2nd Amendment Watch

The US Senate this past week couldn't even pass a bill that will allow right-to-carry across state lines. I'm not sure why we are wasting time on this since the 2nd Amendment already exists--there's your right-to-carry. But, since the Supreme Court has been allowed to legislate from the bench, we shouldn't be surprised the 2nd Amendment isn't recognized as a basic right of the people. Let's take a few minutes and examine the myths posed by the anti-gun crowd.

Myth: If everyone had guns, crime/gun-related crime will increase.
Truth: Criminals don't obey laws. That's why they're criminals in the first place. Gun laws only remove the self-defense ability of the law-abiding and makes them sitting ducks for criminals. Look at cities that have the strictest of gun laws and their gun-related crime is the highest in the nation. Now, look at cities that have little to no gun laws and their gun-related crime rates are very low. (See the NRA's report on Right-to-Carry with stats and figures supplemented by the FBI http://www.nraila.org/Issues/factsheets/read.aspx?ID=18)

Myth: If we had guns in the home, we would have more accidental murders.
Truth: I love this one -- accidental murders? Murder is PREMEDITATED by definition. You can't accidentally premeditate something. Furthermore, there is no evidence to support this. In cities that have fewer gun laws, you'd expect to find more of these homicides, but we don't. But, this also means that guns carry responsibility. Accidents will happen-with guns, with knives, with trampolines, with firecrackers - should we ban all of these as well?

Myth: Guns promote violence.
Truth: Violence promotes violence. A gun can't think or act on its own. The very existence of a gun doesn't cause one to be violent. How many guns existed during the violence of the middle ages? How many guns existed during the Greek and Roman empires and their conquests? None, exactly. No matter what the "tool" is that is used in a waring fashion, the tool didn't cause the violence, the person wielding it did. "But if the tool wasn't available, then the person wouldn't have used it." OK flapjack, then you have stiff penalties for intentional misuse of the tool. Remember, if the tool wasn't available, you couldn't defend your sorry carcass from an intruder in your home. Good luck swinging a bat in the dark when the gunman is 10 feet away and in one pull of the trigger you're spitting gum out through your forehead.

Myth: If we totally outlawed guns, we wouldn't have this problem.
Truth: Guns would still exist in the black markets and would still be used by criminals--again, they don't care what the law says. This is the same logic that would have to agree that the "illegalization" of drugs has removed all drugs from this country. Faulty logic can't stand up to the evidence!

Myth: Only police and law enforcement should carry guns.
Truth: There isn't enough to protect each individual. It is my right to bear arms so I can remain a free citizen and not a subject of the government.

Remember, we rose up and fought of the greatest military of its day during the Revolution. If our Government becomes that oppressive again, without guns, we have no way of stopping it. Don't be naive--it can happen here just as it does around the world.