Writers Note: In light of the events that transpired several days ago I feel the need to address it before continuing this series further. What happened on December 14, 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut was an absolute tragedy. The slaughter of twenty innocent children and six adults is unforgivable. Personally I think it’s still too early to start going into politics about it, however due to the overwhelming outcry from the anti-gun community I think I need to at least respond.
Yes, guns were used to commit a crime. I am not trying to take away from the horror of what happened. However, we need to try and keep a level head about this. The rights of millions should not be taken away because of the madness of a few. We have gun laws and restrictions that do their job, despite what the media and Hollywood try to tell you.
While I won’t comment on any details of this event because information is still coming to light I will say this: As always, we need to do our research. Like how often do these kinds of crimes actually occur (they are less than 1% of all gun crimes). Were the proper precautions taken by the gun owner in securing the weapons? Were there signs that the shooter was mentally unstable prior to the attack? We need to look at the root of the problem and the root is not guns, it’s the criminal. It’s the why not the what. A gun can do nothing out of the hands of a criminal. So please let us not attack the Constitution because of a criminal.
Finally, I would like to say that my prayers go out to the families that have been rocked by this tragedy. I agree with President Obama, my heart is broken as well. To target a child is unspeakable and to lose a child is unfathomable. I pray God’s comfort over the families and the town. You can be sure God is with you and you can be sure that I and your country are with you. God bless you all.
The following post has not been altered from its original text to include the events of Sandy Hook Elementary.
Over the past two posts we covered the history of the Second Amendment and the current place of firearms in our society. We’ve shown how guns were used to sustain this country in its earliest form and win its independence. We looked at how guns are used responsibly today and how there is a social taboo associated with them. Now that we’ve looked to the past and present it’s time to look ahead into the future.
I understand that speculation and conjecture are ill-advised was of trying to figure out where one is headed. I’ve always been a believer that to see where you are going you need to look at the past. You need to know where you came from to see where you’re going to end up. With that in mind, let’s take a look at past attacks on gun rights and the future plans of the anti-gunners.
Over the past years there have been many groups formed to fight against the right to own and carry firearms. Among the most known today are The Brady Campaign, Mayors Against Illegal Guns, and the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence. They all have a trend that they follow. Whenever there is a mass shooting in the country they are the first ones on camera demanding harsher restrictions on guns and asking for donations to fund their campaign. But when guns are used to stop crime and save lives they are nowhere to be found. They refuse to acknowledge that there is such a thing as a responsible law-abiding gun owner.
Despite this they are major players in the war on guns. But these groups can do nothing without the backing of the government, local and federal, to make their dreams a reality. So what can we expect from the people that swore to defend our Constitution? It gets kind of grim. We first need to take a look at the man currently in the White House and what exactly he thinks about guns. Hold on, this is a long bumpy ride.
There are many who say Obama is pro-gun. They say he is even the most pro-gun President we’ve had in years. Why, he even signed the National Park Carry Bill (Hint: that doesn’t exist). I beg to differ. Obama has a very, very long history of anti-gun statements, actions and legislation. Let’s take a look.
· September 9, 1996 State Senator Obama supports a ban on the manufacture, sales and possession of handguns and semi-automatic weapons, erroneously calling them “assault weapons”.
· July 2, 1998 Obama endorses a ban on all sales and transfers of semi-automatic weapons.
· December 13, 1999 Obama proposes banning gun store within five miles of schools and parks.
· January 1, 2000 Obama co-sponsors a bill to limit firearms purchases to one per month.
· February 20, 2011 Quoted as saying “There is no reason anybody should need an assault weapon”.
· March 13, 2003 Obama votes to ban hundreds of Common rifle and shotguns.
· March 25, 2004 Obama votes against lowering Firearm Owners Identification Card age from 21 to 18.
· April 27, 2004 Obama reaffirms his opposition to concealed carry.
· October 24, 2004 Obama says it’s a “scandal” Bush didn’t renew the assault weapons ban.
· July 29, 2005 Now U.S. Senator Obama votes against prohibiting lawsuits against gun manufacturers.
· September 22, 2005 Obama votes against pro-second amendment John Roberts for Supreme Court Justice.
· January 31, 2006 Obama votes against pro-second amendment Samuel Alito for Supreme Court Justice.
· April 22, 2007 Obama favors a ban on standard-capacity ammunition magazines.
· April 2, 2008 Obama again reaffirms his opposition to concealed carry.
· November 13, 2008 President-elect Obama weeds out gun-owning applicants from his staff.
· December 1, 2008 Obama nominates staunch anti-gunner Eric Holder for Attorney General.
· February 25 2009 Obama and Eric holder seek to re-instate the assault weapons ban.
· May 26, 2009 Obama nominates anti-gun Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court Justice.
· October 14, 2009 Obama reverses stance on a treaty to regulate arms trade.
· May 10, 2010 Obama nominates anti-gun Elena Kagan for Supreme Court Justice.
· November 15, 2010 Obama nominates anti-gun Andrew Traver to head the ATF.
· July 7, 2011 An Obama aide says gun legislation is in the “near future”.
· February 13, 2012 Obama cuts the budget in half for armed pilot counter-terrorism program.
· June 20, 2012 Obama uses his position to withhold document tied to gun smuggling probe.
· August 6, 2012 Obama confirms renewing support for semi-automatic rifle and magazine ban.
· October 16, 2012 Obama calls for reintroduction of semi-auto firearms ban.
So Obama is pro gun, really? And this isn’t even a complete list folks. Check out this site for this list and more info.
It’s evident, if you bother to look at the facts, that Obama does not have your Second Amendment rights in mind. Unless, that is, to limit them any way he can. Now I’m not saying it’s time to bury your AR’s in the backyard because they’ll come knocking tomorrow. Nothing moves that fast and he probably couldn’t get that far….constitutionally. But what I am saying is that we need to be vigilant. We need to see where we are on the slippery slope before we take a plunge and end up in a pit we can’t get out of.
Now what about the U.S. Supreme Court? Currently there is a dangerous 5-4 split on the gun issues. With one to two and possibly three Justices retire during Obama’s second term you can bet he’ll fill those in with more anti-gun friends. But let’s take a look at the current Supreme Court and where they stand.
Chief Justice John Roberts: Pro-gun (nominated By George W. Bush)
Justice Antonin Scalia: Pro-gun (nominated by Ronald Reagan)
Justice Anthony Kennedy: Pro-gun (nominated by Ronald Reagan)
Justice Clarence Thomas: Pro-gun (nominated by George H. W. Bush)
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Anti-gun (nominated by Bill Clinton)
Justice Stephen Breyer: Anti-gun (nominated by Bill Clinton)
Justice Samuel Alito: Pro-gun (nominated by George W. Bush)
Justice Sonya Sotomayor: Anti-gun (nominated by Barack Obama)
Justice Elena Kagan: Anti-gun (nominated by Barack Obama)
Two things seem pretty evident here. One) its obvious which party is the party of gun control. Two) if any Justices retire this term we can guess how the new ones would rule on any gun related cases.
So the President is obviously anti-gun. One look at his past and you can figure out his desires for the future. This is especially true when you consider his remarks to the Brady Campaign. He assured Sarah Brady that gun control was on his agenda but it has to remain “under the radar”. That’s a little sneaky, don’t you think? And the Supreme Court is practically split with the very real chance of it falling completely to one side. Is there anyone in Washington on our side?
Congress, for once. Currently there is no strong desire to push gun control either in the Democrat-held Senate or the Republican-held House of representatives. This is a good thing considering Obama’s support for the UN Arms Treaty. Should he even sign the treaty, it would have to be ratified by the Senate for it to take effect in our country. Luckily, even with a Democrat majority, there is a strong pro-gun majority in the Senate that would not approve of the treaty. At least not as the treay stands.
Ultimately the thing we have the most to fear is the use of the Executive Order by Obama. As we have seen in his first term, Obama has a tendency to wield the pen quite a bit (yes, I know Bush signed a lot as well, and while anyone who knows me knows I can’t stand Bush either, he was a war-time President during the peak of two wars. So it’s kind of expected).
Many people feel validated in their fears of what the second Obama term could bring. Gun sales have skyrocketed since the election. So I guess Obama is helping at least one corner of the economy, just not the one he wants to.
So to sum up this series I’ll leave it at this. We don’t know for sure what the future will bring in terms of the Second Amendment and your right to own and carry a firearm. But looking into the past we know how important guns were to the founding of our nation. We know our Founding Fathers saw our ability to keep arms as essential to maintaining liberty and democracy. We know how often firearms are used to prevent crime, defend our home and businesses, and to be vigilant in the face of evil. And now that we know what we may face ahead, we must remain constantly at the ready.
The rights the Constitution confirms for us are always on a slippery slope. Put too much regulation and restriction on them and soon the lines between “unalienable rights” and granted privileges starts to blur. We can’t destroy the liberty of many because of the crimes of a few. A madman walks into a theater with an assault weapon and kills multiple people. The gun didn’t do it, the crazy murderer did. Personal responsibility for crimes should start with the criminal not an inanimate piece of plastic and metal. The Second Amendment holds the others up. An armed man is a citizen; an unarmed man is a subject. I urge all of you readers, as always, to do your research and check the facts. The most dangerous words an American can say are “that could never happen here”.
I’d like to take this time to give my personal thank to some people and organizations that have made it their task to fight for our Second Amendment freedoms as well as advance the all-American culture of gun ownership. They have inspired me and encourage me through their actions. My thanks go out to:
The National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of America, The Second Amendment Foundation, The Virginia Citizens Defense League, The United States Concealed Carry Association, Mark Walters, Sean “Seanto” Young, Rob Pincus, David Codrea, Mike Vanderboegh, George “The Mad Ogre” Hill, the late Mark Craighead, Ted Nugent, and so many more I think I could actually run out of internet trying to list them all.
Thank you for reading. God bless all of you and God bless the United States of America.
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