There’s a perception that crime is increasing and that mass shootings are increasing. Whether there really is or not is a topic for another time, but the perception exists.

As a result of that perception, though, anti-gun Democrats have been pushing for more and more gun control in the post-Parkland period. They’ve gained traction in places where many thought they didn’t have a chance, too.

However, in an op-ed, Wisconsin State Rep. Joe Sanfelippo lays the blame for that squarely at the feet of Democrats.

Over the years, my dad had many wise sayings, and one that always stuck with me was that “all fences do is keep honest people honest.” This meant that an honorable person with good intentions will respect the fence and leave the property alone, while a dishonest person up to no good will simply ignore the fence, rendering it useless.

I could not help but be reminded of this life lesson as Gov. Evers and legislative Democrats turned the recent tragedies in El Paso and Dayton into a political opportunity to prey upon the emotions of Wisconsinites sympathetic to the victims and their families by recycling worn-out ideas that they knew would have little chance of preventing similar tragedies in the future.

So why, you might ask, would Democrats propose solutions that they know would not work? The answer is simple: They are trying to hide their culpability for the erosion of public safety that we are experiencing throughout our communities.

We are all moved to tears whenever such tragedies occur, and it is easy for Democrats to exploit these events to divert attention away from the crime epidemic sweeping the urban centers of our state. Democrats seem to have plenty to say about mass shootings that occur in the suburbs, yet they remain silent on rampant inner-city crime.

Those proposing stricter gun laws that would primarily burden law-abiding citizens are the same people advocating for summarily reducing our prison population and releasing violent criminals back onto our streets.

He goes on, of course, and he makes a lot of excellent points.

The truth of the matter is that he’s right, Democrats do tend to appear to present two very different faces on these issues. For example, as Sanfelippo notes, there’s been a lot of talk about reducing the prison population at the same time they’re talking about disarming law-abiding citizens. Now, non-violent offenders may be one thing, but how many of those are only in on non-violent offenses versus being actually non-violent?

Releasing them may still put violent criminals back on the streets.

Also, note that many Democrats become outraged over any mention of the family as a means to combatting things like poverty. However, most criminals, including violent criminals, come from single-parent homes. That erosion of the family, something we’ve seen Democrats all but openly celebrate, contributes to all sorts of violence. Even mass shootings, which have little in common with most other crimes, are usually carried out by those from single-parent households.

Many of the issues Democrats say will be addressed by gun control really do appear to be the result of policies supported by Democrats in the first place.