New York Times calls for gun control in front-page editorial
For the first time in nearly a century, the New York Times published an editorial on its front page, calling for gun control, following shooting that killed 14 people in California. Diane Hodges reports.
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In its first front-page editorial in nearly a century, the New York Times newspaper calls for outlawing certain types of guns, like the modified combat-style rifles used to kill 14 people in California last Wednesday. The editorial comes three days after Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik allegedly opened fire on a group of Health Department workers in San Bernadino. The paper said it was a "national disgrace" that the kind of assault-style weapons they used are available for purchasing, and called for banning them. San Bernandino resident Sandra Martin agrees. (SOUNDBITE) (English) SANDRA MARTIN SAYING: "They say people kill people, guns don't kill people but if the guns weren't available, we wouldn't have a problem." But others, like Dan Squires, say the U.S. should take the opposite approach and make it easier for people to buy guns. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DAN SQUIRES SAYING: "If there was enough people, law-abiding people, carrying firearms, a lot of this could be stopped. And I hope that the next president helps make it easier to get concealed weapons permits." Republicans in Congress have mounted heavy opposition to previous attempts to restrict gun purchases.