Virginia Tech shooting survivor: It is beyond time to talk about gun control

The United States cannot push back a debate about gun control after the mass shooting in Colorado, according to Colin Goddard, who was shot four times during the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre.

"We just upped the ante for the worst mass shooting in our country’s history, and now is not the time to talk about solutions?" he said on Democracy Now. "It is beyond time to talk about solutions. This conversation should have happened before this shooting in the first place. It is insane when you hear this from people who say they want to put distance between it. This is when people are outraged. This is when people realize that this could happen to them. I mean, everyone goes to movies. Everybody tries to make opening night."

Last week, an armed gunman opened fire in a crowded movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing at least 12 and wounding 58 others. The victims range in age from 6 to 51 years old.

The alleged shooter, James Holmes, had tear gas canisters, an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle with a 100-round magazine, two Glock handguns, a Remington 12-gauge shotgun and wore a full suit of black tactical body armor. The mass shooting has renewed debate on gun control legislation.

"Just eight years ago, no one could walk into a Bass Pro Shop and walk out with an AR-15 and a hundred rounds," said Goddard, who now works for the Brady Campaign. "That was existing law just eight years ago. We can have that again. It’s insane that we look at these situations and accept them and say—and don’t get outraged that someone can walk out of there ready for military combat, with body armor, with riot helmets, with military weapons that are solely designed to kill as many people as possible. There is no other use for these things, yet we sell them to our general public."

Watch video, uploaded to YouTube on July 23, below: