By Britt Nelson

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.

Gun control is the one issue none of the candidates for president of the United States are talking much about on the campaign trail because the size and complexities of the gun problem is the problem.

For many voters gun control is a defining and hot potato issue across the nation.

Frequently presidential candidates are asked by news reporters, debate moderators and the public — during town hall meetings — to give their assessment of what can be done to quell the more than 32,000 gun deaths annually in America. So far, their answers are inadequate and downright evasive.

Candidate for president, Republican Donald J. Trump is scoring big with voters, according to polls, due to his repeated strong defense of citizen gun rights and the 2^nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, but the others no so much. Trump passes off the gun issue as a national mental health problem. However, he offers nothing substantial to reduce gun deaths in America.

In contrast, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton offers:

“We can have common sense gun reforms that keep weapons out of the hands of criminals and the violently unstable while respecting responsible gun owners … The stakes are too high, the costs are too dear, and I am not and will not be afraid to keep fighting for common sense reforms, and along with you, achieve those on behalf of all who have been lost because of this senseless gun violence in this country,” Clinton said in the Huffington Post of June 20, 2015.

Then on Oct. 13, 2015, during the first Democratic debate, Clinton said: “I think that we have to look at the fact that we lose 90 people a day from gun violence. This has gone on too long and it’s time the entire country stood up against the NRA. The majority of our country supports background checks, and even the majority of gun owners do.”

Every word Clinton said is hyped up, meaningless lip service.

Obviously, talking about “doing something” is often rewarded by voters more than actually seeing results.

Of the annual current average of 32,000 gun deaths in America — roughly 60 percent are suicides, 3 percent are accidental deaths and the rest are homicides. These figures do not reflect the staggering number of injuries, ruined lives or the cost of health care for the survivors.

Mass shootings such as 14 dead, 21 wounded recently in San Bernardino, California result in massive media coverage. The candidates jump on the media train expressing some knee-jerk reaction and offering empty empathy for the victims and their families.

President Obama went to San Bernardino, soon after the tragedy, as he has with other mass shootings. He admits politicizing such mass shootings to focus attention on additional gun control measures. Meanwhile, families of the victims openly expressed their scorn of the president for using these mass deaths to further his political agenda.

OBama has issued an executive order, because the U.S. Congress consistently refuses to act, to close the so-called “gun show loophole” that allows for gun sales at gun shows without a background check. But this action will do little or nothing to prevent future mass shootings and violent gun deaths.

Any reasonable person would have thought that after the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School slaughter in Newtown, Conn., that killed 20 children —  ages six and seven – plus six school staff and faculty would have inspired meaningful, long-term changes to law laws. But the event fell on deaf ears, nothing changed.

Frequently, television headlines read “breaking news,” and “active shooter reported.” But every day in America about 90 people die from guns alone. Except for scattered local news reports, these deaths go unnoticed.

The very minute a candidate or lawmaker would suggest something meaningful to reduce the plague of gun violence in America, pro-gun forces fire up the opposition and drown out that candidate or lawmaker with a barrage of 2^nd Amendment sentiment that focuses on the gun rights of citizens that “shall not be infringed.”

The 2nd Amendment is way out of control in America and it has been for decades. It is directly responsible for an estimated 350 to 400 million guns of every description already in private hands. More guns are being manufactured, sold and stolen every day in America. Just this past Christmas, more than 2 million guns were sold, according to the number of back ground checks performed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Guns do not spoil like food. Guns have no expiration date. A gun made in 1920 will shoot you dead today.

Many of these guns are already in the hands of the unstable just waiting to snap, not to mention criminals by the thousands have guns and they do not care about laws.

The gun situation in America is grim. Pass new gun control laws, improve mental health access but still the crazies and the criminals have guns — lots of guns.

Common sense and courage should guide candidates and lawmakers to suggest and enact new laws ensuring that each and every gun sale – private and retail – should be supervised by a federal firearms licensee with at least a 60 to 90-day waiting period for back ground checks nationwide and worldwide. All gun sales including handguns, rifles and shotguns should be included.

Ban the future sale of assault-style military weapons and armor piercing ammunition to the general public. Require registration for all assault-style weapons currently owned by law abiding citizens. Gun sales at gun shows would follow the same procedures.

Just as soon as any candidate or lawmaker would suggest these type changes to current laws, here come the sword rattlers from the powerful National Rifle Association and other pro-gun advocates to fight any change to current laws.

In Costa Rica, expats know that getting a gun here is difficult and for the most part legally impossible. But still, gun deaths are a serious problem in Costa Rica as well. Guns are everywhere.

Candidates for office in the USA offer no real hope. Lawmakers in the USA offer no real solutions. They are failing the nation. The size of the gun problem is the gun problem.

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.

About the author

Britt Nelson relocated to Costa Rica in 2011 from Florida, where he served as news editor for the Palatka Daily News, a newspaper owned by the New York Times Regional Newspaper Group (NYT-RNG) for 20 years.

Nelson served the NYT-RNG for 18 years in Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina and Florida as a correspondent, reporter, staff writer, senior staff writer training new reporters, copy editor, page designer, editorial writer, editorial page editor and editorial board member.