Far too many times, a mass shooting is the result of failed gun control policies. In fact, almost every public mass murder involving a firearm has some form of gun control law simply not working as it was supposed to. For example, Apalachee High School is a gun-free zone, and yet...

While it wasn't a mass shooting, an active shooter opened fire in Minneapolis on Saturday. A guy opened fire on an apartment building, sending multiple rounds into people's homes, before being shot by police.

It doesn't seem anyone was hurt.

However, it soon prompted calls for more gun control.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara described the active shooting as a "terrifying incident for dozens of residents." Officers arrived to find a chaotic scene, with bullets marring the building's entry door and nearby homes, spent bullet cartridges along the hallway, and a shotgun laid on the floor of an opened apartment. As authorities evacuated dozens from the building, a gun's muzzle flashed from the apartment's stairwell, where police say officers and SWAT members contained the shooter as he fired multiple rounds from an AK-47 rifle.

...

The incident is the latest in a string of shootings in Minneapolis, with five homicides reported in the city since last Friday, bringing the city's total this year to 51. Minneapolis reported 45 homicides at this time last year. Local officials have renewed calls for gun control measures, with Mayor Jacob Frey saying, "Nobody needs an AK-47. Getting these weapons off our streets must be a priority at state capitols across the country." Ward 12 Councilmember Aurin Chowdhury added, “We must make every effort from the local level, state level, and federal level to address and end gun violence in our communities.”

Nobody needs an AK-47? That remains to be seen, however, Minnesota has restrictions on these kinds of weapons. They can be purchased, but there are special requirements such as a permit to purchase or a concealed carry permit needing to be obtained prior to buying such a firearm. That applies to any firearm with a pistol grip, which an AK-style rifle most definitely has. So because of that, they have universal background checks for such firearms as well.

So why didn't that stop this guy? Why didn't it prevent him from doing what he did?

And, perhaps the more pressing question is whether or not banning such weapons would actually do anything.

The answer to the last question is no, it wouldn't. This guy could just as easily have committed the exact same crime with a handgun, a shotgun, or a hunting rifle.

And that's the easier question to answer right now. We don't know how he obtained the firearm, whether he purchased it lawfully or not, or anything else. However, it doesn't really matter.

See, while Frey is calling for gun control, blaming the gun, the reality is that an individual was broken enough inside to start shooting up an apartment complex for whatever reason. Far too often, the anti-gun side absolutely refuses to talk about the people behind these incidents, but if you remove the gun from the equation, you can't say that these people will be harmless.

No, they'll be creative, and that should terrify us all.

After all, there are ways to kill people that can take out a lot more people in a shorter timeframe.

We need to focus on these people, why they do this, and what we can do to help them get through whatever they're going through so we don't have to worry.