When violence is a problem in a community, it's common for a mayor to call for gun control. This is especially true in anti-gun states like Vermont. Burlington is such a place, and the mayor there is such a mayor.
There's been a problem, and it does look like a problem from the outside. No question in my mind.
But one resident has a problem with the mayor's rhetoric. Reality suggests it's not a gun issue.
Burlington’s latest outbreak of violence should prompt a broader discussion about the city’s public safety system, not simply another debate over gun laws.
Over a single weekend, Burlington police investigated a fatal stabbing, a second stabbing, gunfire following an argument and the alleged accidental discharge of a firearm downtown. In a separate daytime incident, three juveniles allegedly attacked a man with a knife near the bike path. These events involved different weapons and circumstances, but together they suggest weaknesses in Burlington’s ability to deter dangerous behavior and intervene effectively when it occurs.
Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak responded by renewing calls for stronger gun laws, including prohibiting firearms in establishments serving alcohol. These proposals may be well-intentioned, but they address only one part of a larger problem.
Reckless endangerment, assault and unlawful discharge of a firearm are already crimes in Vermont, as is carrying a weapon with intent to injure. People carrying weapons while committing other crimes are unlikely to be deterred by another ordinance. Additional restrictions will be followed primarily by people who already obey the law, while having less effect on those creating the danger.
The fact that several recent attacks involved knives illustrates the limitations of concentrating mainly on firearms. Burlington appears to be facing broader problems involving enforcement, detention, treatment and institutional capacity.
Bingo.
Even if you ignore the value of guns in armed confrontations from the perspective of a regular American, the fact that many of these are stabbings tells us that even the most effective gun control law imaginable would have little impact on these crimes... but would discourage law-abiding citizens from being able to carry a firearm for their own defense.
The author is Matt Swenson, who is the founder of Omnidex Solutions, a research and strategic analysis company. In other words, he's someone whose job is to actually look at patterns to see what's happening, rather than just latching onto whatever might be popular. In other words, he's the kind of guy who would notice a lot of variables beyond "guns are bad, mmmmkay?" mentalities.
Like how many recent events are stabbings, thus lessening any impact gun control could possibly have.
Granted, that's just basic pattern recognition that anyone can do, but apparently, Mayor Mulvaney-Stanak can't. Or won't.
See, gun control is something mayors can complain about, but rarely have to do anything about. It's a useful scapegoat for their own failings. They can say the problem is beyond their control and that the state has to do something, all while things like police presence and enforcing the laws work together to actually do a lot of the work on their own.
Usually enough that the problem goes away. We know guns aren't the problem.
The mayor needs to wake up to this fact.
Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their extreme gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.
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