Staff Writer
Education, not legislation, is the key to preventing gun violence, according to a parishioner of St. Paul's in Rock City Falls who organizes an annual gun show there.
John Samascott, an antique gun collector and dealer, runs a show each February that brings more than 500 people to the church hall; St. Paul's is a mission of St. Joseph's in Greenfield Center.
He questions proposals from the Clinton Administration and Gov. George Pataki aimed at curbing gun violence and insists that new laws won't necessarily reduce the dangers associated with firearms.
"The biggest thing is education, and if you screw up, your rights [should be] gone," he said. "The guy in a crack house or the bad guy who's going to shoot you couldn't care less anyway."
Opposes new laws
Attempts by the Clinton Administration and Gov. Pataki to trace guns more easily and limit sales won't work because some gun owners simply would get around the law, Mr. Samascott said.
The gun DNA plan proposed by Gov. Pataki would require gun manufacturers and dealers to transmit bullets and shell casings from every handgun in their inventory to the State Police's Forensic Investigative Center. Computer images of these bullets and casings would be downloaded into a digitized computer database; those images would then be used by law enforcement officials attempting to trace the origins of guns used in crimes.
That plan is too confusing and unenforceable to work, in Mr. Samascott's view. "It sounds good, but when you talk to a gunsmith, it doesn't make sense," he said. "Nobody understands it. It's the most ridiculous thing. There are too many guns; and if the wrong person bought a new gun, he'd change the barrel. There's different ammunition you can buy that doesn't have any grooves in it."
Church involvement
Mr. Samascott, who has been interested in guns since he was a child, suggested having a gun show as a parish fund-raiser five years ago. Some parish council members were hesitant, but they went along with the idea and were surprised by how many people they knew who came to the first show, he said.
There were a few complaints from people who were opposed to a gun show being held on parish property, but "after that, we've had none, and the dealers, collectors, target shooters and hunters think it's great that there's a gun show in the church hall," Mr. Samascott pointed out.
Rev. John Weyand, pastor, didn't expect such a positive response to the gun show. "I was a little bit surprised, myself," he said. "I thought when [Mr. Samascott] suggested the gun show, we would just experiment having it, but it's gone over well. I haven't heard any parishioners complain about it."
Education
A former police officer, Mr. Samascott wishes there were more emphasis on educating people about guns instead of passing more legislation to try to solve the problem of gun violence. He mentioned how his daughter was baby-sitting once, and the children were amazed by his guns hanging on the wall.
"The kids stared at them and were fascinated because they'd never seen them. That scares me because that makes them want to touch them," he said. "I was raised on a farm, and so was my wife. A gun in the corner was a common thing, and you paid no attention to it. We raised five kids, and I'd put my service revolver that I wore to work on top of the refrigerator when I got home, and there it would sit. They knew that was daddy's belt, and you don't touch it."
Safety measures are taken at the gun show at St. Paul's: All guns are checked at the door to be sure they're not loaded, and gun ties are put on guns sold at the show to prevent them from being loaded.
Current laws
Buying a gun requires a New York State pistol permit and a valid form of identification. The dealer then calls the FBI and provides the name, date of birth and social security number of the buyer. If the sale is approved, a number is assigned to the gun and entered into the FBI computer and logged in the dealer's book.
"All laws that are observed in a shop must be observed at a show," Mr. Samascott said.
The gun show will go on because it's been safe, successful and beneficial to the parish. "Our dealers were happy, the public was happy, and the parish made out well," he said.