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Show Friday, September 17, 2004 EDfTOfOAL !i IOAXO I EDITOEIALS ; Albert Manzi, President A Publisher Randy VWght, Executive Editor DoaaM W. Meyers, Editorial page editor John Caateffi, Public odvwer Christian Harrison. PubUc adviser ; Sam Rushforth, Pubhc adviser IN OUR VIEW Was the weapons ban effective in reducing crime? I he assault weapons I may be history, but ban don't expect the debate to end. ban The expired this week, de-- . spite pleas from some law enforcement organizations and gun control advocates to renew it. The law had required limitations on certain rifles with detachable magazines and other features associated with military weapons, such as folding stocks, pistol grips, bayonet mounts, flash suppressors and grenade launchers. What those features ever had to do with crime has never been particularly clear, but they nevertheless formed the heart of an emotional debate. President Bush said he would have signed legislation renewing the ban, but Congress declined to put it on his desk. This was convenient for the president, who can now play to both sides as the election draws near. The intention of the assault weapons law was noble: to get rapid-fir- e weapons out of the hands of criminals. It never accomplished that, since no weapons were ever taken away from anyone, and it was never clearly established that the banned weapons were in fact the weapons of choice for many high-capaci- criminals. , The law was spawned by three shootings in California, beginning with the 1984 snooting rampage at a McDonald's in San Diego County that killed 21 people. Five years later came the notorious Stockton, Calif., school yard shooting, which left five people dead. But it was a. shooting at a law firm in San Francisco in 1993, in which eight were killed and six wounded, that finally persuaded the law's sponsor, California Democratic Sea Dianne Feinstein to push for an assault weapons ban. Just over a year after the San Francisco shootings, President Bill Clinton signed Feinstein's bill into law. It banned the sale of 19 specific semiautomatic weapons and ammunition magazines greater than 10 rounds. Among other things, proponents assault argued that weapons do not have a legitimate sporting use. This isn't actually true, since semiautomatic rifles and shotguns are common in hunting, but it was nevertheless argued in Congress that they are not the first choice for most hunters. Indeed, some states limit the number of rounds hunters' guns can hold, mainly to add a greater element of sportsmanship and safety to hunts. Further it was argued that accessories like flash suppressors should be banned because they only serve to aid criminals in the same way they aid a soldier on a battlefield. Simply, a flash suppressor makes a shooter's position harder to find For a sniper shooting from concealment, hiding a muzzle flash would be desirable. Target shooters aiming at paper don't need that. Other cosmetic features such as bayonet lugs and grenade launchers were banned even though nobody could think of a crime in whicathe victim was or one in which the victim was blown up by a grenade. In any case, political forces lined up on one side or the other. Law enforcement, surprisingly, is divided on the questions posed in the debate. Some officers and police chiefs prefer the ban, seeing it as a means of keeping criminals, especially street gangs, from attaining superior firepower. officers, however, typically like the idea of an armed population. Officers in Provo said exactly that this week. They know ' the bad guys are going to have guns one way or another, and it can only be good when more good guys are armed. It's a force multiplier, as demonstrated in Los Ange- d bay-onett- Rank-and-fi- What do you think? Was the assault weapons bad a good thing or a waste of time and money? Send your com- ments to dhpollsheraldex-tra.coor call Please leave your name, hometown and phone number with your comments. comments should not exceed com100 words; voice-maments should be no longer than 30 seconds. Anonymous and unverifiable responses will not be published. m 344-294- The Daily Herald will publish comments on Sept 26. Korean shopkeepers used such weapons to keep criminals at bay during that anarchy, and how police were grateful for the assistance. And so comes a legitimate question: Did Feinstein's ban really accomplish anything meaningful at all? Crime has declined dramatically in the past 10 years, but that's nut asbecause of any ban on sault weapons. In fact, during that period, gun ownership in the U.S. has increased by a million guns per year. Crime is a complex social problem, with countless variables. There can be many reasons for a reduction in crime, ranging from tougher sentences, better police patrols or changes in the economy. It may be a combination of all those factors and more, or none of the above. , The assault weapons ban dealt ' with cosmetic features of a few firearms. But removing a bayonet lug or pistol grip does not alter the firing mechagun's nism, known as the actioa Rifles without bayonet lugs are still as capable of firing a fusillade as rifles with them. The rifle that John Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo used in their shooting spree in the Washington, D.C., area was legal under the weapon ban. Besides, guns manufactured before the ban were grandfathered, and magazines could still be purchased at gun shows, military surplus stores or from private parties. These magazines could fit into bayonet- and guns that were manufactured after the baa Nor did the law stop criminals from using banned weapons. The infamous Hollywood bank robbery, where robbers armed with semiautomatic rifles they had converted into fully automatic machine guns, took place in 1997 three years after the baa assault weapons have been used in less than 1 percent of gun crimes in the past decade, and less than 4 percent of all homicides in the United States involve any type of rifle. Government follow-u- p research, including a study by the Clinton administration, concluded that the assault weapons ban has had no impact on crime. Restrictions mainly affected A QiESIKN fER (UHSH PUBPOUTMf I ufiMLirnjKnv irv CKXXHSKB.. jet jMIII Hjp-noppi- A' The first question concerns the timing of this whole incident am proud of the professional way that Why in the world would any he and Elaine MkhaeKs have handled ' reasonable administrator decide-themselves over die past several days. I am proud to be the brother of someto make this kind of change one one whose only fault may be that he is too nice and too loyal (if that is possible). game into the football season Val and Elaine, you have represented and the beginning of other Brigham Young University and the church with class and dignity. It's unforfall sports? Hasn't there been tunate that BYU chose not to handle this situation with the same level of class and enough distraction during the dignity. days leading up to this season? But I to Val) am not me begin by admitting to being a . (sorry prepared let this issue die or go away without ask-in- g some questions that GUc5T are on many people's OPINION niinds The first question concerns the timing of this whole incident. Why in the world would any reasonable administrator decide to make this kind of change one game into the football season and the beginning of other fall sports? Hasn't there been enough distraction during the days leading up to this season? Surely making the move in the summer or after the season would have made more sense. Maybe some don't want to see coach Crowton succeed This brings me to my second point why were they (the individuals with no power) let go? The real reason Val's conI believe tract was not renewed is because of the activities of a few football players who have not been let alone convicted of charged criminal activities. I work in the criminal justice field and if they are guilty then they need to be punished to the full extent of the law. The problem is the public relations damage done by the media and in response the university wanted to look as if they were doing something about it. I guess the principle of "being punished for your own sins" gets thrown out the window this time. Thanks for falling on your sword on this one, VaL After listening to Fred Skousen try to justify trie firings, it is clear that they are hiding behind a recent internal review and study that was conducted The needed some sort of cover to make these changes. The obvious question that begs an answer is who is this individual who did the consulting and did heshe have an agenda? Is heshe associated with the univer- sity in any way or is heshe totally inde- pendent andor are they a fan? How about letting us fans see the results of this "in depth" study and make it public They certainly couldnl make the case Criminal background checks before gun purchases, on the other hand, have been an effective tool for keeping firearms out of the hands of the wrong people, according to government reports. This argues for a continuation of the instant check program (the Brady Law), which identifies felons and the mentally ilL who are ineligible to purchase a gua D.K. buy, the woman who opened fire in Salt Lake City's Triad Center in 1999, had a history of mental illness yet was able to buy a gua Most people would agree that such leaks in the systerd need to be sealed su&mm - ' for firing them on the record of BYU Athletics. Under Val and Elaine's tenure BYU has won more conference titles than the other seven schools in the conference combined. And they are consisschool in the tently the top non-BC-S which rates colSears Cup standings lege athletic programs. I would hope that maybe the man with the real authority and power for the last six years might step up and take some responsibility for giving the university a huge black eye. Maybe the other changes Mr. Skousen promised should start with him. Every time I listened to Val or Elaine ' speak they emphasized the mission of the churchuniversity: those being character, academics and excellence on and off the field To listen to Mr. Skousen, you would think these are new ideals in the athletic department. To me this was the biggest slap in the face to Val and Elaine. My last point goes to the way this was handled It is obvious that when Elaine retired that they needed to combine the two departments. Why not ask her to retire and throw her a huge party and give her the accolades she so justly deserves? Doesn't 44 years of one's life and loyalty deserve that? I thought this university was supposed to be different than the rest of "the world" BYU has reassigned or let people retire or "move on to pursue other opportunities" all the time. They have also made an effort to notify people of those changes more than a few hours before a press conference. At one time things were done with class, respect and appreciation for others efforts not this time. I guess nice guys (and gals) really do finish last even at BYU. . . I Inrin Bryntr Halt is a resident of Orem. The opinions expressed in the article are his alone, and not his brother's. MALLARD FILLMORE n HAVeB&NHON- - o&PvcHecxfr M , i i m i r How to comment letters to dhlettersheraldextra.com Fax to ,4 344-29. Mail to P.O. Box 717, . Provo, UT 84603. I Letters must include the author's full name, address and daytime phone number. I We prefer shorter letters, 100 and 200 words. Letters may be edited for length. I Writers are encouraged to include their occupation and other personal informatioa I Because of the volume of letters, we cannot acknowledge unpublished letters. I Letters become the property of the Dairy Herald V .' Bruce Tinsley 5 V 1 A m IV i . V 4 As an active member of the IDS Church, I Ve sometimes been saddened when IVe tried to share my heartfelt beliefs with those not of ; my faith. How frustrating it is when some-- . one wont hear you out and jgive your ideas a fair shot. How even more frustrating it is when instead of asking a Mormon what Mormons believe, a person only asks a sworn opponent of the church. The political equivalent of this attitude is allowing President Bush, Rush Limbaugh, AM radio or Fox News commentators to tell you what John Kerry believes.. As an ardent supporter of Kerry, there are a lot of things I can debate with Bush supporters . However, I'm becoming increasingly frustrated with people who are intentionally uninformed As an English 115 teacher at BYU, I was shocked when I casually asked my class if any of them had seen Kerry's speech at the Democratic National Convention, and a third of them scoffed as though even giving a different idea a chance were absurd. It's bad for our democracy and our souls to allow ourselves to become so hatefully partisan that we no longer even give alternative and possibly better ideas a moment's consideratioa iKristina Whitley Gashler Provo ';;' Garry Trudeau M&HAPB&N SUCHAKXJP v 1 k g ivnotrmnxiimw, you where he stands biased Let Yes, I am Val Hale's brother and I people. m.PKsiPBfr.f Dcm't let Kerry's foes tell Irvin Bryner Hale d ICOUUtfTFWABOXTO SAlQWOMSeS LETTER Former athletic directors deserved better from BYU high-capaci- CHBCKTHAT XXI. J. les during the riot after the Rodney King verdicts. Many point to how D00NESBURY Ht.p&sic&niMyz . il W m. r m . G&FUG&t Fcfc -- mm v h j ,! - |