This is written by, and published with the permission of, Marion Hammer, Past-President of National Rifle Association, Executive Director of Unified Sportsmen of Florida:
Today, people seem primarily interested placing blame – not identifying the problem.Placing blame will never solve a problem that people refuse to see.Some people have absolutely no interest in stopping violence. They only seek to capitalize on acts of violence as a means to ban guns.
If someone uses a gun to commit a crime – they blame guns. Instead of blaming poor parenting, lack of discipline at home, and the absence of a stable family structure for producing gang-bangers and street thugs – they blame guns. Instead of blaming the misguided closure of mental health facilities where troubled people with mental illness could get treatment and help before their illness boils over into acts of violence – they blame guns. If a person with mental illness walks boldly into a school and massacres children – instead of blaming the failure to provide the same security for our school children that we see in banks, courthouses, and grocery stores – they blame guns.
If guns are to blame, why have we NEVER seen legislation that would ban any gun that could walk into a store on its own, buy ammunition, load itself then walk out and start shooting people? Do they blame matches when an arsonist set a fire? Do they blame cars for car crashes? Do they blame spoons and forks when people get fat? Should you blame the knife when you cut your own finger? Should you blame a bottle of milk for the mess when you drop it and it shatters on the floor?
People need to understand you can't solve a problem by blaming an object that is incapable of thought or of action on its own. People cause problems. People do bad things. Bad people can use any lifeless object as a weapon to do harm. Enemies of Freedom ask, "why does anyone need an assault weapon?"
In this nation we are free to make choices. We are free to choose a car instead of a bicycle. We are free to choose a car with an automatic transmission instead of a car with a stick shift. We are free to choose a big Suburban SUV with a 30 gallon gas tank instead of a small Prius with an 11 gallon gas tank. The 2nd Amendment DOESN'T say the NEED to keep and bear arms – it says the RIGHT to keep and bear arms. Whether or not you NEED a semiautomatic rifle instead of single shot bolt action rifle is irrelevant.
Further, all semiautomatic firearms, are functionally IDENTICAL. It is the same technology that has been used for over 100 years.The thing that has changed is people. Bad people are not held accountable today. It's easier to blame guns than hold people accountable for their actions.
Think for a moment about High Capacity Magazines. Would you rather have a car with stick shift and a 5 gallon gas tank? Or one with an automatic transmission and a 30 gallon gas tank? It's a question of convenience and choice. The kind of car you drive doesn't mean you're going to use it to commit a crime. It doesn't mean you're going to use it for a get-away car to rob a bank. It doesn't mean you're going to use it to kidnap a child. And simply because your speedometer registers up to 120 miles per hour doesn't mean you're ever going to go that fast. According to the National Safety Council, accident data, sixty (60) times more people die from vehicle crashes than firearms.
The issue today is Freedom. It's about more than guns, it's about Freedom.
Think about whether or not "the people" can remain free, if a government imposes strict regulations on gun ownership or bans guns? Our founding fathers knew it answer to that question is ABSOLUTELY NOT. That's why they included the Second Amendment to the Constitution. The only thing that insures freedom is the ability to protect freedom. Without firearms and the Second Amendment, you have no means to protect your rights and your Freedom.
Give up your power to remain free – and you are no longer free.