LOUISIANA IS NO. 1 IN GUN VIOLENCE

Louisiana has the highest rate of gun violence in the nation and the weakest gun safety laws, according to a recent national study, and state lawmakers are moving to expand the already permissive statutes.

According to the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, a nonprofit group that tracks gun regulations around the nation, Louisiana's push is contrary to a national trend toward strengthening firearm laws after the recent Connecticut mass school shooting.

"It puts Louisiana in the same category as a minority of states that spend time on largely symbolic measures," said Laura Cutilletta, senior staff attorney for the Law Center. "These laws clearly are not going to be upheld. It's something the courts will have to decide, not the states."

Correlation between weak gun laws and gun violence?  What are you thinking?   Our leaders will permit no such thoughts to influence legislation here in Louisiana.  Oh, and the lawmakers here rather habitually pass symbolic laws that will not hold up when challenged in court, and our tax money will be used to defend the legislation, to no good purpose that I can fathom.  Oh wait; I thought of a reason: To ensure that the voters of Louisiana will reelect the legislators to pass even more symbolic laws.

But in Louisiana, bills aimed at toughening regulations on weapons never made it past the first debate, including one that would have required owners to secure their weapons in a locked box or with some type of safety trigger when stored in a home.

When I consider the number of accidental shootings by children who had access to loaded firearms, such a law seems quite sensible to me, but that's just me.