European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 14, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 columns the stars and stripes Friday october 14,1988 James j. Kilpatr1ck handgun waiting period won t Stop criminals for the past two months Ever since columnist Carl Rowan was arrested. I have been thinking Long and hard about gun control Laws. My melancholy. Thought is that Laws attempting to control the Sale and Possession of handguns arc largely exercises in futility. Maybe w my legislative Genius will come up with a Good answer to a serious problem  such Genius is yet insight. As a Good part of the world is aware Carl was a re Slid and tried Tor violation of the District of Colum Bia s gun control Law. His trial ended in a Hung jury. Last week the District abandoned further prosecution. My Friend is now free of a charge thai might have sent him 0 prison for a year hut he has suffered an ordeal thai was wholly unwarranted. The circumstances Are Well known. Rowan was awakened at 2 o clock in the morning by what he believed was the sound of an intruder s tampering with a window. He armed himself with a pistol and called the police. He testified that before the police could come to his assistance he confronted a half naked Young Man who lunged toward him. He fired once nicking the ires passer on his hand. La turned out that the intruder and several companions had climbed Over a High Wall to go Skinny dipping in Carl s swimming Pool. The intruders got off with a few hours of Community service. Carl went on trial. The districts Law is ferocious. It absolutely prohibits a citizen from owning an unregistered gun and it makes it impossible for the citizen to Register it weapon. We May judge the effectiveness of the Law by noting that the District of Columbia is racking up homicides at the Rale of one a Day and virtually All of these involve concealable handguns. The Law does t catch criminals. It catches Carl Rowan. The Law is a farce an Absurdity a manifesta Tion of legislative imbecility. And it is typical of most such Well intended statutes now on the books through out the nation. The Washington Post commenting on the incident began an editorial in this fashion it s obvious thai columnist Carl Rowan should not have had an unregistered gun in the  obvious to whom in certainly is not obvious to millions of americans who believe they have a Ngol to defend their Homes and their loved ones from criminal assault. While Carl s trial was pending the House of representatives look up what became known As the Brady amendment to the omnibus drug control Bill. The amendment would have established a nationwide seven Day waiting period for the Purchase of handguns from licensed dealers. On sept. 15 the House rejected the amendment by a vote of 228-182. Immediately an outcry arose that the 228 members Jim Fain who opposed the amendment had been bribed or intimidated by the National Rifle association let me acknowledge the  political clout but let me Sug Gest an alternative View the amendment fell because members conscientiously concluded that its terms we re unwise. Defenders of the seven Day waiting period said in would give police an Opportunity to chock on pro spec live purchasers. Was the buyer an escaped con vict a Felon on probation Peter Rodino of new Jersey who supported the amendment told the House thai new Jersey stale police have caught 10,000 convicted felons trying to buy handguns in the years in has had a wailing  if True new Jersey must be Home to the most stupid felons who Ever walked a Street by night. That was one Patent flaw in the Brady amendment. No self respecting criminal would Ever have Given a dealer his right name and address. A study a few years ago from he National Institute of Justice found that Only one in every six felons had purchased his gun from ii dealer the implacable fact is that criminals can obtain handguns with Case 11 is the honest citizen who runs into trouble. The amendment had other flaws. Though sponsors denied in the amendment would have Ledun time to nationwide gun registration. H would have piled a Mountain of mostly unproductive paperwork on the backs of police. Rep. Edward f. Feighan of Ohio said the proposal would be an act to end senseless drug violence to Dino said in would make in harder for the criminal and inc unbalanced to get  nonsense. In theory a waiting period might Ducler m unknowable number of suicides and impulse killings. That is a laudable goal. Bui would this Effort at gun control deter violent crime the laughter you hear is the drug dealer s  pm s environment in t getting emphasis it deserves As summer wore on i watched a 2 year old s eyes Redden from the smog that choked Washington i saw him rub tears not from crying. I heard his Bell Lilac voice hoarse. I waked to his cough in the night. The District of Columbia like most cities in the Northeast and mid Cal endured some 40 Days with unhealthy Ozone Levels. More than 60 metropolitan areas failed to meet statutory standards. On my Street Maple Trees that were Here before inc Capitol was erected turned a sickly Brown. Two had to be Cut Down. Carbon monoxide from automobile exhaust was the major ingredient of this dense smog. The heat that cooked it into Ozone presumably came from the Green House effect of Carbon dioxide and other Man produced gases. The forests that once recycled the dioxide Are being destroyed same by fires and cutting some in a circular tragedy by the Ozone and acid rain. Once Ronald Reagan s Daffy notion that Trees cause pollution seemed comic. There was even a hint of Gallows humor to placing James Watt Anne Burford and Rita Lavelle As foxes to guard inc environmental Henhouse. No More. Any tolerance for those who Sanction polluters vanishes with the dry rasp of a child s struggle for breath in the night. When George Bush says he s an environmentalist be lies. The task forces he headed against drugs and terrorism failed dismally but dec scored one Triumph As Reagan s All purpose chairman. The presidential task Force on Regula tory Relief managed to relax clean air standards including those limiting Auto emissions. Michael Dukakis is no Rose on the subject. Though Bush s charges against him arc absurdly exaggerated he should have Given More priority to bos Ion Harbor but beside Bush he looks like Izaak Walton. His position papers arc on Largel and believable. Despite their platform pities neither candidate has Given environment the emphasis it deserves even in terms of political tactics. Dukakis wasted a Golden Opportunity when he decided to run As or. Bland instead of making Environ ment and the growing Gap Between Rich and poor the twin pillars of his Campaign Bush insulted the National intelligence by Basing his claim to the White House on a prison furlough program and the pledge of allegiance. So far we seem to be proving him right by swallowing such ludicrous irrelevancies As a valid basis for deciding How to vote. Before taking off his inaugural hat the next president ought to announce As dramatically As possible a Manhattan scale War against inc threats to clean air and water. He ought to rally a worldwide Effort to Check greenhouse effect and banish the chlorofluorocarbons thai de stroy the stratospheric Ozone shield. He ought to launch a crusade for developing alternative Energy sources and waste disposal systems using a tax on gasoline at the pump to pay the costs. In passing he ought to reverse Reagan s International sanctions against family planning. We Are almost out of time. Much of the damage already inflicted cannot be turned around for decades. The 90s could be of r last realistic Hope. Foolish As it May seem for a 68-year old to be father of a toddler at least it s life affirming. I m also blessed with iwo grandsons just entering their teens. I be got the ranch bet on the future and i m frightened at what s happening to its life support