I am not a member of the NRA but I own guns. To many gun control activists that is an anomaly, but I am actually among about 94 percent of gun owners. I am not a freeloader on a Constitutional right that NRA keeps Democrats from wiping out, nor am I some racist redneck who wants to open carry a .50 caliber rifle into Starbucks, the stereotype manufactured by the other side.
I'm among the majority of gun owners by far.
The 2nd Amendment may read clunky to modern eyes but it was never about only the army having guns, or hunting. Sam Adams, the firebrand of the Revolution, refused to have Massachusetts ratify the new Constitution unless the right for individuals to own guns was expressly included, along with freedom of the press etc.; “the said Constitution be never construed to authorize Congress to infringe the just liberty of the press, or the rights of conscience; or to prevent the people of the United States, who are peaceable citizens, from keeping their own arms". He had good reason to worry. It was Massachusetts that had British troops taking over their homes and seizing their guns. He had to worry a new national government could do the same thing the first time Massachusetts disagreed.
And the U.S. government proved him right during the next century. Native Americans who gave up their guns because the government said they'd protect them regretted it.
But who can the 94 percent embrace when there seems to be only NRA on one side and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence on the other?
Perhaps to the Center for Gun Rights and Responsibility, founded by Dan Gross, former president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, and firearms expert Rob Pincus, announced last week at the Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show in Las Vegas. They believe that non-legislative educational awareness works best.
The Winchester 1894 mode is the best-selling hunting rifle in history.
Jim Brady, President Reagan's press secretary, was disabled by a bullet during the Reagan assassination attempt of 1981. He was shot by a mentally ill person. I grew up around guns, not one of them was ever locked up. My father practiced "son control, not gun control" and we never shot anyone. But none of us had mental illness. None of us were criminals.
Obviously that is not always the case. Some people do have mental illness, some people are irresponsible, some are criminals. My family didn't have loaded 9mm pistols that toddlers could access. And my kids have not grown up in a rural hunting family, so my guns are locked up, because perhaps they are more likely to see guns as toys in movies.
Parenting and being a good role model is important but parents don't always see what others see, especially about their behavior of kids, so safety matters. Lack of access to guns won't prevent any suicides - guns are banned in Japan yet suicide is still more common than in the US, they use rope - but it builds in a cool-down period. A noose takes real planning. And if someone has a mental illness issue, that may be time to have a mental health issue recognized and get treatment.
Anti-gun activists want government to spend more money on gun statistics because they know career bureaucrats are going to overwhelmingly be from the political party that is most likely to target gun owners but there is already data no one can dispute. While accidents tug on heart strings but they are a false flag just like claims about "assault" rifles. Instead, mental illness is tied with criminal behavior for gun deaths and that means greater awareness of the risks of leaving guns unlocked will save lives. That won't do anything to stop crime but at least if someone breaks into your home to harm your family, a safely accessible gun in the house gives you a much better chance than hoping government arrives in time.
