An opportunity to move gun discussion forward

At times the standoff in America over guns feels like a Showdown at High Noon trope, with two sides staring each other down in the public square, each confident they are the hero and the silhouette at the other end of the dusty road is wearing the black h

They are each armed with statistics to buttress their arguments, but it is passion that drives them. Some have a zeal for gun rights based on personal or American history. Others strive for change as a result of suffering incurred by a firearm.

A new survey by the Pew Research Center suggests these two figures, each paralyzed, may not be as distanced from one another as they think.

They apparently agree on three primary gun issues: communicating with children about safety; that such weapons should be kept in a locked place; and that owners should take safety courses.

“As a nation, the U.S. has a deep and enduring connection to guns,” the study pointed out.

That thread took root when our nation declared its independence and perhaps became trivialized during recent generations when guns became all-too-common props in popular culture.

Modern culture redrew the battle lines. The massacre of 26 first-graders and educators at Sandy Hook School in 2012 should be an anomaly. Instead, it is an extreme example of death-by-gun in the 21st century. Just as thousands of Connecticut residents raised their voices to support changes in gun laws, new pistol permits in our state rose.

The owner of a shooting school in the state noted that “Usually these surveys are on one side or the other, so it’s good to see one that finds the middle of the road.”

The president of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, the largest gun rights group in the state, opined that “acceptance of gun ownership and gun rights has been moving more into the mainstream.”

One striking statistic in the survey of 3,900 adults is that 36 percent of Americans with no gun experience could envision themselves owning one in the future.

It’s doubtful anyone would be surprised that the survey finds discord between owners depending on which political party they are aligned with. It also suggests the average American has been able to look past charged national rhetoric (such as the National Rifle Association’s “clenched fist” ad) and remain reasonable as well as responsible.

Members of Congress who seem overwhelmed by the issue should take note of this detail in the survey: Most owners and non-owners agree about the three restrictions on gun access that are repeatedly proposed and thwarted. Both sides support preventing people with mental illness from buying guns; requiring background checks for private sales and at gun shows, and preventing anyone on a federal watch list from purchasing guns.

That is an opportunity. That is an invitation. That is a chance for the two sides stuck in the soil on Main Street America to stride forward to the middle, recognize one another and realize they are standing on common ground.

One striking statistic in the survey of 3,900 adults is that 36 percent of Americans with no gun experience could envision themselves owning one in the future.