Even as investigators continue to search for a motive for the deadly mass shooting in Las Vegas, The Wall Street Journal cautioned more gun laws won't stop mass shootings by a determined killer.
"Stephen Paddock's motives for his murderous rampage in Las Vegas on Sunday still aren't known, and neither are all the details of his plans and methods," the newspaper said in an editorial. "But since our friends on the left have decided to make this a debate over gun control, someone has to explain why their familiar solutions won't stop mass shootings.
"The impulse to do something after an event of such horror is understandable, and progressives believe that every human problem can be solved with a policy tweak. A ban here, a background check there, and, voila, no more mass shootings. But American life and human depravity don't always bend to government dictates."
The Journal noted Paddock used so-called bump stocks to simulate, quick automatic-style fire.
"Outright modification of a firearm into an automatic is already a federal felony punishable by 10 years in prison," the newspaper said. "Congress could outlaw bump stocks, but how does it outlaw a technique? The practice of quickly 'bumping' a trigger with one's finger to engage in rapid fire long predates bump stocks or other accessories.
"Congress could again try to ban certain types of rifles, but a 2015 Congressional Research Service report found that from 1999 to 2013 assault rifles were used in 27% of public mass shootings. As for background checks, several Nevada gun shops have told the press that Paddock passed all requisite checks, and he appears to have no history that would have flagged him under a more stringent background system.
"He was able to buy his guns legally so he had no reason to use what is sometimes called the gun-show loophole."
The Journal wrote it will always be difficult to stop a determined killer, no matter what the laws are.
"We aren't opposed to background checks or regulating large magazines or bump stocks, but no one should think these will stop a determined killer," the Journal noted. "After each gun tragedy, progressives denounce the 'gun lobby' and demand that politicians 'do something,' but each time they run into the reality that their solutions won't work. The 'gun lobby' are Americans who want to retain their right to self-defense."
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