Gun rights and why there are important

by Christopher Flynn — Friday, August 28, 2009

I came across a good letter on the internet entitled "An Open Letter to Those Who Wonder Why Citizens Would Want to Carry Guns in Public" by Jack Burton. It's well worth a read so go ahead and then come back here.

A lot of people get upset at the thought of guns. Maybe they've had a loved one taken from them as a result of a bad guy with a gun, maybe it was their upbringing, maybe it's just what they've read in the news, but other times, it's about control. Most gun control legislation targets a group of people that those in power are trying to oppress. Look at the playbook of most oppressive dictators and you'll see one of the first things they do is take away guns from ordinary citizens. Hitler (sorry, I know Godwin's law but bear with me), Stalin, Pol Pot, Castro, Mao, and many more all disarmed their citizens before exterminating a large number of them.

Lately there's been a lot of talk about racism regarding health care reform, I'm sure there's probably some racism out there regarding Obama but it's nothing compared to the racism that is found in most gun laws. The JFPO has a great video entitled "No Guns for Negroes." It's well worth watching.

The only reason to disallow law abiding people to own firearms is to control them. People with an inclination to not follow the law in the first place, aren't going to care if it's illegal for them to have a gun. Therefore, the only people the bad guys have to fear are the cops. And let's face it, when a bad guy is committing a crime, odds are pretty good the police are far away. When seconds count, the police are only minutes away. Their job is not to protect you or your family, their job is to apprehend criminals after the fact.

Some people call me paranoid, say I'm only looking for violence but their wrong. I hope to never have to defend myself or my family but if something does happen I want to be prepared. I also have a fire extinguisher in my kitchen, does that mean I hope my stove catches fire? Of course not, I have house insurance, does that mean I hope something happens to my house or the things covered under it? Of course not. I even wear my seat belt even before they passed the law saying I have to, does that mean I want to get into an accident? All these things seem silly but to me they are the same as being able to carry a firearm. I can't in NJ so I do my best to not need it, just like I would if I had one.

Finally, some people talk about guns like they control you or they suddenly make you a violent person. However, as I stated before, law-abiding gun owners, specifically those who get concealed carry licenses, are some of the most law-abiding people. A fraction of a percent of them get their licenses taken away and it's often because of crimes not committed with a firearm. I think this is why the open carry movement is so important. Most of the time when you see a firearm, it's either a police officer or the news story about a robbery or some other crime. Guns then become associated with the police or the bad guys. The open carry movement is about sending a message that yes, good people also have guns, they just use them less often.