MartinBrody
Member
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/15785320.htm
DON'T LOCK THE GLOCK
THAT'S WHAT FED AND STATE LAWMAKERS SAY
WE WERE SHOCKED to learn how little pressure it takes to squeeze the trigger of a Glock .45. The gun's firing mechanism is so light, even a 3-year-old can shoot it.
And accidentally kill himself.
Tylib Bailey-Henderson's death this week is tragic and frustrating because it could have been so easily avoided.
A simple, properly attached gun-trigger lock, and Tylib would still be alive -smiling, laughing, playing.
But gun advocates and their legislative buddies can't envision that happy image. It appears a child's safety is not their concern.
Legislators in Congress and in Harrisburg have so far refused to require that when a gun is sold or transferred to a buyer, it would also have a trigger lock with it.
Gun owners wouldn't be forced to use the trigger lock. They wouldn't face fines or jail. The idea is to give them immediate access to the lock with the hope that they'll decide to use it - especially with small children in the house.
At last month's Committee of the Whole hearings on gun violence in Harrisburg, a trigger-lock requirement was among the slew of gun and violence measure that faced debate and a nonbinding vote. Sponsored by Rep. Ronald Waters, D-Philadelphia, the bill that called for child-safety locks was defeated, 115-76.
In a gun-happy Pennsylvania, there's little chance that bill will ever see the light of day.
But what's occurring in Washington is cause for even more despair. The Child Safety Lock Act of 2005, which requires all licensed manufacturers, importers and dealers to provide a trigger lock with every gun they sell, is threatened with extinction even before it starts.
U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, R-Colo., has put forth an amendment that would prevent federal money from being used to enforce the law. That amendment must be reconciled by the Senate, sometime after the November elections.
Gun advocates argue that a trigger lock lessens their chance to quickly grab their gun and shoot an intruder. But we wonder:
Are these people more concerned about easy access to a loaded gun in their house than in protecting their children? Is playing a potential gunslinging hero more important being a parent?