They want to federalize all gun crimes with mandatory sentences such as Florida's "10-20-Life Law." BUT. There can be no federalization of an assault weapons ban. BUT. The States can have an assault weapons ban if that is what the people demand.
Updated 12/17/2012 11:59 PM
...On Monday, he explained why.
"I think that is fundamentally a federal matter because the guns transfer easily over borders," Cuomo said.
Illegal guns often travel up the I-95 corridor to be sold illegally in New York City.
But advocates for gun control say more can be done here, like strengthening the state ban on assault weapons.
"In all my time in Albany we have put a ban on assault weapons year after year after year. We pass it in the Assembly. It's common sense legislation," Manhattan Assemblyman Keith Wright said. "The Republicans in the Senate have historically not had the will nor the ability to pass legislation that would ban assault weapons."...
10-20-Life Law was instituted by the Former Governor Jeb Bush. So, the former governor looked at the crime problem in Florida and decided to build bigger jails and prisons. Right? If a governor can't prevent the crime, then build bigger and better prisons. Put everyone qualified for imprisonment behind bars and throw away the key. Easy. That is what this is all about. This is simply stating there is no way of stopping violent crime.
Building more prisons is an interesting way of moving responsibility from society to a human rights issue enforceable by international standards, but, it doesn't stop the crime. As a matter of fact it escalates the severity of the crime. Basically, if someone is going to use a gun to hold up a bank, other than Wall Street CEOs without guns, and will receive stiff penalties, why not kill witnesses along the way?
Florida is not the state to look for effective crime laws. There has been a move in Florida to privatize the prisons. Some time ago, Florida was found guilty of substandard living conditions for their prisoners, so they have been building new prisons for a long time now. About four decades of new buildings actually. But, the privatization movement is fairly recent and the courts have struck down all the plans. Florida has become a Republican wasteland of policy that does not work and shunned by the courts.
The Florida Prison system is the third largest in the nation and if they haven't imprisoned enough people to stop gun crime in Florida, then dear God, when will they?
The problem here is not the proposed changes to gun laws in the USA. They are correct and needed. The problem is they are not politically viable for the Republican Party and THAT is the only problem. Every strategy the Pro-Gun Zealots are advocating have all been tried and they don't work. We have children to protect which means the police have to survive the day outside the educational classroom to be effective. Does anyone believe this is a good idea or policy?
I don't think so.
