opinion

Opinion: NRA life member believes it's time for gun restrictions, background checks, research

I am a U.S. Army veteran and life member of the NRA in favor of a responsible legislative response to Second Amendment rights. I have been using firearms since I was 7 years old.

As a response to various assaults in our society involving automatic weapons, including the St. Valentine's Day massacre in 1929, the National Firearms Act of 1934 was enacted. The NFA restricted machine guns and other exotic weapons. In recent years, multiple mass shootings have recently culminated in the Parkland, Florida, Valentine's Day massacre of 2018.

It is time to restrict ownership of assault weapons from the general population. This can be accomplished by enhancing the 1934 NFA to include semi-automatic weapons having magazine capacities of more than 10 rounds. The requirement to own or manufacture these weapons would require special licensing and extended background checks.

We need to improve the NICS system and require background checks for all gun purchases. We need to repeal the Dickey Amendment, which prevents the CDC from researching gun violence.

How can we improve the safety of our children and ourselves without an understanding of the data surrounding all shooting violence?

I was privileged to support the Feb. 27 student rally on gun control. Please follow their footsteps and support our children and demand action now.

John Oberle, Fort Collins