18 February 2013
The Newtown tragedy is still lingering on my mind. So I have some questions.
1) Why Assault Weapons?
I mean, why are they even available to anyone? Consider what they are used for. It is rather simple. They are made to kill a lot of people in a short amount of time. They are not used for hunting. They are not used for target practice. They are not used to defend your home. They are simply used to kill lots of people...period.
2) May I Please Be Against Assault Weapons, but Not the Second Amendment?
I am not anti-gun. I am against repealing the second amendment. Guns have their place. I want people to be able to hunt freely. I want people to be able to defend their homes with guns if they so choose.
3) May I Please Be Against Assault Weapons, and Not Hear a Sermon about My Rights?
We heard it with a person's right to property. That was slavery. In our day, we hear about a person's right over their own body and their right to choose. As a result, babies are discarded. Rights are not absolutes. Frankly, some people's claims to rights sound ridiculous to me.
4) When Do These Demands Stop?
Would it be alright with you if I parked my M1 tank in my front yard? I need it to defend my home. Also, I need my Apache helicopter to practice my target practice. One more thing, I need that new missile launcher. I am giving it a new nickname - the Deerslayer.
5) Is the Second Amendment a God-Given Right?
I heard some Christians say this recently. You know, the Constitution of the United States is not inspired. So, stop saying such nonsense.
I don't know what the answer to all of this. But this I do know. When courageous and innocent souls die in the face of blatant evil, our sorrow should move us into action. The status quo is unacceptable.
Your comments are welcome (as long as they make sense).
I hate to argue, Pastor Paul, but I have some issues with your first point:
ReplyDelete1)Assault weapons is a rather vague term. Any thing can become a weapon used for assault. Assault rifle would be more correct.
2)They are available because after soldiers brought them home after serving in Vietnam, they became quite popular. Gun manufacturers took advantage of this and started producing them for the public.
3)They are used for hunting. I have several friends and family that use them specifically for varmint and predator hunting. Coyotes and woodchucks are a big nuisance to the farmers and AR-15s are a great firearm for the style of hunting required for eradication.
4)Shooting competitions are also a magnet for those who own such rifles. These competitions are set up similar to combat situations, including hostages as well as the enemy. With the similarity to military training, it only makes sense to use similar weapons in competition.
5)I do agree with you on the home defense subject, though. Due to the nature of a bullet fired from a rifle(high velocity, low shock-power), it is rather unsuitable for close quarters combat in a wood-frame house. A shotgun or handgun is preferred.
Paul,
ReplyDeleteI too have some comments about this topic. All 5 of the points from Mr. Terry I am in total agreement with. While I have never had a desire, until recently, to own a AR-15 (which is one of the so called 'assault weapons')I do enjoy shooting them. I did own a semi-automatic Remington (no other rifle manufacturer I would own!!) for hunting that could have easily been turned in a so-called assault rifle.
"A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."
Our founding 'fathers' placed the right to own and bear arms so highly (2nd among the original 12) because they personnally saw what occurrs when the PEOPLE have no defense against their government. The writers of our Constitution came from countries that oppressed the people, forced themselves into their homes, etc. George Mason argued the importance of the militia and right to bear arms by reminding his compatriots of England's efforts "to disarm the people; that it was the best and most effectual way to enslave them . . . by totally disusing and neglecting the militia." I am confident that if George Washington, Ben Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, and the 37 other signers of the Constitution even dreamed of the weapons we currently, or in the future will, have they would remain steadfast in the 2nd Admendment. Their goal was to keep the People as well armed as their government.
Now for my 'answers'. We definetly do have a need to keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of dangerous people. The most recent happenings concerning shootings could have been prevented. There is a need to have mentally ill people better controlled. While it may be percieved that placing these people in facilities is in-humane, cruel, in my opinion that is what needs to be done more often. I would rather have my tax $ go towards care for these people than for some welfare/government assistant who is just lazy.
DeleteThe shooting at Clackamas Mall in Oregon recently was, in my opinion, an example of telling our youth that 'we are all the same, you can grow up to be whatever you want to be'. Here was a young man who was pushed through school, told like is great and you can do/be anything. Well, when he got out on his own with no special talents or skills he had no job, desires, or willingness to make a better life for himself. He felt alone, depressed and hopeless. He decided to take a gun to a mall and kill people. (Fortunately, a shopper had a conceled permit and a gun. He heard the shooting, drew his gun and warned the shooter who was about 30 ft away. The shooter saw the gun, ran to a corridor, and shot himself before he could kill no more than 2 people. An instance of a good guy with a gun stopping a bad guy with a gun.) As a society we need to decifer the skills/talents of our young people and guide them towards those. In my opinion, again, our education system needs to be torn down and rebuilt. We cannot tell a ditch digger he can be a scientist. The world needs both and both can/should be proud of each job.
Taking guns from legal, safe people will leave more people unsafe. It is not a coincidence that most of these kind of shootings occur where weapons are forbidden, malls, schools, etc.
Are my opinions simplistic, narrow? Probably to most. But I am just a working man who pays his bills on time, earned the $ to pay for what he has and asks nothing from no one. I have many more ideas/thoughts but I am sure I have tested our longtime friendship enough. I agree that the right to keep and bear arms is not God given- rather it is a privilege not to be taken or given lightly.