European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 03, 1995, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Gun enthusiasts have declared War on american dream James l. Sullivan like most americans living and working Here in Central Europe i look Forward to returning from time to time to the states to catch up with old friends and relative Sand generally take advantage of the conveniences and diversity of entertainment found no where else. There arc More than a few things that one learns to appreciate about americans Only after having lived abroad for a while. _ however in the last few years i have grown increasingly nervous about life there my Home of re Cord is Miami and the Prospect of some Day return. Ing for Good with my wife and Young son. The reason of course is the escalation in violence especially gun violence. Although crime Here in Europe is on the Rise we Sec Only a fraction of the number of gun related fatalities Bosnia notwithstanding we have in United states every year an average of 35,000 per Yea not to mention far fewer guns Avail Able. Hardly a Day goes by when we Don t read or hear about scores of murders accidents or suicides attributed to guns. Kids shooting other kids on play grounds. Disgruntled employees blowing away 20 co workers. Husbands shooting wives Over apparent trivialities. This is a gruesome production brought to you by the ridiculously easy availability of guns in America to those who have no business owning them. Of course the proliferation of guns and gun violence in the United states is a symptom of broader underly ing problems facing american society but would t it seem like common sense that at least part of the problem could be solved by eliminating or restricting Access to a Large portion of these guns National Rifle association members apparently do not think so and have attracted a lot of negative press lately doing what they usually do when they find themselves losing ground. They spread a great Deal of hate and disinformation around. Opening laugh vey Usa and this is Charles he s in  Send in your column plus a photo of yourself to be our guest sunday Magazine the stars and stripes Apo a 09211 or Postrach 11 14 37, d-64278 Darmstadt Germany. If mailing disk save text in Asci and include printout. Columns Are edited for clarity and length. A yes the Good old Era that High profile lobby group whose immense Power and influence in Washington Are so grossly disproportionate to the unworn the incas of their cause that one wonders How a group with such a narrow focus got to be so powerful. Their increasingly mean spirited inflammatory rhetoric and extremist political Agenda go so far in one ? direction that the vast majority of americans just can t relate anymore. Even former president Bush a supposedly Loyal member had had enough. The smell got so bad that he had to defect. With an unbending history of resistance to any and All forms of gun control legislation including bans on assault rifles and cop killer bullets it s no wonder the Era has hardly a Friend in any Law enforcement Agency in the country. What can you say anyway about an organization that has made an institution out of defending the indefensible i would say that it s about time they stopped blocking up the Halls of Congress wasting the taxpayers time and Money for a narrow selfish Agenda that wrongly destroys far More lives than it saves. The Era May have 3.5 million members As it re ports but that s less than 2 percent of a population of r 260 million. It s a total shame that less than 2 percent of the population of the United states of America should be allowed to dictate Public policy on guns. Yet the Era has undoubtedly More staying Power Tanju Tabbut any special interest group in recent memory. This stems from the deliberate confusion. Game it likes to play the real Issue not being merely guns and gun ownership but the right to defend one self. The Era is doing its damnedest to Roll Back the Brady Law spreading fear around that it is suspending this right. Yet it s ludicrous to think that a seven Day waiting period is a matter of life and death. Rather in the big picture is appears that guns and especially r handguns Are More often killing the wrong people. The Era is probably right though that Pepple kill people rather than guns. But guns sure make it a hell of a lot easier. As the new England journal of medi Cine reported in 1993 after a carefully documented study there is a three times greater Chance that some one other than an intruder will be killed in a Home with a handgun than one without. Yet the Era likes to throw up smoke in the Way of the second Amend ment the a canely written and broadly interpreted constitutional right to keep and Bear arms. They would have us believe that this is about the most important right there is guns made this country great and will be the Only thing to save it they yell. But it is doubtful whether our forefathers when they drafted and ratified the second amendment Back in 1791, could have foreseen the awesome killing Power of today s weapons arid the epidemic numbers by which people Are killed every year. The assault Rifle in particular has no earthly purpose other than to kill and maim scores of people very fast. I won t bore you with the Absurdity of using an ak-47 or an Uzi Togo Deer Hunting but Why someone would badly want or need an assault weapon is totally beyond me. There is a Law against Selling these things recently enacted. But the Era wants to repeal this Law. They think that anyone should be Able to go out and buy one. Former supreme court Justice Warren Burger a gun owner and conservative himself had it right when he said the american gun lobby s incessant Blanket ing of All debate with the second amendment is the biggest fraud Ever perpetrated on the american pc pie a " a if the forefathers knew what we know i m sure they would have written it differently. What is really most cynical and obscene about the Era and their Agenda How Ever is that it All comes Down to Money. And just like those eight tobacco. Company cos who testified under Bath before con Gress last year that they believed that cigarette smok ing did not cause cancer the Era has shown a re Marrable disregard for the safety and welfare of " millions of americans in the name of big Money. For in actuality the unbending resistance by the Era to any and All gain control legislature has less to do with depriving enthusiasts of their toys and setting a precedent for further bans. Although this is the per. Sonal concern of most Era members the governing elite of the organization those few who Call All the shots and allow virtually no debate within arc in it for bigger game. For what is really at stake Here is a potentially huge Revenue loss by the unregulated multimillion Doliar gun Industry which the Era is Noth. Ing More than a front for. If they Are legally prevented from continually flood ing the marketplace of America and abroad with Mil Lions of readily accessible and affordable firearms. They Are out big Bucks. And like the tobacco lobby the obscenity and cynicism is compounded by the fact that there Are the usual Bunch of gutless elected pub Lic officials either ducking for cover or taking huge " Campaign contributions to Block gun control legis lation.". " " hopefully though the Era has seen its better Days and we can live in a safer More common sense society with fewer guns around. There Are Many things that one can appreciate about life in America Only after living abroad but right now this is not one of them. James l Sullivan lives in Vilseck Germany.-. Contents taken at his word a. 4-6 a Man from a far  Apollo 137-8 Jim Lovell watches and likes the film. In tune .,.,. 9 predicting movie hits for the fall. This week s films. 10-11 Chuck Emch on lord of  ,.military circuit listings. Television listings. 12-15 local Cable and satellite schedules. Home entertainment. 13 gems from the silent Era. Books. 17 More publications for dummies. -. Odds & ends 18 Enna Bombeck s theme song. Sidelights �v.�.o. 20 Are women ready for combat voices .21 the . Jurors and their to orcs. Words & wit .,.,.,. 22 a Paramount reason to read Safire on Parade. 23 Denzil Washington s $1 million gift. Last laugh 24 growing old with Dave Barry. --.-. Sunday is a weekly supplement of the stars and stripes editor Mark Najarian cover Story design Alice verberne production Lisa Williams editorial assistance Louis d. Pierce Page 2 sunday september 3, 1995