Not sure. Being a law abiding citizen (well, I do drive fast like everyone else) I don't follow it much beyond the controversies I hear about. The gun lobby is strong and I suppose our size makes enforcement difficult, along with people and gun dealers who don't think they should be told what to do. You could have that with knives as well and we have a similar issue with drugs. Our own former Attorney General Eric Holder had "gun problems", didn't he? He was the Top Cop and he had a gun problem.
People will say that guns don't kill people, people kill people. While true to a degree, it is a gross over-simplification.
About 236 years or so, but I can't ignore either because history tends to repeat. It is just a prudent view to me rather than a necessary viewpoint if that makes sense to you.
It seems that would be a valid reason for total gun control, but it didn't work in Australia.
I hope I am never in a position that I have to choose between shooting a cop or not. But if I have done nothing wrong and fear for my life, it would be his that I would relieve him of. I cannot however currently imagine a scanario that would require it, but I still reserve the ability and right to protect myself. I am not sure a .22 would be a particularly effective weapon against a 9mm, .45 or a .40, unless I Aim small, Miss Small. ;-)
I disagree.
I don't consider government, laws and liberty to be mutually exclusive terms.
The condition of being free from confinement, servitude, or forced labor.
The condition of being free from oppressive restriction or control by a government or other power.
A right to engage in certain actions without control or interference by a government or other power.
the liberties protected by the Bill of Rights.
Well, not to be cheeky or answer a question with a question, but why shouldn't it be a right? Historically has always been and we have been fine with it. Murders and killings will still happen with or without guns. Knives are also used for killing, so we also outlaw those under Knife Control?
Now, having said that. "Because that is the way we have always done it" is probably one of the most abhorrent expressions and "reasons" I have ever heard. More on this later.
Well, this is where Constitutional interpretation becomes difficult. If there is a ruling on this, being that there are two versions (and the arugument that because of this the 2nd should be thrown out for procedural errors), there then would be a lot of problems and not just with guns. At that point, we would have to revisit every bit of contradictory language in our entire government to see if it would be valid in view of throwing out the Second Amendment due to ambiguous and confusing language. I just don't think it can be done.
How so, you ask? Well we had a decision by the Supreme Court that was based on a letter Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Danbury Baptists that supports the notion of "separation of church and state" yet that does not appear anywhere in the Constitution/Bill of Rights. So great importance was ascribed to Jefferson's "opinion" as it was interpreted. In this case then, the same equal weight given should be given to Jefferson's statement which can only be interpreted as being
the correct one Since being ratified by 3/4 of the states and authenticated by Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson.
But first:
Now:
We are not a democracy.
Then:
So actually, it is not a Federal issue then, it should go to the States or to the people for a vote on how we handle guns. I am not sure we are ever going to do that though.
Me neither. But then again, my hope is that by keeping my munitions; however small they be or however few in number, that the Federal government or whatever rogue entity might try to threaten the People's existence, they would think twice about going up against a possible 100 million people with small arms. It is almost silly to think about in those terms anyway.
Quote:
In your NSHO, but I disagree. There is no evidence that suggests that fewer guns lowers the crime rate, rather to the contrary.
I searched for "fewer guns fewer murders" and saw the above. The facts do not seem to bear this out. Our murder rates have been in decline since 2007, despite a large number of individuals owning guns.