Incoming National Rifle Association President Oliver North says school shootings are the product of a “culture of violence,” not the Second Amendment.
“The problem that we’ve got is we’re trying like the dickens to treat the symptom without treating the disease,” Mr. North said on “Fox News Sunday.” “And the disease in this case isn’t the Second Amendment. The disease is youngsters who are steeped in a culture of violence.”
He said everything from violence on television to Ritalin, a drug used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, may be contributing to the problem.
“Nearly all of these perpetrators are male, and they’re young teenagers in most cases, and they’ve come through a culture where violence is commonplace,” Mr. North said. “All we need to do is turn on a TV, go to a movie. If you look at what has happened to the young people, many of these young boys have been on Ritalin since they were in kindergarten. Now, I am certainly not a doctor; I’m a Marine. But I can see those kinds of things happening.”
Ten students were killed and 13 injured Friday when confessed shooter Dimitrios Pagourtzis, 17, opened fire on his classmates at Santa Fe High School in Texas.
Mr. North recommended schools implement the NRA’s School Shield program, which would allow certain staff members to carry firearms and provide training on how to respond to school shootings.
“If School Shield had been in place in Santa Fe High School, far less likely that that would have happened,” he said.
• Bradford Richardson can be reached at brichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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