The Gun Control Issue
Every time there is a shooting, expecially when it involves young people, the debate over gun control heats up. In the case of the Virginia Tech shooting, the issue is particularly divided.
On the one hand, the killer was able to roam and kill freely on a college campus that had a No Guns policy. The pro-gun factions are quick to point this out. If any of the students had been carrying a legal concealed firearm, the incident could have ended quickly, with fewer deaths.
On the other hand, there is evidence that the killer had a long history of mental illness. Those on the anti-gun side of the issue are asking how he was able to obtain firearms so easily. And why were the campus police so ineffective at stopping him?
The debate will not be resolved here, and I have larger issues that I would like to address.
The real issue is about FEAR, and what it takes to make us feel SAFE.
The pro-gun lobbyists are afraid the government will take away their guns. They need their guns in order to feel SAFE.
The anti-gun lobbyists are afraid of the wrong people carrying guns. They want to restrict the sale of guns to only sane, responsible people. The fewer the better. This is so they can feel SAFE.
With global warming such a serious issue, why are sales of massive SUVs still on the rise? Do soccer moms like to go off-roading in the mud before picking up junior after school? No. They think that the extra ton of steel around them will keep their families SAFE.
Everyone is afraid. FEAR has been the epidemic of the twenty-first century.
The media pushes FEAR because it sells. FEAR is sensational and draws attention.
At this rate, within another twenty years we will all be living in underground bunkers, living virtual lives through the internet. Afraid to leave our homes.
I have said this before, and I will keep saying it. STOP SELLING YOUR FREEDOM FOR A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY! The only real safety in this world is your Freedom - the freedom to take action to protect yourself whenever necessary. The more resticted you are, the more vulnerable you become.
Guns are not the issue. The issue is FEAR.
Get a grip, people.
On the one hand, the killer was able to roam and kill freely on a college campus that had a No Guns policy. The pro-gun factions are quick to point this out. If any of the students had been carrying a legal concealed firearm, the incident could have ended quickly, with fewer deaths.
On the other hand, there is evidence that the killer had a long history of mental illness. Those on the anti-gun side of the issue are asking how he was able to obtain firearms so easily. And why were the campus police so ineffective at stopping him?
The debate will not be resolved here, and I have larger issues that I would like to address.
The real issue is about FEAR, and what it takes to make us feel SAFE.
The pro-gun lobbyists are afraid the government will take away their guns. They need their guns in order to feel SAFE.
The anti-gun lobbyists are afraid of the wrong people carrying guns. They want to restrict the sale of guns to only sane, responsible people. The fewer the better. This is so they can feel SAFE.
With global warming such a serious issue, why are sales of massive SUVs still on the rise? Do soccer moms like to go off-roading in the mud before picking up junior after school? No. They think that the extra ton of steel around them will keep their families SAFE.
Everyone is afraid. FEAR has been the epidemic of the twenty-first century.
The media pushes FEAR because it sells. FEAR is sensational and draws attention.
At this rate, within another twenty years we will all be living in underground bunkers, living virtual lives through the internet. Afraid to leave our homes.
I have said this before, and I will keep saying it. STOP SELLING YOUR FREEDOM FOR A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY! The only real safety in this world is your Freedom - the freedom to take action to protect yourself whenever necessary. The more resticted you are, the more vulnerable you become.
Guns are not the issue. The issue is FEAR.
Get a grip, people.
posted by M. B. Dezotell at 10:57 AM
2 Comments:
On the subject of guns, I wish both Michael moore and Charlton Heston would keep their (American) noses out of my country's affairs.
(Sorry for the long delay in responding.)
Canada, like most socialist nations, has some fairly strict gun-control laws.
Canada also has far fewer gun-related deaths than the USA, as far as I know.
Not everyone sees a connection between these two facts, but I believe they are linked somehow.
Let me clarify my position on this issue: I am smack-dab in the middle.
First of all, I believe people need to be able to defend themselves. Trusting my government to protect me at all times is just not a reasonable expectation, in my opinion.
On the other hand, I don't want guns to be sold on street-corners like newspapers. I know, personally, a whole bunch of crazy and/or stupid people that I don't want to see holding a loaded firearm. I'm sure you can think of a few, as well.
There need to be standards. You have to prove you can drive a car safely before you get a license to do so. (I would, in fact, like to see more rigid standards for drivers. Vehicle-related deaths are more common in this country than gun-related ones.)
I would like to see a lot of discussion about what those standards are, and how they are implemented. But some kind of standard for gun ownership is essential, in my opinion.
There are those at the extremes poles of this issue that will hate me for that. (LOL. Like I care.)
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