The text addresses the issues that drive the arms sales in the country, including terrorism and demands of restrictions on their purchase.
It states that only a month after the attacks of September 11th, 2001, 750,000 arms were sold, and one month after the election of President Barack Obama it went up to 1.1 million, despite his efforts and by the Democratic Party, to limit sales and approve tighter controls on buyers, efforts blocked by the Republicans in Congress.
Two million weapons were sold after Obama's re-election and the deadly attack on an elementary school in Connecticut.
Citing government sources, the Times notes that 1.2 million reached the streets of the country in November 2015, driven perhaps by terrorist threats, experts say.
Paradoxically, despite the efforts of the White House to establish stricter regulations and background checks on buyers, the sales skyrocketed, as well as the shares of the main arms manufacturers, Smith & Wesson and Ruger.
Federal data analyzed by the newspaper indicate that the fear of restrictions on the purchase of guns was the main driver of the peaks in the sales, surpassing the effects of mass shootings and terrorist attacks.
After the slaughter of Newtown, Connecticut, Obama called for more restrictions, including a ban on assault rifles and high-capacity magazines, which led many people to buy them.
Although estimates indicate that purchases doubled, there is concern that these fall short, as there are states that do not require background for private sales, and others allow people to purchase several firearms with a single check of their past.
On the other side there are states where laws are very fragile and the acquired firearms are transferred to other regions with severe limitations.
For several years, the issue of weapons in the country polarizes Americans, as many argue that prohibitting their purchase or establishing strong background checks violates their constitutional rights.
sc/l2p/mem/lb
PL-13/MNA
Your Comment