Another voice added against the debate on Gun Control

Steve Sanetti, NSSF President: “The Industry Isn’t the Bad Guys”

For those of you who may not know, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF)  is the industry voice for firearms and associated manufacturers. While they certainly represent gun manufacturers and want the industry to do well, they are also one of the leading organizations pushing gun safety as well as regularly working with the FBI and ATF to promote balance in gun regulation. And, coincidently, they are headquartered in Newtown, CT.

In a recent interview (Jan 24) with PBS for a Frontline episode, Sanetti discussed a wide range of topics from his own background to the current gun control fervor. One of the reasons I like listening to the NSSF over some of the other organizations is they don't speak down to people who have beliefs other than theirs. I personally think in-your-face speeches such as what sometimes comes from the NRA and Wayne La Pierre does more harm than good, by polarizing audiences and steeling people's resolve.

One of the interesting things Sanetti points out is that in Connecticut prior to the Sandy Hook tragedy, in the last seven (7) years there had been exactly 2 homicides that involved rifles. In contrast, every year there are about 40 homicides from knives, 340 from clubs or similar items, and even 20 from the use of just the hand or foot. My guess is that this statistic would ring true pretty much everywhere. But for some reason the assault rifle has been singled out and demonized as the most vile weapon to remove from our streets.

One other thing I really like about the way Sanetti communicates the message is by not taking on stupid arguments head on. When gun-haters say things to inflame the listener, the best argument is to show the foolishness of the comment and not attack back in kind. When Sanetti talks about gun-haters who say AR rifles are only meant for killing people, he points out that millions of people have passed the required checks and own them legally, that essentially none of them will ever be used to hurt or kill anyone, and that by implying those millions of people are nascent murderers only ensures that they will never cooperate in finding a suitable solution to the problem.

The last point he makes is truly interesting, and shows that as a group and as an industry there is a lot of care and concern. He notes that there has been a huge spike in firearms sales since the Sandy Hook incident. Being a representative of the firearms industry, you would think he views that as a good thing. But in fact he notes that much of this buying is for the wrong reasons. He says 

"we want people to own firearms for the right reasons because they understand, respect them, enjoy them, and will use them safely, properly, and responsibly. So the idea of a mad rush for everybody to buy a firearm I don’t think is necessarily the best trend in the world ...."

If you would like to read the transcript of this conversation, you can find it here:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/social-issues/newtown-divided/steve-sanetti-nssf-president-the-industry-isnt-the-bad-guys/