I read a lot of op-eds in the course of my day. Most have something to do with gun control or so-called gun violence.

Further, most have a definite position on the debate one way or another.

Very few actually point out that everyone in the legislature, either state or federal, is dropping the ball, but this one out of New Mexico did just that.

We keep circling the same issues and arguments. Elected officials fail to take action while regurgitating the same tired talking points to fire up their bases and insure they remain in office “fighting the good fight”. Democrats and Republicans both are careful not to make much headway on core issues. If they solve a problem, they can’t use it to achieve their most important goal: re-election. Lady Macbeth’s take on life fits this political game. “It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” That’s our politicians: impassioned speeches followed by…nothing.

The New Mexico state legislature has proposed a new batch of gun laws. Republicans talk a big game about pursuing other options to combat gun violence like improving mental healthcare and access to it, but fail to follow through. Our justice system drops the ball repeatedly regarding criminal prosecution and response to warning flags, but Republicans don’t do anything to fix that. At the same time, Democrats can’t see beyond some impossible goal of erasing all guns from existence.

The author goes on to detail a number of gun control bills, some with a degree of favorability that I don’t share, but is also critical of most which don’t really do much of anything except look like lawmakers are trying to do something.

Yet the crux of everything is pretty much right here.

Democrats default to gun control as a potential solution to “gun violence” while Republicans claim to want to address mental health issues.

I’m a big believer in trying to improve our mental health system in this country and I believe you’d solve a lot of problems that way. However, I haven’t seen any concrete proposals on addressing it from Republican lawmakers.

It’s easy to say that you need to address a thing, but unless you actually put some effort into doing it, it actually is “a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

Republicans need to step up and actually do something besides opposing gun control. That’s an important part and one I don’t think they should remotely ignore, but without an opposing effort to address the issue of violence and violent crime, they’re basically handing everything over to Democrats. They’re playing defense when they can’t win without an offense.

So-called gun violence is in the news all the time, and all Republicans have to show is opposition to measures that many have been told would solve the problem. Is it any wonder the midterms didn’t go as many, including myself, predicted?

No, people want answers, even if they’re bad ones. That’s why Democrats did better than expected and will continue to do so unless the GOP steps up its game.