Handgun Control

Most clear thinking Americans will agree that a sound handgun control law is necessary, if not long overdue. Those of us who are privy to the goings on in Washington realize this will never occur as long as the National Rifle Association (NRA) perambulates the corridors of Capitol Hill. This life saving measure will not come to fruition as long as the NRA Lobby exists in its present form. Congress continues to be intimidated by these ignorant folks because their jobs are more important than saving lives.

As Congress wrestles with post-Littleton gun-control proposals, the friends and foes of those proposals have shown their smarts. Both sides have lobbyists, Web sites, e-mail campaigns, and impassioned constituents. Over the years, both sides have given millions of dollars to congressional campaigns. But when it comes to campaign money, one side's largesse far exceeds the other's. Over the last decade, the National Rifle Association has spent $24.6 million to elect its allies and defeat its enemies in federal elections.

Naomi Post, wife of Mayor Street, was first on a list of people who were to appear with Allyson Schwartz at a news conference yesterday aimed at advancing Schwartz's campaign for the U.S. Senate. Post never showed up. But a dozen other dignitaries turned out to support a call from Schwartz, a Democratic state senator from Philadelphia, for stronger handgun control. The news conference was held shortly after noon on the windy, noisy sidewalk outside William Penn High School in North Philadelphia.

Syndicated columnist and television commentator Carl T. Rowan, who for years has called for handgun control, broke up an unauthorized 2 a.m. pool party in his back yard yesterday by calling the police and then winging one of the teenaged intruders with a single shot from his Smith & Wesson revolver. "Somebody will see irony in this," said Rowan. "But I don't. " Rowan, 62, said he fired his .22-caliber pistol only after one of the trespassers ignored his warning and lunged at him as if he were heading into the house.

Nelson T. "Pete" Shields, 68, a leader in the handgun-control movement, died yesterday of cancer at his home in Greenville, Del. Mr. Shields was founder and chairman emeritus of the Washington-based Handgun Control Inc., the largest advocacy group for a national gun policy. He helped set up the organization in 1975, after his eldest son, Nick, was killed with a handgun that year in San Francisco, one of several victims of what became known as the Zebra killings. The following year, he resigned from Du Pont Co. after a 26-year career in marketing there, to become the handgun organization's executive director.

It is routine for political candidates to accuse each other - and, at times, for us cynically to accuse them all - of pandering to special interests. At times, however, it is possible to get an inkling of which candidates cave in and which stand up to the powerful, special interests. On this score, the Sept. 15 article by Thomas Ferrick Jr., "Edgar facing hunters' ire over gun control," was particularly revealing. About 10,000 Americans are murdered every year with handguns. To put that in perspective, consider this: 42,300 Americans were killed in combat in Vietnam; during that same time (1966-72)

Ted Kennedy accused Robert Bork of wanting to force blacks to sit at "segregated lunch counters," to let governments at their whim "censor" writers, to ensure that "schoolchildren could not be taught about evolution. " But, as false as those accusations were, no one claimed that Bork was in league with mass murderers. There was still some line, however far out there, that wasn't crossed. Now, during a mass press conference last week with activists from dozens of liberal organizations, Handgun Control announced that "Perhaps most disturbing of all, Mr. Ashcroft apparently believes in . . . the same extremist theory subscribed to by Timothy McVeigh.

By Thanksgiving, if the people at Handgun Control Inc., have their way, an influential piece of legislation controlling the sale of handguns, known as the Brady Bill, will be on President Clinton's desk, a signature away from becoming law. The bill is named for James Brady, who was severely injured in the 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan. The bill calls for a mandatory minimum waiting period of five days between initiating a handgun purchase and actually receiving the handgun.

A new study indicates that people living in a city with strict firearm regulations have a sharply reduced risk of being murdered. The study, to be published tomorrow in the New England Journal of Medicine, reports that the number of handgun deaths in Vancouver, British Columbia, 120 miles to the north, between 1980 and 1986 was nearly one-fifth that of Seattle. Dr. John Henry Sloan, chief investigator for the study, said 388 homicides occurred in Seattle during the study period, while 204 occurred in Vancouver.

THE GUN lawsuit filed by City Council members Darrell Clarke and Donna Reed Miller against the state House and Senate in Common Pleas Court is admirable on its face. The suit seeks to allow Philadelphia to create its own gun laws, and overturn a state law that prevents municipalities from enacting gun ordinances. It's a long shot, but a good shot of conscience. It takes on one of the most frustrating realities of living in Philadelphia: A state Legislature that shows little concern for, or has no interest in, issues specific to the city.

Beware of Obama Once again, The Inquirer endorses Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination for president ("Inspiring vision," April 20). Obama somehow has been able to convince the Editorial Board that he isn't an elitist, even though his insulting remarks to his elitist friends at a San Francisco fund-raiser contradict this perception. I would like to remind Obama and The Inquirer that religion predated any notion of economic instability and that guns have been a part of rural America since the time those communities were founded.

With several hundred pro-gun activists converging on the Harrisburg Capitol Monday - many wearing Second Amendment T-shirts - it was not the day for Pennsylvania lawmakers to tackle any tough gun measures. Instead, state House members approved several initiatives that bore no resemblance to an actual crackdown on handgun trafficking. In turn, the gun-rights supporters celebrated the defeat last week of a tough anti-trafficking measure. Charlton Heston would be proud. Meanwhile, back on the mean streets of Philadelphia and other cities, the shootings continue.

WHAT WILL it take to bring our Harrisburg lawmakers to their senses, to break them out of the National Rifle Association's hypnotic trance and pass the handgun laws we so desperately need? A splash of cold water to their faces? A sustained high-decibel scream? A sharp snap of the fingers? The shootings of six city police officers in seven weeks, including the slaying of Officer Chuck Cassidy, at least got their attention. But with the House Judiciary Committee scheduled to hear testimony today from Gov. Rendell and possibly vote gun laws out of committee, gun-control advocates have rolled out a politician's best friend: poll data.

THE GUN lawsuit filed by City Council members Darrell Clarke and Donna Reed Miller against the state House and Senate in Common Pleas Court is admirable on its face. The suit seeks to allow Philadelphia to create its own gun laws, and overturn a state law that prevents municipalities from enacting gun ordinances. It's a long shot, but a good shot of conscience. It takes on one of the most frustrating realities of living in Philadelphia: A state Legislature that shows little concern for, or has no interest in, issues specific to the city.

Ted Kennedy accused Robert Bork of wanting to force blacks to sit at "segregated lunch counters," to let governments at their whim "censor" writers, to ensure that "schoolchildren could not be taught about evolution. " But, as false as those accusations were, no one claimed that Bork was in league with mass murderers. There was still some line, however far out there, that wasn't crossed. Now, during a mass press conference last week with activists from dozens of liberal organizations, Handgun Control announced that "Perhaps most disturbing of all, Mr. Ashcroft apparently believes in . . . the same extremist theory subscribed to by Timothy McVeigh.

George W. Bush has told us that if we want to know what he will do as president, we should look at his record as governor of Texas. In one respect, he's right. That's why I urge everyone to take a long and hard look at Bush's record on guns. In 1995, Bush signed a law, initiated and backed by the National Rifle Association, that allowed people to carry concealed handguns in public for the first time in 125 years. Bush had run for office on a pledge to sign such a bill. During debate over this bill, the governor sent me a letter that clearly stated his position.

Guns continue to be a central issue in the presidental campaign. For a year now, Vice President Al Gore has painted Texas Gov. George W. Bush as an extremist, a pawn of the National Rifle Association who recklessly endangered people by signing a concealed-handgun law. Gore has gone as far as to link Bush's signing of the Texas concealed-handgun law to last year's fatal shooting at a Fort Worth church. Handgun Control has just launched an advertising campaign featuring Actor Martin Sheen making similar claims.

Third District Congressional candidate Susan Bass Levin was endorsed yesterday by Handgun Control Inc., a Washington-based organization that backs politicians who support gun-control measures. Levin, the longtime Democratic Cherry Hill mayor, picked up the endorsement after holding gun-safety discussions with students at Haddonfield Memorial High School and Cinnaminson Middle School. Levin, who is challenging U.S. Rep. H. James Saxton, a Republican, was joined at the two events by Handgun Control President Michael Barnes and Bryan Miller, the director of Ceasefire New Jersey, a Cherry Hill-based gun-control group.

Naomi Post, wife of Mayor Street, was first on a list of people who were to appear with Allyson Schwartz at a news conference yesterday aimed at advancing Schwartz's campaign for the U.S. Senate. Post never showed up. But a dozen other dignitaries turned out to support a call from Schwartz, a Democratic state senator from Philadelphia, for stronger handgun control. The news conference was held shortly after noon on the windy, noisy sidewalk outside William Penn High School in North Philadelphia.