Please join us in Pleasantville Saturday 9:30 am for “Sabbath to Stop Gun Violence.”
Allow me to begin by repeating something I said last week:
…the few gun owners I know personally are all decent, law-abiding folks. Let’s not make matters worse by demonizing each other, whichever side of the issue we’re on.
Reading the almost 75 local comments to last week’s post—and more than 500 comments over in Connecticut—underscored for me how much strong feeling there is about this issue for folks who locate themselves at every point along the spectrum of opinion. There are folks who are fearful of the many guns floating around out there, a few of whom see anything short of a complete ban on private weapon ownership as inadequate to the task of ending the scourge of gun violence in this country.
There are also decent, law-abiding citizens who own guns legally and for legal purposes—for recreation; for hunting; for self-defense—who are concerned that their right to bear arms (a right which the Supreme Court in 2008 in District of Columbia v. Heller did decide is an individual right) may be in jeopardy; a few of whom (framing their objection in the context of fear of government tyranny) oppose any restrictions on gun ownership at all.
Lots of strong feelings.
And what I’ve learned about meditation—which if you’re a new reader to this blog is the topic I usually write about on Patch—is that more often than not it’s emotions that drive our decisions; more often than not we back into our reasons from our emotions; while the practice of sitting in open awareness to the present moment, to notice without judgment whatever is arising within us does, over time, have the potential to build within us an ability to be less reactive, more considered in our responses, more aware of how we can be of benefit to ourselves and benefit to the world.
So let’s all take a breath.
I want to share information about this weekend’s upcoming Sabbath event, which is scheduled to take place at houses of worship all over the country. And I want to emphasize my hope that, after you read through what is actually being called for, all of us will find this worthy of support.
National “Sabbath to Stop Gun Violence”—and what it stands for.
This weekend - Friday January 4 through Sunday January 6—is national “Sabbath to Stop Gun Violence.” At a recent gathering in front of the National Cathedral, religious leaders—including Roman Catholics, Jews, Episcopalians, Muslims, Baptists, Methodists, Quakers, Evangelicals, Sikhs and other—announced they will also be mobilizing their congregations to join a national call-in day to Congress on Feb. 5.
At the gathering in the nation’s capital, Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the former archbishop of Washington; The Right Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington; The Rev. Gabriel Salguero of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition; Rev. Richard Cizik, president of the New Evangelical Partnership for the Common Good; the Rev. Michael Livingston, past president of the National Council of Churches; and the Very Rev. Gary Hall, dean of the National Cathedral all spoke about the need to mobilize to take concrete action to curb gun violence.
Sabbath to Stop Gun Violence—scheduled to be held at houses of worship throughout the country—is coming from Demand A Plan a campaign launched in July, 2012 as a partnership of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a coalition of Republican, Democrat, and Independent Mayors from towns, villages, and cities all across the country, survivors of recent shootings, the families of the victims, and their supporters.
Here’s what the campaign is calling for: “common sense legislation that will 1) require a criminal background check for every gun sold in America; 2) ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines; and 3) make gun trafficking a federal crime, including real penalties for ‘straw purchasers.’” Let me emphasize that for purpose of being able to work together to achieve positive results, this coalition is backing what they deem “common sense” legislation, all of which is intended to sit well within the 2nd Amendment as it is now understood.
Is it possible to work together? Isn't the country divided over gun laws?
Actually, four out of five Americans believe in common sense gun laws. Certainly the gun owners I know do. Read “The Gun Control We Already Agree On.” Last summer (well before the massacre in Newtown) pollster Frank Luntz conducted a poll of NRA members which showed “strong support for common-sense gun laws, exposing significant divide between rank-and-file members and NRA leadership.” For more specifics on what Mayors Against Illegal Guns is calling for see their “What We Stand For” page.
But why focus on gun laws? Isn’t the real problem the mentally ill, and folks with illegal guns?
We most certainly should be funding more programs for the mentally ill, and not de-funding programs that already exist (see my previous post). But recent events underscore how difficult it is to keep guns out of the hands of felons and the mentally ill.
Recall: The day after the Newtown massacre a mentally ill man from —apparently off his meds, hearing voices, complaining that he was being teased at work – was arrested trying to steal a Bushmaster rifle from a gun store… the very same store from which he had successfully stolen 12 firearms before.
Recall: The rifle used in the Webster, NY, attack was bought by a friend of the sniper who, as a convicted felon, could not himself legally purchase or possess firearms.
Recall: The guns used in the Newtown, CT, massacre had also been purchased legally—by the shooter’s mother.
But wouldn’t banning assault weapons be against the 2nd Amendment? And what are “assault weapons” anyway?
The Supreme Court—in the majority opinion of District of Columbia v. Heller written by Justice Antonin Scalia—was clear that, the 2nd Amendment notwithstanding, certain weapons may indeed be banned under the law. Justice Scalia cites Brief for United States, O. T. 1938, No. 696, at 12–18 arguing that “’weapons which are commonly used by criminals,’ such as sawed-off shotguns, are not protected.”
Justice Scalia goes on to cite “the National Firearms Act’s restrictions on machineguns;” and affirmatively states
“…the Second Amendment does not protect those weapons not typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes, such as short-barreled shotguns… Like most rights the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited. From Blackstone through the 19th-century cases, commentators and courts routinely explained that the right was not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose…. Although we do not undertake an exhaustive historical analysis today of the full scope of the Second Amendment nothing in our opinion should be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms.”
Importantly, Justice Scalia cites the historical tradition of prohibiting the carrying of “dangerous and unusual weapons;” and adds that the Court’s analysis does not “suggest the invalidity of laws regulating the storage of firearms to prevent accidents.” “Justice Breyer chides us” Justice Scalia wrote, “for leaving so many applications of the right to keep and bear arms in doubt, and for not providing extensive historical justification for those regulations of the right that we describe as permissible.” But, Justice Scalia wrote,
“… since this case [District of Columbia v. Heller] represents this Court’s first in-depth examination of the Second Amendment, one should not expect it to clarify the entire field, any more than Reynolds v. United States, 98 U.S. 145 (1879), our first in-depth Free Exercise Clause case, left that area in a state of utter certainty. And there will be time enough to expound upon the historical justifications for the exceptions we have mentioned if and when those exceptions come before us.”
Some military weapons (such as machine guns) are banned under the National Firearms Act; but so too are some non-military weapons (such as sawed-off shotguns) banned.“Assault weapons” have in the past and could again in the future be banned, depending on the way such weapons were defined by legislators.
Some have questioned whether a semi-automatic rifle should be referred to as an “assault weapon.” At the moment there is no universally agreed upon legal definition of the term. But in their own catalog Bushmaster (manufacturer of the AR-style semi-automatic rifles used in the Newtown massacre; the Aurora, Colorado movie massacre; the Portland, Oregon mall attack; and most likely the Webster, New York firefighter ambush, to name a few) certainly portrays their semi-automatic rifles as weapons which can be —and are being—used as military weapons.
Their 2012 catalog boasts that Bushmasters have been “serving law-enforcement agencies and militaries of more than 50 foreign nations. TORTURE TESTED. BATTLE PROVEN.” See The New York Times opinion piece The Deadly Fantasy of Assault Weapons.
Note, too, that contrary to on-line rumors still circulating on the internet based on early, erroneous reports, the chief weapon used in the Newtown massacre was indeed a Bushmaster AR-15. At his December 16 briefing Connecticut State Police Lt. Paul Vance said:
“There have been questions about the weaponry and I would like to take a minute to discuss with you briefly, very superficially, some of the information that can be released at this time. The weapon that was utilized most of the time during this horrific crime was identified as a Bushmaster AR-15 assault type weapon. It had high capacity magazines. In addition to that, the subject had in his possession a Glock 10 millimeter, a Sig Sauer 9 millimeter. Both weapons, all weapons had multiple magazines and additional ammunition. The fourth weapon recovered was a shotgun that was recovered from the suspect's vehicle that was parked outside of the school.” (CNN transcript)
What’s legal and illegal? Note that in his statement, Connecticut State Police Lt. Paul Vance referred to the AR-15 as “an assault type weapon.” Under Connecticut law the weapon was apparently technically legal, even though it possessed “high capacity magazines.” That’s because Connecticut’s assault weapons ban is based on the flawed 1994 federal assault weapons ban.
Fully automatic rifles—which everyone would agree are assault weapons—are already basically illegal under federal law. But under Title XI, subtitle A of the 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Ban (AWB), or Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act, the term “assault weapon” was further defined to include a weapon which, while not fully automatic, is capable of accepting a detachable magazine and which also includes two or more other features of military guns—such as flash suppressor, capacity for bayonet, pistol grip, grenade launcher (sometimes referred to as “cosmetics”). That meant that if a weapon had a detachable magazine but only one other military accessory it was still legal. But the federal ban expired in 2004, and so legislators will need to define the term anew.
Legislators might decide to simply return to the 1994 definition, but that would leave the country with a law no more stringent than Connecticut’s. They might decide to go further by defining an assault weapon as any weapon with a detachable magazine regardless of other features. In any event, legislation once passed would have to pass muster in the courts. Senators Diane Feinstein and Frank Lautenberg are readying legislation, as reportedly are Senator Charles Schumer and Representative Carolyn McCarthy.
All of this while the NRA is busy moving in the opposite direction, hard at work—believe it or not—trying to deregulate and promote the use of silencers, illegal at the moment in New York and New Jersey and in nine other states. See “Silencers: The NRA’s Latest Big Lie” and the websites of the American Silencer Association and Silencerco.
A few final thoughts… And so we gather together. Allow me to emphasize again that in addition to clergy the national Sabbath to Stop Gun Violence is supported by Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Demand a Plan. These groups represent over 800 mayors (including Pleasantville's) and 800,000 grass-roots citizens from across the country. They are Republicans, and Democrats, and Independents. They’re conservatives and liberals and moderates. They’re gun owners and folks who don’t own guns; they’re folks of every religion, and from every walk of life.
We just laid twenty very small coffins in the ground.
And the coffins of six adults.
It’s enough.
Please attend a national Sabbath to Stop Gun Violence service this weekend at your local house of worship. The service at PCS will be Saturday at 9:30 a.m.
Please sign the petitions at One Million Moms for Gun Control, and Demand A Plan, and Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, and We The People.
Please keep your ears open about a January 21 (Inauguration Day/ Martin Luther King Day) March on Washington; a One Million Children march on Washington (aka Million Kids March), tentatively set for March; as well as a possible One Million Moms for Gun Control march.
Please purchase a “We Are Newtown” bumper sticker, proceeds to go toward a memorial to the victims.
Please read my previous posts on gun control: Repairing the World: The Truth About Ending Gun Violence Now (December 20) and There is No God: Continuing Thoughts on Gun Control (December 27).
If you’re in the Hudson Valley, please read The Lower Hudson Council of School Superintendents’ call for seven policies to address gun violence.
Your comments are welcome.
Rabbi Mark Sameth is the spiritual leader of Joyful Judaism: Pleasantville Community Synagogue an inclusive, progressive synagogue – with members from twenty towns, villages and cities all across Westchester and “A Hebrew School Your Kids Can Love.” Read The New York Times article. Follow Rabbi Mark on Twitter . Weekly meditation at the synagogue every Saturday morning at 9 am is open to the public; everyone – without exception - is welcome and warmly invited. OUR MEMBERSHIP DRIVE IS ON. See “Top Ten Reasons to Join PCS” - as well as service times and events - at www.ShalomPCS.com.
Thanks for the correction (typical) You give yourself a bad name resent what you wish it is a fact. Please explain what "Progressive Synagogue is" thats a new one to me. I have not said anything anti-semetic here EVER! I resent that you sugest that.
So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth." Catch the part about the violence? Watch how you quote scripture, for with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
Vilification is the key word. The Journal News did so much damage in that regard, to vilify legal gun owners by mapping them, even enraging them to the point now that the Journal News has armed guards at their offices (talk about hypocrisy!). For me, is not so much what guns do, rather what rage does. Why are people so angry today that they go on killing sprees? What takes them over the edge? I don't believe there's any one factor that causes this violence. It was rage that killed the twenty children of Sandy Hook and rage that kills almost every night in Chicago. Sometimes with guns. Perhaps the Rabbi might agree with me that our country's tendency toward a secular nation has led so many away from faith. Faith, no matter which one, brings families and communities closer, a human bond, that is sorely lacking today. Guns do kill, yes, but without faith in a higher being, there's no moral or spiritual compass to stop the anger from turning into a killing field.
Nonsense statements like this are divisive. morality is not unique to religion and faith is not required to be moral.
My fear is that this issue has been reaching a fever pitch for years. I am a licensed Pistol owner for over 40 years. I have been very moderate when it comes to things like background checks etc, and I still am. The Journal News and the unnecessary polarization it created has pushed me squarely into the arms of the NRA. I feel they are the only people watching my back. The Politicians will do things that are self serving, but will do nothing to solve the problem. Mental illness is under treated in this Country. Many people who are at risk of acting out, or have children who they fear could act out have no where to turn. Their health insurance coverage my be poor or non existent for emotional problems. It is easy to ban certain rifles and pistol magazines which allows politicians to do something flashy but simple. Funding mental health care is more complex and would take some real work, so they will avoid it. In the movie Full Metal Jacket the Drill Sargent says "it is the hard heart that kills".
Some of us have been trying to get the guns out for years, but the furore over effective measures like stop and frisk and civil rights groups shouting "infringement" doesn't help. The fall in murder and assault rates in NYC for 5 years or more in a row? The Mayors against illegal guns campaign? the frequent calls by community leaders? The gun buyback schemes? There have been plenty of peace marches by ethnic groups. When something happens in your neighborhood you do something about it. Your snarky cynicism is not only bankrupt, its manufactured and unjustified. Societal history shows its often some defining event, of great magnitude, that catalyzes change. All your post shows is a lazy punt to pull the race card. That sure helps
And whats this got to do with the price of eggs: " Now you through you own racist projection, you inferred that there is some inherent or genetic cause for this violence" ???
Adam comitted suicide. He had mental issues. There are far too many guns out there for your peaceful displays to have any effect. Nice gesture though.
There was no discussion to end - you flew off the handle with righteous indignation and got affronted at imaginary barbs - do you often get into scuffles with people but you're not quite sure why!
Murrow Federal Building Oklahoma City > 168 dead....20 of the victims are 6 years of age or younger. Tool....nitrogen based fertilizer, diesel fuel, and torvex. World Trade Center New York > over 3000 dead...tool....box cutters and hijacked airplanes There are tens of millions of the AR Rifle and it's variants out there. If gun owners were as violent as some see them then no one would be able to leave their home. That is indeed not the case. The instrumentality one uses to kill is not the issue. The evil use of an instrument is the issue. Rabbi, the problem of evil has been around since Cain murdered his brother Abel. The problem lies not with firearms, gasoline, diesel fuel, fertilizer, or box cutters. The problem lies squarely in the hearts of men. As a Rabbi you teach about the word of G-d and the need for us all to be righteous. The far greater problem is reaching the hearts of evil men. It is easy for anyone with evil intent and a knowledge of chemistry to kill countess people. Shall we ban gasoline, fertilizer, diesel fuel, and box cutters?No. We must ascribe blame to evil and struggle against it. We must reach the hearts of men. The instrumentality is not the evil. Evil lies in the hearts of men. With the help of G-d we must reach those hearts.
Let us assume that there are evil men all over the world. Then let's look at the figures and say that the United States has more violent crime and more murders than any other industrialized western country on the planet. Then, let's ask the question. What is the difference between the United States and countries like the United Kingdom, Canada, France, etc, etc. Unfortunately, for your argument, the answer comes back; The easy access to firearms. The fact that you'll never be able to stop all murders shouldn't be an excuse for not stopping one.