Keller @ Large: Find A Better Way To Rein In Guns

BOSTON (CBS) - In the wake of the Aurora, Colorado massacre last Friday, and the news of how easily the alleged killer amassed his unbelievable arsenal of weapons and ammo, there's been a lot of talk about gun control, whether or not we need new laws, better ways of enforcing the laws we do have, and so on.

Listen to Jon's commentary:

Whether or not you approve of the discussion being prompted, as it often is, by mass murders, there's no reason why that debate shouldn't take place, given the amount of gun violence in our culture.

I personally see no reason why anyone outside of the military or the police ought to have access to a semi-automatic rifle with a 100-round drum magazine, but I'm sure the gun enthusiasts in our audience will race to their computers to educate me.

But if we're going to renew this perennial conversation, we ought to absorb this eye-opening fact.

According to the Denver Post, in the 48 hours after the Aurora horror, nearly 3,000 people applied for background checks, the first step to gun ownership in Colorado. That was a 43-percent jump in applications over the previous weekend.

The same thing happened in Arizona and other states early last year after the horrific shootings in Tucson that killed six people and severely wounded a member of Congress. Ohio, California, Illinois and New York all saw huge increases in handgun sales.

Said one Arizona gun shop owner: "Whenever there is a huge event, especially when it's close to home, people do tend to run out and buy something to protect their family."

The success or failure of political arguments tends to hang on the way they are framed, and I have some advice for gun control advocates – better re-evaluate your framing.

It may be true that more guns make us less safe. But obviously, many people don't feel that way. Their reaction to the sight of gun carnage is to seek self-defense.

In that context, gun-control talk sounds more like an effort to disarm the innocent than defusing the violence.

When people feel unsafe, they will seek protection.

If we're going to rein in guns, a persuasive case must be made that there's a better way, and so far, that doesn't seem to be happening.

You can listen to Keller At Large on WBZ News Radio every weekday at 7:55 a.m. and 12:25 p.m. You can also watch Jon on WBZ-TV News.