed to deal with this reality. Neither has the interpretation that the right of the individual to keep and bear arms is absolute. An added complication is the powerful lobby that the National Rifle Association has been and continues to be in Congress. What was once an organization that advocated responsible gun ownership has turned into a radical organization that claims the cure for gun violence is more guns. Believe me, even though I live in New York City, which is one of the safest big cities in the world, I felt much safer living in Streatham where I knew my neighbors couldn't keep hand guns. Here I don't know that.

Outside of Fenway Park there is a billboard which records the number of children that have been killed by gun violence since the tragedy at Sandy Hook School, Newtown, CT. It is paid for by John W Henry and Tom Werner, the owners of the Boston Red Sox and, through Fenway Sports Management, Liverpool FC. The second anniversary of that awful event was this past December. In the nearly two and a half years since then, tens of thousands have been recorded by that sign. Some states followed the lead of New York and passed stricter gun sales and ownership laws. However, the NRA has stymied all efforts to translate those sensible laws, which do nothing to take guns away from law abiding people, into the federal code. In the days to come, many will eulogize the nine dead in Charleston, SC. President Obama will once again be called upon to comfort the bereaved and try to speak sense to the American people. The Confederate battle flag may be coming down from government property but the two original sins of this nation, racism and gun violence, continue unabated.

A note on written constitutions. Many have said that the UK should adopt one. As an American, I would advise caution. We have had a written constitution since 1788. It has been interpreted and reinterpreted countless times since. Our Supreme Court, its final arbiter, has ruled that fugitive slaves must be returned to their owners even if they now lived in free states, that separate but equal accomodations by race were legal and that corporations could spend whatever they want in political campaigns. It has also ruled that all children had a right to education and separate but equal was a fallacy, that all citizens had an unfettered right to vote and is about to rule again that under our laws, denying two people the right to marry is an unconstitutional denial of equal protection under the law. Interpreting the written word is not an exact science.

Finally, our "melting pot" has not exactly been a smooth operation. We have people in our media (Bill O'Reilly for example) who claim that this country doesn't have a racism problem. This is the same man who claimed that President Obama's re-election in 2012 was an attack on the values of White America. I leave it to the reader to draw whatever conclusions they choose from this.

Edited by kenbarr (25 Jun 2015 6.13pm)

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Great post kenbarr.

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