I haven't done much pontificating on the horrible, horrible events in Connecticut because chances are that if you are a regular visitor here, you share my opinion. It was a sad, terrible event, and the act of a mentally broken and morally bankrupt individual.
Now, because this individual used firearms in the commission of this heinous act, we law full gun owners once again find ourselves under siege, having to defend that which shouldn't need defending.
What it all boils down to, to me at least, is that I don't see ANYWAY in which taking the guns out of my house will prevent this from happening again. In the end, you CAN NOT prevent someone who does not value human life(especially their own) from carrying out horrible acts like this. If said person doesn't care about surviving, there is no possible deterrent to prevent this....all you can do is minimize the damage they can create.
One way to do this WOULD be eliminating high capacity, repeatable weapons. Even a pro-gun person such as myself has to admit that the very thing which makes a gun desirable for me to own(it's usefulness and efficiency at it's designed task) allows it to do extreme damage in the wrong hands.
But note, I said eliminating...not just making it tougher/more difficult for the law-abiding types out there. It would require the rounding up and destruction of every weapon out there...and even then, it would only eliminate gun violence. Like I said before, if the bad guy doesn't care about surviving, a whole world of violent options open up to them...and without guns, they will still find a way to commit terrible, terrible acts, killing children, and making people like me heart-sick, because those little children will still be dying, but I would then have no guns to protect MY family.
Anyway...why start is by saying I can still keep my Marlin? Bah...I've been trying to avoid the news, because it just makes me frustrated to listen to it, just like I've been trying to avoid facebook. I made one or two attempts early on to play the cool, logical, reasonable gun owner, but after being told once or twice it's my fault those kids are dead...I gave up.
I couldn't totally avoid the news though, and at one point this morning, I caught a talking head on TV talking about the (latest version) of the guns used, and the guns that the sicko decided to leave at home. The talking head was quick to label the guns left at home 'collectibles', and hint that they wouldn't have been able to take human lives, which is why he left them at home. The guns he described were a .22 'training rifle', a bolt-action Enfield, and a Henry-Lever Action.
Nice to know I have a number of 'non-dangerous' guns they might let me keep. Does that mean I don't need to follow the 4 rules when I use my lever-action .357?
Believe as you like, unless they can uninvent something, whatever is can be made in a shop at home. ANYTHING. I live in the state where the 1911 was invented, I have seen the tools he used to make that gun. I have those tools, if not quite the insight or learning... yet. Thompson machine guns? Pretty simple. "Grease gun", easier yet, and runs on 9mm batteries, so is cheaper! As farmers, with the tech skills to fix or make anything they have needed, are bankrupted, how many would turn to making those?
ReplyDeleteEvery time the government tinkers with the free markets and God given rights, bad things happen. Are you sure you want an explosion of black market versus your Marlin? I know you don't believe in God, which makes the notion of God given (or inalienable) rigts... suspect. So... I don't know what else to say.