"Now I don't want to get off on a rant here, but...." -Dennis Miller
Here is my Rant and Roar page. My rants vary in length depending on how I feel and how much I have to say about each issue. Once again, I'd like to point out that I am not trying to offend anyone in particular. This is just me blowing off some steam.
Wow. Where do I even start with this one? Gun control is a contradiction in terms in the United States. In fact, it's easier to get a gun in some states than it is to sneak into an R-rated movie. I find this to be completely mind blowing. Guns are one of (if not the) most dangerous thing a person can own, yet you can pick one up as easily as Chinese takeout. Children are getting guns as gifts from their parents for crying out loud! Guns are far too accessible in the United States and it's becoming more obvious with each passing day. How many more people are gonna have to be killed in high schools before all you guys down there come to this conclusion?
Accessibility isn't the only problem with gun control either. The truth is, 95% of the people who insist on having a gun, are the last people on earth who should be carrying one around! People just aren't responsible enough to be carrying around guns. I mean, WHY would you even need a gun?! Let's go through the most popular responses to this question, shall we?
"I need a gun to protect my family"
No. You don't. Let's look at the most common scenario that can involve family protection. It's the middle of the night and you hear someone walking around downstairs. You quietly get out of bed being careful not to turn on any lights (you don't want to attract attention). In the pitch dark, you reach around for your gun. Oh ya, that's safe. But... for the sake of argument.... let's assume that you keep your gun unloaded, locked in a drawer with the safety on. Now, you search for the key to the drawer in the pitch dark. You finally unlock your drawer and take out your gun. You fumble with bullets as you load your gun. Now, assuming your intruder didn't already steal something or kill any family members while you were straining to see in the dark, you slowly creep downstairs with loaded gun in hand (this is of course, if no accidents happened with trying to figure out a working gun in the dark). You see someone moving in your living room. You steady your gun to fire. What now? If you call out to the person, you could get yourself shot. What if the intruder runs? Do you fire? What if it's just little Billy sleepwalking? Did you remember to turn off the safety? What are the legal consequences of killing this person? The fact is, you're more likely to kill someone in your family than you are to protect them with a gun.
"I need to protect myself from the government"
Ok, I like The X-Files too, but IT'S NOT REAL! The government is not out to get you, and at the risk of bruising your ego, you wouldn't be much of a threat if they were. You may think that the government considers you to be the major threat to their plans of world domination, but the fact is, they don't. They don't care about you either way. They have larger issues to be concerned with. Stuff like keeping the US at peace with other countries. Despite what you think, there isn't a group of high level government officials discussing how to kill every gun carrying psychopath in the country so that they can create an army of super soldiers made completely from the body parts of celebrities. It's time to come out of your bunker, put down your arsenal and accept the fact that the government is made up of people like you and me, and that no one is out to get you. Except maybe for those nice men in the white coats.
"I have the right to bear arms! If the government takes away that right, then what's next?!"
The right to bear arms means that people have a right to form a militia if they are ever being oppressed by their government. It does not give people the right to carry around enough guns to destroy a small country. I also don't want to hear the argument that if the government takes away people's right to have guns, then it'll soon deteriorate into Nazi Germany. No it won't! I've heard the argument that if the Germans were allowed to carry guns, then Hitler would never have come to power. That's not true! Hitler drafted many people into the army, which meant that they did have guns. Hitler was also extremely charismatic. People followed him because they believed him, not because they didn't have any guns! You want to know what's gonna happen after the government takes away your guns? Less people are going to be killed in the United States of America. THAT is what's going to happen. Your right to bear arms is costing others their right to life. Personally, I think the right to life far exceeds your right to have a gun.
":I need my gun for hunting"
This one I can accept. Unfortunately, the majority of people in the US who carry around guns don't use them for hunting purposes. Guns should be accessible only to those who go hunting and should be used only for that purpose. Some of the guns you can purchase today are definitely not intended for hunting purposes. You don't need a sniper rifle with armor piercing bullets to go hunting! You're not gonna have to take out a flying armorplated deer at 1000 yards, ok? And if you are a hunter, then for the sake of all that's good in the world, keep your guns away from your children! Most adults aren't responsible enough to use a gun, let alone a child. Guns are not toys. Keep your guns locked up in a shed or something and don't let anyone else near them.... ever!
I now want to address the famous saying that "guns don't kill people, people kill people". In a way, that's true. Guns are just tools that people use. They are however, extremely effective tools when it comes to killing. Guns may not kill people by themselves, but they sure do help people kill. If I shoot 13 other people, then technically, I'm responsible. If I didn't have the gun however, I wouldn't have been able to shoot those 13 people, now would I? Guns alone don't kill people, but guns do kill people.
So, how can this problem be fixed? That's tricky. The NRA has far too much power. That makes the gun control issue much more complicated than it should be. If you can somehow get past the NRA problem, then I have a few suggestions. First, get rid of about 50% of your gun shops. Make them less accessible! Second, people should have to be psychologically evaluated before they can buy a gun. Gun shops are selling to any shifty-eyed trench coat wearing weirdo out there. Remember, if you can get a gun, so can any psychopath.
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