May 23, 2014 by David K. Sutton
Here’s The Thing, Gun Nuts And Their Supreme Court Justice Cohorts Are A Lost Cause
When we talk about gun safety, yes, even the term “gun control,” what we need to recognize is that the gun nuts are a lost cause. The people who call themselves gun rights advocates, or protectors of the Second Amendment, well, they are not the minds we are trying to change. That’s what we have to acknowledge. You cannot change a closed mind. They are dogmatic. They will not be swayed. There is no argument a gun safety proponent can articulate that will permeate the impenetrable fortress that is the mind of the ideologue.
And no, I’m not an ideologue on the other side of the aisle. That’s an overly simplistic retort to a much more complex and tortured position. Because everything I embrace from a policy perspective is from a pragmatic approach to problem solving. And yes, I’m human like everyone else, and I have my faults, and I have my prejudices, but I’m more interested in solving problems, not defending indefensible ideology, or faulty pride. And I recognize that’s easy for me to say. I recognize that it appears I’m putting myself on a pedestal. I realize that its possible that my own ideology could be clouding my judgement to the level of delusion, just like my gun nut friends. But on the issue of guns, I simply don’t care what the gun nuts call me, or what label they attach to me. On this issue, they are wrong, period. Guns are a material right, not a human right, and it’s the only material right mentioned in the Constitution. And these gun nuts, including their Supreme Court justice cohorts, have twisted the meaning of the Second Amendment to suit their narrow worldview.
If the Second Amendment was intended to extend unlimited gun rights to all citizens, then why mention “a well regulated Militia”? They conveniently ignore that part. And even if the “original intent” argument for the Second Amendment was sound, I will respond by saying, “who gives a fuck?” We live in the 21st century, not the 18th century. Conservatives and others who have an intimate relationship between their heads and their anuses need to realize that original intent arguments are great for academic purposes, but for the rest of us, we need laws and regulations that work in a modern world, with modern technology, including modern killing machines.
We’ve all seen the footage. You know, the video from third-world countries where people are riding around in open-air vehicles with guns in hand, and guns hanging on shoulders, and guns raised in the air. You know what I’m talking about, right? And you know how when you see that, you think, “Wow, I’m glad I don’t live there?” Well, actually you do. Because that’s exactly what guns nuts want in America. They want the freedom to openly carry whatever killing hardware they want, in whatever location they choose. I’m not exaggerating here, that is exactly what they want. If you are uncomfortable with the imagines coming from third-world countries where people openly carry and display their deadly hardware for everyone to see, then maybe you need to stop being sympathetic to the cries from the gun nuts, and instead actively combat the disease in this country that has people like Wayne LaPierre (NRA) uttering nonsense like “the only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun, is a good guy with a gun.” What the fuck is this, a God damn cartoon? This is real life people! I really think there are a lot of passive people in America who have very little experience with guns, but if they saw in person the damage guns can inflict, they would dismiss the gun nut arguments and embrace sensible gun safety measures like universal background checks. But that’s the problem, too many passive people, busy with their lives, letting the crazy people rule the country.
