Must See: A Sandy Hook parent gives testimony the Senate ‘should have heard’.

[pacalo]

I was spellbound watching this video on Lawrence O'Donnell's show tonight of Mr. Wheeler speaking before a Connecticut legislature's task force today. This man was such an effective speaker (& gifted in persuasion), he should run for office. I had to share this with you all.

Today, another Sandy Hook parent advocated for stricter gun laws on behalf of his murdered child. David Wheeler, father of victim Ben Wheeler, spoke Wednesday at the last of four public hearings by the Connecticut legislature’s Bipartisan Task Force on Violence and Public Safety. In his testimony, Wheeler called for a “comprehensive system of identifying and monitoring individuals in mental distress.”

In Wednesday’s Rewrite segment, MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell lamented that “no one from Newtown, Connecticut, testified at today’s Senate hearing, which would never have occurred were it not for the massacre of 20 first graders and six educators in Newtown, Connecticut.”

Speaking in front of a 52-member task force, Wheeler decried the inability of agencies to share relevant information about at-risk individuals’ personal histories, mental states, and proximity to firearms. He also advocated a ban on military-style assault weapons, saying they “belong in an armory under lock and key,” and for annual registration of personal firearms.

Finally, Wheeler invoked Thomas Jefferson’s inalienable rights of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” from the Declaration of Independence. “I do not think the composition of that foundational phrase was an accident,” he said. “I do not think the order of those important words was haphazard or casual. The liberty of any person to own a military-style assault weapon and a high-capacity magazine and keep them in their home is second to the right of my son to his life.”

Video here: http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/01/30/a-sandy-hook-parent-gives-testimony-the-senate-should-have-heard/

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/45755883/ns/msnbc-the_last_word/

[freshwest]

1. Definitely should have been heard in the Senate. I hope he gets more coverage.

[jambo101]

2. Very well done..

[Carolina]

3. I am in total awe

of this father's composure, clarity and sense of purpose.

I have a son, now grown, but remember well that precious age of 6. I even tease my son now that sometimes when I look at him, I wistfully recall his sweet 1st grade face.

I say that to point out that I cannot imagine the depth of such a loss. So, the ability of this father to express his plea with such reason, calm, eloquence is breath-taking; and yes, Congress and the nation need to hear him!

[Tx4obama]

4. K & R. And an additional VIDEO link below

David Wheeler

http://www.mediaite.com/tv/another-newtown-parent-answers-non-heckling-gun-nuts-everywhere/