May 26, 1998

P lacing my 9mm Smith & Wesson semi-automatic with a 14-shot clip on the glass counter, I asked the guy at the Hanover Township gun shop, "How much?"

Not much.

"Fine," I said. "I'll take it."

Counting out the bills, the man pointed to a case full of similar handguns.

Very popular weapon, he said.

"I don't need mine, anymore," I said. "I don't need a gun."

Even if somebody tries to kill me.

Just because I'm walking around packing pistols strapped to my chest, arms and legs doesn't mean some outlaw won't get the drop on me and take me out.

Just as loads of cowboys in the Wild, Wild West died with their boots on, lots of people -- including cops -- have died with their guns on.

So what's the point?

Why do people feel the need to own guns, anyway?

To protect them from their own insecurities, perhaps?

If so, sad to say, things might get bad enough for them to shoot themselves.

A troubled Wilkes-Barre man with an extensive history of psychiatric illness recently shot and killed himself with a rifle. A man with such a documented record of depression and other disorders should not have owned a rifle.

An even greater tragedy could have occurred had he decided to take out a few people on the street before taking out himself.

You say you need a gun to protect your family?

When was the last time a law-abiding Luzerne County gun owner successfully defended a family member by pulling out a piece?

Still, there's something like 18,000 county residents licensed to carry a concealed firearm. In this county, I wouldn't license 18,000 people to carry squirt guns because of the potential for public menace.

That many guns in the hands of citizens anywhere should raise an awesome alarm.

And, if that doesn't do it, maybe a couple more teenage funerals will.

Another boy has struck -- this time in Oregon.

Expect more talk about the breakdown of the family structure.

This was a family breakdown, all right -- the kid massacred his parents before heading to school to right a few wrongs.

W hat equipped the youngster for the spree?

TV violence. Hockey violence. Professional wrestling. The Yankees brawl. The NBA playoffs brawl. Video game violence. Movie violence.

All of the above likely could have played a part.

But the gun lobby did more for this baby face than anybody.

Guns sealed the fate of his victims.

America has too many guns.

Just as the ruthless tobacco lobby encourages smokers to quote the Bill of Rights while railing about government interference in the lives of good citizens, the evil gun lobby encourages a militia of the mind.

Incite the kooks of hazards to arm themselves.

Then duck.

Like the bumper sticker says: "God, guns and guts made America free; pay any price to save all three."

We're paying, big time.

It's time to give up your guns, partner -- unless you're too scared to do something that might actually save kids' lives.

Since this is a touchy subject, we might as well start small.

Let's begin with those of you who have at least one child and own at least one gun.

Turn in the gun. Keep the child.

Take the deadly weapon to the police station. Tell the chief that too many police officers and children are dying and that you don't want to contribute to the death toll.

Say that you respect law, order and innocence too much to keep a gun around the house, a gun that one day might fall into the wrong hands. Say that you're a proud American who finally understands that guns only add to the violence.

Then go home and give your kid a hug.

It's better than a sucking chest wound.

Steve Corbett's column appears on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Write to him at stevec@leader.net