The Second Amendment is railed about by people on both sides who have no idea as to what was in the mind of the forefathers. Its words do not give a clear meaning, but one can jigger up numerous reasons for gun ownership.
Some say it keeps the government in line because guns mean we could rise up if necessary to prevent a dictator from taking over. This may not be as unlikely as it seems. A dictatorship was close to happening when George W. Bush was elected president twice. We wound up with the Patriot Act and Homeland Security costing us individual freedoms.
Hitler and the Nazis are often mentioned as an example of how gun control supposedly worked to prevent German citizens from rebelling against the government and overthrowing him. But this may not be entirely true.
A little research shows that the legislature of Germany had banned gun ownership back in 1919, long before Hitler came into power. In 1938, Hitler signed a law that actually loosened regulations on owning, selling and transferring guns. Of course, he still did not let the Jews own guns. But how well could they have fought back against the entire Nazi army with a few rifles? Remember, the majority of Germans supported Hitler. They didn’t want to rise up against him. It wasn’t gun control that stopped them.
I for one do not wish to register a gun nor get a permit to carry. I do not want anyone to know whether I carry or not. So when you see me neither you nor anyone else knows whether I’m locked and loaded. Under those circumstances I am more dangerous than you, if I know you have a permit. If I care to, I can get that information from government files. And if I can get them, then those in the big bad government have access to them.
Anyway, let’s face it, the semi-automatic you have on your hip is of little help against a tank or a trained member of an all-volunteer army – to say nothing of the guy in another state eliminating you with a drone. Yes, I know, David slew Goliath with a sling and a rock. That is, if one wants to believe in ridiculous fables.
How obsessed we have become over the Second Amendment and all the rhetoric from Wayne La Pierre. In the rush to feel macho through buying more and more guns, we have let valuable freedoms be eroded, through our own ignorance. Fortunately we can correct this, as we are a democracy and a conscientious voter is more powerful than the use of force.
If you want to prevent a tyrannical government from taking over, it is more important to worry about voting rights being trampled than gun rights. In the last three elections there have been blatant attempts to stop people from voting.
Wyatt Earp didn’t bring peace to Tombstone, it came about through the vote and elections. Like tires, even when politicians are good they should be rotated for best results. (That should also be in the Bill of Rights.)
I have always wondered who first stated, never discuss politics or religion. My answer, why not? They are the two most profound issues affecting our lives and how we live them. One is about those who study a myth, the other about those who perpetrate a myth. Both strive to keep us in the dark as to their real reason for this, which is the overwhelming desire for absolute power.
Just remember, guns keep us in line; voting keeps them in line. And a vote is better than a bullet and not as messy.
Galen Larson, a Korean War veteran, writes from Montezuma County, Colo.
