Ohio poll finds large majority say no new gun control laws needed, but that isn't stopping Mayors Against Illegal Guns

by Chad D. Baus

Dayton's NBC affiliate, WDTN, is reporting that since the shooting in Tucson, a recent local poll indicates that more Americans are buying guns, and they don't want more regulations.

From the article:

According to a poll conducted by our partners at the Dayton Business Journal, 75% of people do not want more gun control measures, and just 23% felt there should be stricter laws on the books.

According to Joe Eaton, a regional spokesman for the Buckeye Firearms Association, more laws were not the answer to prevent such violent shootings.

"You can put all the laws out there, but again criminals by definition are going to ignore those laws whatever you do, and they're ignoring the ones already out there," said Eaton.

Eaton was also quoted as saying that there are already thousands of gun control laws on the books, most of which are not even being enforced.

"We have laws that are in place and if they want to expand those anymore they've got to show that the ones that are already there in place are making a difference, or that they are effective," said Eaton.

Eaton said more laws would only punish good citizens out there who wanted to buy a gun to protect themselves.

The criminals would find a way to get their hands on a weapon the way they have always done, that was illegally.

The report goes on to say that local gun store managers had posted signs up stating that business was booming, and they were looking to hire more employees. They had also added more gun classes, for those who want to learn how to use a weapon.

"Everytime there's a tragedy you hear gun control, gun control, gun control. People are worried they're not going to be able to get something so they rush out and try to get it," said Assistant Manager Jeff Mann.

Despite the fact that a strong majority of the public understand that gun control laws are impotent at stopping criminals, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's gun control group, Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG), is trying to use the recent spree killing in Tuscon as an excuse for Congress to pass more gun control. And several anti-gun Ohio mayors are joining him.

From WCMH, Columbus' NBC affiliate:

Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman wants to toughen up gun laws. It's part of a grassroots effort with other mayors across the country to keep guns from falling into the wrong hands.

More than 550 mayors including Coleman want congress to beef up gun laws. They want all the names of people who are prohibited from buying a gun to be put into a background check system and require a background check for every gun sale.

"This is an issue and we need to deal with it," said Mayor Coleman in an exclusive interview NBC4 on Monday. He says the best way to keep guns out of dangerous hands is to require background checks on all handgun sales. That includes private sales and sales at gun shows.

"If I sold a gun to you and you're a criminal, I'm not required to get a background check on you first," said Coleman, who is the Ohio Chairman of Mayors Against Illegal Guns. “The objective here is to simply have common sense gun laws."

What Coleman fails to mention that it is already illegal for private individuals to sell a gun to a criminal.

Again, from the article:

"Unfortunately, every time there's a tragedy that happens all the anti-gun people go nuts," says Linda Walker, Central Ohio Chair of the Buckeye Firearms Association.

Mayor Coleman says this effort was in the works prior to the shooting in Arizona, however Walker says mayors should be focusing their efforts on issues such as drugs and gangs to get crime levels down.

"The only person gun control affects is the law abiding citizen," says Walker. "It doesn't affect the criminal."

For his part, Mayor Coleman's Republican opponent in the upcoming mayoral race agrees.

"(Criminals) don’t really care about the laws," says Earl W. Smith, Republican candidate for Columbus mayor.

Smith says he believes more resources should be dedicated towards improving the health care system that treats these individuals in question.

"All too often focusing on a gun as the problem with violence is kind of akin to focusing on cars as the focus of drunk driving,” says Smith. "It's an emotional reaction to a very complicated problem."

Is YOUR mayor a member of the anti-gun MAIG? Click here to find out, and then give them a call to politely ask them to withdraw from the organization.