A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
Like many other parts of the Constitution, I feel that amendment is no longer relevant. The second amendment was included in a time when almost every citizen owned a firearm and was a member of the the local militia. I believe that a new amendment is needed to redefine what the Second Amendment should be.
Only citizens of the United States with sound mind and body with no prior criminal record are premitted to own a firearm. A firearms is defined as a rifle or handgun used for hunting or recreational use. High power rifles, handguns, assault rifles, and high volume magazines are banned for civilian ownership and use. In order to obtain a rifle or handgun, the US citizen must have a valid hunting license and be subject to a psychological examination. There can be only one firearm per person per household. Firearms are not to be carried in public places, college campuses, or government property.
This will in effect reduce the number of firearms in houses and prevent the mentally and physically unstable from obtaining a firearm. I know the NRA wouldn't approve this, and neither would 2/3 of the states needed for ratification. But we need something. Of all western countries, we have the highest rate of gun related deaths. Why is this? Because we have some of the most relaxed gun laws of any western nation. Europe doesn't face this problem, and neither should we. Everyday, we lose over 30 people to gun related deaths. Every year it seems we face a mass shooting; in the last 15 years we've had Columbine, Virginia Tech, Northern Illinois University, an Amish school house in PA, the D.C. Sniper, Fort Hood, a shopping center in the midwest, and now this. Because of the supposed threat of Democrats taking away the guns, they are being bought up and hoarded at an alarming rate. A gentleman I worked with over the summer has enough rifles in house to arm a small militia, which is troubling. He is of sound mind and body, but is distrustig of the government. The Republicans want to take our country back to it's roots, but first we need to disarm it. Only then can we feel safe to walk out of our houses without the fear of facing a possible attack. Only then can we portray ourselves as the model country, the beacon of democracy and hope.
This post has hit a small soft spot with me and i would like to pose a few objections to your argument.
ReplyDeleteLet me preface by saying I am a country boy, who loves his guns and likes to hunt. I own several and my family owns many more. From small game rifles to large game rifles and handguns. Now that said i do not have a fixed political ideal. I am not wishy washy in politics but I also find changing ideals is the best way to learn.
Now onto your idea for "gun control":
Currently the federal statute states for handgun sales must have a 10 day waiting period with criminal and federal background checks. Mental checks are rare because of "Snap" effect. Most people who have long standing issues either act up and are caught by the legal system. Or they hide the issues, and soon they snap. The second group is dangerous because they CAN HIDE IT.
As for Rifles a valid state license is required for purchase. Thus it ensures citizen sales only.
High power weapons. What exactly is a high powered weapon in regards to firearms? A 30.06 weapon(which for non hunters is the average weapon for deer hunting) has a larger round than an M-16 assault weapon. The main turkey load in a shotgun is similar to our military shotguns. So can you give an example of a legal load, "High Power Weapon."
Government distrust abounds around most people nowadays, not just the gun owners. Stockpiling makes them feel better. Other people do other things as a way to relieve the fear and mistrust they feel.
I personally am not very trusting of the government because they are a corrupt group of heathenish cash mongering beasts. Democrats, Republican or otherwise.
And as for the whole beacon of democracy we are a representative republic. not a democracy, the last true "Democracy" was Athens before the conquering by the Romans.
Also, out of most gun crimes committed most of them are done by people who have obtained or are in the business of obtaining illegal substances or illegal firearms. We need the same amount of control on our legal weapons. But a lot more on the side of Illegal weapons.
There is good reason for people to be distrusting of and angry with the Federal Gov't. To think most politicians hold any concern for you beyond securing your vote is childish.
ReplyDeleteChildren who have been handed everything are arrogant to think their political notions are superior to those who founded the most free and prosperous society the world has ever known.
Talk about a "nation of wussies"! Sacrificing Liberty for "securing" is the ultimate pussy move. Hitler disarmed his people right before he started cooking Jews in ovens.
I am not afraid to walk out of my house today. I am going to go to work and about my day, and for better or worse, nobody is going to take a shot at me.
^Whoops, that 2nd comment is mine. I want to get credit for my advanced critical thinking! :oP (Google has not been cooperative with me lately.)
ReplyDeleteReason #1 to distrust gov't: After Hassan shot up Ft Hood, we were told to "not jump to conclusions". He yelled about Allah before he began, and mountains of evidence showed us he was devoted to radical islam, a group who has declared war on us. Yet the gov't media downplayed any connection. We spend $1 Trillion a year to keep our military overseas, bankrupting us, yet Janet Incompetano tells us that our biggest terrorist threat is domestic? This Jared wackjob has no discernable politcal or religous affiliation (even if he did, one wackjob does not define a group!) yet the gov't media immediately linked and blame the tea party. it is obvious this country has almost completely forgotten individual liberty and self-responsibility.
it is time to transcend the collectivist mentality that causes us to see people as black, white, christian, muslim, rich, poor, liberal or conservative. here's to seeing people for who they are- individuals. here's to individual liberty- the most valuable thing we can have. here's to transcending the cosmetic distrations that make us blind to the bigger picture.
-Swayze from Roadhouse, non-gun-owner (and "tea-bagger" btw. i was tea party before the tea party, as alot of us were. back in 2003, i could be found calling out Bush's policies as way too liberal: the nation-building, greenspan's keynesianism, the increased size and scope of gov't, the huge spending, the eradication of civil liberty, all of it. so do yourself a favor and don't even try to put your pop media induced negative stereotypes of the tea party on me. i've demonstrated i can easily handle myself in political discussion.
Shoot! That should be "sacrificing Liberty for 'SECURITY' is the ultimate pussy move". Man, I really need to proofread. Ben Franklin said that, he was well aware we'd hit dilemmas such as these.
ReplyDeleteDoes anybody wanna talk about monetary policy? The perpetual debt and inflation? The "Inflation Tax"? The artificially low CPI? The utter denial of the failure of the welfare/warfare state by politicians?
"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations who will grow up around them will deprive the people of property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered. I believe banking institutions are more of a threat than standing armies."
-Thomas Jefferson. I think we'd do well to weigh heavily the advice of our founders before we strut around like we have great solutions