Our family has a Red Ryder Daisy BB rifle with which we shoot paper targets. My son inherited his father's target 22. It's a pretty thing. Holds a single shell and is intended for competition target shooting. My son keeps it clean, oiled, and unloaded. I assume it works, though no one has used it in a long time.
I like target shooting and I'm a good shot. I've never killed anything, not counting bugs ... and you won't get any apologies from me on that score. If insects stay outside, that's okay with me. In my domain? Bugs get as dead as I can squash them.
But the whole gun thing. The fascination with guns, the passion for them. The belief that we need to have them because if not, "they" will take away our freedom? Who are "they" and what exactly do they want? I don't know about you, but I don't have anything much that anyone would want. Frankly, if you want it that badly, geez, just take it. I'm not going to die for anything I own. They're just things.
WHAT FREEDOMS ARE YOU AFRAID OF LOSING?
At the risk of asking a stupid question, what freedom are "they" coming to take away? My right to have a blog? Is this blog so important that someone is going to bring the swat-mobile to stop me from posting? How about my right to take photographs? Does anyone care that much? The right to pay my bills? You can have that freedom. Please, take it. No guns required. My right to own a car? That's pretty well-regulated already. Watch TV? Charter Communications owns me. Feel free to take Charter Communications, however. Just leave me WiFi.
How about phone calls? I'm in thrall to the cable company and AT&T already. Could the government be worse? I tend to doubt it. My calls -- and yours -- are already monitored by the NSA. Seriously, exactly what freedoms are "they" going to take and why would "they" bother?
Virtually every aspect of life is regulated. You can't cut hair or sell insurance without a license. You can't own or drive a car without a license, registration and insurance. Most places, you need to get a license to build an extension on your house, change the wiring, remodel your kitchen or put up a new roof. You need a license for your dogs and cats.
We aren't connected to town water or sewage, so we pay whatever it costs to keep our well healthy and our septic functional. If they ever put in city water and sewer, I'm sure we'll be required to hook up and pay some ridiculous amount of money to do it. With all the perils, I prefer my own water. As of this writing, the air is free. If someone figures out how to regulate it, I'm sure they will. And sin. That's free, but there's always (heh) syntax.
So what is such a big deal about requiring gun licensing and registration? We control and limit citizens' access to pretty much everything. Why are guns sacred? Don't talk to me about the Constitution. We have reinterpreted the constitution to align with the realities of modern life over and over again. There is no reason guns can't be treated the same way as anything else.
The arguments against sensible gun control are stupid. If we control who can drive a car and how that car can be driven and there are a staggering number of traffic regulations enforced with considerable vigor, why can't we exert at least as much control over weapons? You can't drive drunk, how come you can walk around drunk with a gun? To whom does this make sense? Not me. I'm flummoxed by the illogic.
I would never want to limit my right -- or yours -- to own a car, unless there's good reason. Such as eyesight so poor you are not able to safely operate a vehicle. Or your having been arrested for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or being unable to pay for at least minimal insurance and registration. Or you can't pass the driver's test. It would be irresponsible to give licenses to blind, drunk, or incapable drivers, wouldn't it? How could equivalent oversight not be appropriate for guns? Seriously?
To own a gun, you have to pass a test to make sure you know how to shoot and care for a weapon. You become obligated to keep it out of the wrong hands. You need to be able to see well enough to properly aim a gun and be able to hit a target. You need pass a background check so we know you aren't a felon or a dangerous wacko.
You have to register your guns. All of them. You must know where they are and you may not lend them to anyone. If a gun is lost or stolen, you must report it. You need gun liability insurance on every weapon you own that contains a firing pin. If a weapon registered to you gets used in an illegal act, causes harm to others -- with or without your consent -- you are responsible for damages. If you don't go to jail, you can still wind up in court.
The nation, as well as individual states and counties can tax your weapons and refuse to license weapons deemed inappropriate for private owners. If you want a weapon that is considered unsuitable, you will have to get a different license, not to mention provide an explanation.
Simple, isn't it? We license cars because cars are potentially dangerous; you can kill someone with a car. All this regulation doesn't mean we don't own cars. Obviously we own a lot of cars. We simply try to control who is allowed to drive and keep track of who owns what. It doesn't mean we can keep every drunk off the road, prevent all accidents or stop joy-riding kids, but we do the best we can.
I have yet to hear a coherent argument against this plan -- probably because there isn't any. Guns should be regulated like every other dangerous thing.
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