Obama vows to gun tackle gun violence

NEW ORLEANS

A member of Firing-Line fires his weapon at the gun range in Aurora, Colorado. Firing- Line is located not far from where gunman Holmes is accused of killing 12 people. AFP photo

President Barack Obama pledged to work with leaders of all political stripes to “arrive at a consensus” on how to reduce gun violence across the United States after the Colorado shootings, which ironically increased the firearm sales.

Closing out a multiday trip that began in Aurora, Colorado, where he met with families and victims of the movie theater massacre there, Obama told the audience that such tragedies are replayed on a smaller scale in cities throughout the country on a daily basis, Reuters reported. “Every day and a half the number of young people we lose to violence is about the same as the number of people we lost in that movie theater,” Obama said. “I’m going to continue to work with members of both parties and with religious groups and with civic organizations to arrive at a consensus around violence reduction.”

Twelve people were killed and 58 wounded after a shooter opened fire at a screening of the latest Batman movie in the Denver suburb of Aurora last week.

Firearms sales, however, are surging as buyers express fears about both personal safety and lawmakers who are using the shooting to seek new weapons restrictions, The Associated Press reported.

Fear prompts gun sales

The shootings have triggered a fierce debate over gun control and whether government has a role in reining in the ownership of firearms.

In Colorado, the site of Friday’s shooting that killed 12 and injured dozens of others, gun sales jumped in the three days that followed. The state approved background checks for 2,887 people who wanted to purchase a firearm - 25 percent more than the average Friday to Sunday period in 2012 and 43 percent more than the same interval the week prior. Dick Rutan, owner of Gunners Den in suburban Arvada, said requests for concealed-weapon training certification “are off the hook.”

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