As I was finishing up watching last night’s presidential debate, I was about to turn off the TV when the gun control question came up. An audience member asked what each candidate would do to stem the constant gun violence our country experiences.
America has a strange but rich history with guns, since our very country was founded on every citizen being well-armed (since there was nothing close to a national army at the time). I support the 2nd Amendment and any American’s right to “bear arms.”
So I was a little taken aback when Obama said last night, in answer to the question about gun control: “Enforce the laws we’ve already got. Make sure we are keeping the guns out of the hands of criminals… Those who are mentally ill.” Wha… what?!
I agree with the first part — keeping guns out of the hands of criminals is an important (but ultimately an impossible & fruitless) goal. But why were people with a mental illness singled out for greater gun control?
The Harvard Crimson published a remarkable article last week detailing the obstacles students increasingly face when they want to take a break from Harvard University, especially for mental health reasons. It describes the stories of a number of Harvard students who have taken a leave of absence from the university and their labyrinth journey in rejoining the school.