| Monday, July 14, 2008 |
| Gun 'enthusiasts' united |
I got more response to this "Face Off" column about the Second Amendment and the Roberts Court's D.C. v. Heller decision than any column I've written for the South Florida Times. Gun lovers are filling my email with long, long, long soliloquies about how wonderful guns are, how they shouldn't be "taken away" or "denied" to "law abiding gun owners" and even a couple of emails inviting me to grab a pistol and come to the shooting range so that I, too, can fall in love with the handgun. I wouldn't have enough time to respond to them all. Too much to do. So let me respond to all the Second Amendment enthusiasts collectively.
First: the Supreme Court in the Heller case sided with you. The individual right to bear arms is now the law of the land, and not in dispute, including by me.
Second: Nowhere in my column did I argue that the men in the black helicopters (or anyone for that matter) should come and confiscate your guns. Even the D.C. gun ban included no such confiscation order. No men in black. No helicopters rousting District residents and snatching away their beloved pistolas. One more time, just to close this matter out: no one from the government is coming to take your guns away, and I can't think of anyone who has ever argued that they should. I certainly haven't. What I have argued is that after Heller, the NRA can no longer use the specter of confiscation to scare up votes for the GOP.
Third: the SUPCO ruling also affirmed the constitutionality of common sense gun laws enacted by the people, through their local and state governments. Indeed, liberal carry laws are appropriate for some states (low crime, rural states like Vermont and Oregon have liberal carry laws, and few homicides) but not for others, where violent crime is making life a living hell for citizens and law enforcement alike. The D.C. handgun sales ban, whether you agreed with it or not, was passed by representatives of the people of the District. It was an attempt to deal with soaring violent crime. If Washington D.C. wants to have different gun laws than Vermont or Colorado, where I grew up, and where hunting is a major, popular pastime (and where hunters are some of the best proponents of environmental protection) I say more power to them. States should have the right to do what's best for them. If you want to walk around with a gun on your hip because that makes you happy, move to a state where you can do so.
It's time for America to come to grips with the violence in our society, with a combination of addressing the social ills and economic deprivation that feed criminality, and well enforced laws, including gun laws. The Heller ruling clears the way for us to do just that.
So please, no more emails warning me not to try and take your guns away. Believe me, I'm not coming anywhere near you or your guns. You can trust me on that.
UPDATE: One thing I have noticed from the responses I've received from gun enthusiasts, is that there is a kind of obsessive vibe to the love of guns. People who consider themselves to be Second Amendment guardians are really, really into their firearms, and rather paranoid about a fictional, imminent government attack that they seem to believe will lead to the confiscation of their guns. It's actually kind of creepy...
| Labels: NRA, Second Amendment |
posted by JReid @ 8:31 AM   |
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| Friday, February 15, 2008 |
| Obama on Illinois campus shooting: nix violence, not guns |
Barack Obama may have found the sweet spot today in commenting both on gun violence (in a statement on the tragic campus shooting in Illinois) and individual gun rights. From AP:
Obama said he spoke to Northern Illinois University's president Friday morning by phone and offered whatever help his Senate office could provide in the investigation and improving campus security. The Democratic presidential candidate spoke about the Illinois shooting to reporters while campaigning in neighboring Wisconsin.
The senator, a former constitutional law instructor, said some scholars argue the Second Amendment to the Constitution guarantees gun ownerships only to militias, but he believes it grants individual gun rights.
"I think there is an individual right to bear arms, but it's subject to commonsense regulation" like background checks, he said during a news conference.
He said he would support federal legislation based on a California law that would facilitate immediate tracing of bullets used in a crime. He said even though the California law was passed over the strong objection of the National Rifle Association, he thinks it's the type of law that gun owners and crime victims can get behind. The candidate issued the following statement today:
"Michelle and I were heartbroken to learn about the terrible tragedy that occurred in DeKalb today, and our thoughts and our prayers are with the victims and their families. While the full details are still unclear, what is clear is that this kind of senseless violence must stop, and all of us have a responsibility to do what we can to stop it."
Labels: 2008 election, Barack Obama, gun control, gun violence, Second Amendment |
| posted by JReid @ 3:04 PM |
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