While this view is widely shared among gun control supporters, that hasn't stopped some of them from taking actions on the state level.
Speaking at a Johns Hopkins University summit on reducing gun violence attended by Bloomberg, Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley said he will debut gun control proposals this week that would ban military style assault weapons and limit the size of magazines and introduce a "common-sense licensing requirement for handguns that respects the traditions of hunters and sportsmen."
The proposals would also include mental health reforms, O'Malley said.
Those include additional funds for treatment and efforts to detect and head off serious mental illness sooner. The plan also calls for investments in school safety, including a center to study ways to improve security at schools.
He said the issue isn't a partisan one, but rather a public health issue, and said it "makes no sense to blame every factor but guns."
"There may be no way to completely prevent the next Newtown tragedy," he said. "But again, perhaps there is."
New York Senate passes new gun regulations
In New York -- where a week ago, Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo spelled out tough new gun control proposals -- the state Senate passed a series of new gun regulations in a 43-18 vote Monday night.
The bill now goes to the state Assembly.
Cuomo called for an assault weapons ban, background checks for people who purchase guns in private transactions and a ban on high-capacity magazines.
The tentative deal would include a statewide assault weapons registry and add a uniform licensing standard across the state -- altering the current system, in which each county or municipality sets a standard -- a state Senate source said Monday.
Magazines could have no more than seven bullets under the would-be agreement, according to the source, among other provisions.
Discussions had percolated about crafting a law, similar to one in California, that allows mental health professionals to inform law enforcement if they believe their patient could pose a threat to themselves or others, the source said. Law enforcement authorities may then revoke the patient's license to carry a firearm and prevent them from having a gun for at least six months.
One month since shooting
Meanwhile, bitter memories of the tragedy that spurred such proposals remains raw, especially in western Connecticut.
The one-month anniversary of the shooting went largely unmarked in any formal way, save for a moment of silence at a news conference held by a community group, "Sandy Hook Promise," formed after the killings to find a solution to gun violence.
Nicole Hockley, whose son Dylan was among the children killed in the shooting, was among several parents who spoke.
"I still find myself reaching for Dylan's hand to walk through a car parking lot, or expecting him to crawl into bed beside me for early morning cuddles before we get ready for school," she said, her voice quavering. "It is so hard to believe he is gone."
Others spoke of their resolve to ensure such violence ends.
"We refuse to be remembered only for our loss," group co-founder Tom Bittman said. "We want the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings to be recalled as the turning point when we brought our community, and communities across the nation, together and set a real course for change."
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