Focus on the individuals, not the weapons

If nothing else, the left is predictable.

A house party in Bridgeport, Connecticut -- complete with DJ and alcohol sales -- turned ugly this past weekend when two thugs ambushed partygoers and wounded 13 people.

But before the gun smoke had cleared, the opportunistic Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal called for additional gun control measures.

As always, the left's response to all violence is more gun control.

The good progressive senator ignores the circumstances of this specific violence and makes a judgement call long before the full details are known.

But all tragedies -- in the minds of the leftists -- provide fodder for advancing the gun control narrative.

While reading the details of this Saturday night's violence, I came across another story that dovetails into the gun control hysteria.

ISIS last weekend released yet another recruitment video where they urged their followers to utilize at-home items for violence like baseball bats and power screwdrivers. The video applauded the Nice, France, attack where a cargo truck was driven through a holiday crowd and killed 86.

I can only assume that the left will soon start campaigning for a baseball bat and power screwdriver ban.

The left somehow believe that the culprit to escalating violence centers on the weapon of choice instead of the individual motives.

And this misplaced focus by the left is the source of ample frustration.

If two warring gangs in Chicago decide to seek revenge for whatever reason, the problem is not their choice of weapons but their warped motivation. There are countless examples across the world where deranged individuals or terrorist-motivated zealots resort to violence. If they choose guns to create mayhem, the finger is always pointed at the weapon and not the underlying motives.

Not too long ago, I proposed -- in full jest -- that we enact the most draconian gun control measures under the sun. And when they failed and when violence continued unabated, the left would lose their phony gun control argument for all eternity.

Whether it's gang bangers in Connecticut or ISIS at home or abroad, the focus should fall on the individuals and their motivation and not on their choice of weaponry.

It could easily be argued we have a gun problem. But stating the obvious, the problem is illegal guns stolen or sold out of the trunk of a car.

To propose gun control measures on law-abiding citizens is to disarm Americans, and, thus, create more potential victims.

Address the real problem. And drop the phony talking points of gun control while ignoring the core issues that create this violence.

Michael Jensen is the editor of the Standard Democrat in Sikeston, Missouri.