Guns and Common Sense: Why the Constitution Still Counts

A Personal Admission

Let me be honest. Guns scare the beejabers out of me. I don’t own any out of respect for my own well-being. With my aptitude for things such as this, it would just be a matter of time until something bad happened. Not because I want guns used to resolve things, but due to my inability to safely handle one.

The Gun Control Debate

Years ago, when gun control first became a topic, I used to joke that you could own any weapon you wanted. However, all the bullets would be at my home. That would allow me to decide whether or not I would trust you with those bullets. In the many years since then, the debate has been all about “common sense gun control laws.”

Who Decides What Is Common Sense?

The problem, of course, is who decides what is common sense and how it comports with the Second Amendment. Yes, this was put into place at a point in history that is a distant memory. That said, once we start picking and choosing what parts of the Constitution we will uphold, our problems will be far worse than “dealing with an epidemic of violence involving guns.”

If you do not approve of what is currently in the Constitution, then get it amended through the processes of a Democratic Republic. To do anything else is to confer the power to decide things to one group or another, all in the name of “respecting lives and ending the scourge of gun violence.” Hogwash.

Looking in the Mirror

At some point, everyone needs to take a good look in the mirror. How many times will progressives insist that, since they are the good guys, they get to decide what the rules will be? Never mind that for many of us, these progressive “reforms” have precious little to show when it comes to improving anything.

Logic Versus Emotion

Logic requires the gun control advocates at least do more than dismiss what their opposition has to say. For starters, the cities and states that have the most restrictive gun laws remain the places where crimes involving guns persist in being some of the worst in the country. That is not a debate point. It is a fact.

Progressives argue this is because neighboring communities with looser laws allow guns to flow in. Yet nobody has ever suggested to me a gun control law, consistent with the Constitution, that would remedy this problem.

A Different Approach

Here is an idea: make the punishment for a crime involving a gun twice what it ordinarily would be. Somehow, progressives cannot find it in their hearts to go along with this. At this time, I will refrain from suggesting why.

Posturing and Reality

In this era of emotions being valued as much as facts, progressives substitute what they wish were true for what is measurably true. They congratulate themselves with performative posturing on subjects such as gun control. But where exactly have “common sense gun control laws” improved things?

The Role of the Constitution

Instead of posturing, it is time to examine matters within the framework of the Constitution. Laws inconsistent with the Second Amendment have repeatedly been struck down by the courts. The only way to change this is through a new Amendment. What it would say is anyone’s guess, and even then, improvement is not guaranteed.