Massacre in California is call to action in Ohio

To state and federal law- makers who refuse to support even the most basic gun-control legislation; to Americans who parrot the NRA’s slogan, “I’ll give you my gun when you pry it from my cold, dead hands”; to gun dealers who think about nothing more than the almighty dollar; and, to weapons manufacturers who make high- velocity bullets and magazines designed for prolonged firing, the following list of the victims of Wednesday’s Borderline Bar & Grill massacre in Thousand Oaks, Calif., is for you:

Alaina Housley, 18. She was described by her family as “an incredible young woman with so much life ahead of her …”

Justin Meek, 23. The college student died “heroically” and “saved lives in the incident,” said California Lutheran University President Chris Kimball.

Cody Gifford-Coffman, 22. He dreamed of serving this nation and was talking to recruiters about joining the Army.

Sgt. Ron Helus, 54. He was a sheriff’s deputy in Ventura County who charged into the bar with no regard for his own safety and was shot by the lone gunman.

Sean Adler, 48. He was once a high- school wrestling coach.

Blake Dingman, 21.

Noel Sparks, 21.

Jake Dunham, 21. He was close friends with Blake Dingman.

Telemachus Orfanos, 27. He survived the Las Vegas outdoor concert massacre. His mother said she didn’t want thoughts and prayers. She wants gun control.

Kristina Morisette, 20. She worked as a cashier at the Borderline Bar & Grill.

Daniel Manrique, 33. He was a Marine Corps veteran and was dedicated to helping other veterans adjust to civilian life.

Mark Meza, 20. He was employed at the Borderline Bar & Grill.

ABC 7 Eyewitness News in Chicago aired the list of the 12 innocent victims who were gunned down by 28-year-old Ian David Long, a former machine gunner and veteran of the war in Afghanistan.

Long took his own life in an act of cowardice that has become the calling card of such murderers.

Last spring, Long was interviewed by police at his home after an episode of agitated behavior that officials were told might be post-traumatic stress disorder.

There were other incidents at the Newbury Park home he shared with his mother that prompted neighbors to be wary of him. He should never have been permitted to possess firearms or be around weapons of mass destruction.

Long was armed with a Glock 21, a .45-caliber designed to hold 10 rounds plus one in the chamber.

The patrons attending a country- music dance night at the bar never stood a chance against the killing machine.

That’s why it’s important to name the victims. Such massacres have become so commonplace that those killed are often thought of as nothing more than statistics.

‘SENSIBLE APPROACH’ FOR OHIO

A couple of days after the Borderline Bar & Grill shooting, Ohio Gov. John Kasich issued a news release urging passage of a “sensible, consensus approach to protecting Ohioans from gun violence.”

In November 2017, the governor appointed a group of leaders from a variety of backgrounds and with a range of views to search for common ground in formulating policies to protect Ohioans from gun violence.

We have strongly supported the initiative and on several occasions criticized the Republican-controlled General Assembly for not acting expeditiously on the passage of legislation.

House Bill 585 and Senate Bill 288 sponsored by Republicans have languished in the Legislature. There has been no action beyond committee hearings.

Here’s how one media outlet explained the delay in enacting Kasich’s reasonable gun-control measure:

“Most Republicans in the Ohio General Assembly, where the GOP holds a super-majority, don’t want to touch anything that could be interpreted as gun control.”

This fear of the powerful National Rifle Association is costing American lives.

What Kasich’s panel proposed can hardly be described as an assault on the Second Amendment. Here’s one of the proposals: Enact new legal protections to keep firearms from potentially dangerous people.

There’s no reason the General Assembly can’t pass the bills pending in the House and Senate before the end of the year, when Kasich will be leaving office because of term limits.

Reread the list of the victims of the mass shooting in California, and ask yourself this question: When is enough enough?