“Mexico has some of the toughest gun-control laws”

From the Washington Post: “Mexico has some of the toughest gun-control laws in the world, a matter of pride for the nation’s citizens. Yet Mexico is awash in weapons.”

In 25 words, reporter William Booth has made the best argument against gun-control laws that could be made.

But worse than being awash in guns, Mexico is awash with gun killings. The homicide rate for Mexico is 15 per 100,000 residents — 14th highest in the world. Latin American countries dominate the top of the homicide list, so it is not just the drug trade.

The story went on to blame the Second Amendment in the United States for the proliferation of guns in Mexico, but never quite got around to Mexico’s standing as a murderous nation.

From the article: “Manzano said the wide gulf in gun laws between Mexico and the United States creates an almost irresistible arms-trafficking market for the powerful criminal organizations terrorizing wide swaths of his country.”

I have many times blamed Mexico’s illegal drug trade on American law-breakers who use these drugs, particularly marijuana which accounts for roughly two thirds of the Mexican drug trade.

The difference of course is that Americans legally sell guns where as the drug dealers are braeking the law on both sides of the border.

But if we want to stop the sale of guns to Mexicans, make gun dealers check IDs so they don’t sell to illegal immigrants.

Likewise, the fault for guns in Mexico lies with the Mexicans, not the Americans.