We are having a bit of a crime wave here in Milwaukee. The homocide rate is 30 to 50 percent higher this year than many previous years. It's still not huge like many bigger cities, but it's significant. Of course, since Wisconsin is a blue state, the first idea to come across the table to fix the problem is to get rid of the guns. They want to restrict sales and buy back guns that are already in the community.
I'm confused as to how this is supposed to help the problem. Do they honestly think that the gangs will disarm themselves? I'm fairly sure that most criminals get their weapons illegally, so restricting sales isn't going to do anything but hurt the public in the long run.
I wish I could say that getting rid of guns would fix the problem, but in order for it to work,
everyone would have to get rid of them. Every person and country on this earth. It's a noble idea to have an unarmed society, but as soon as there is one person with one, he holds the power. Mao was a smart man when he said that "power comes from the barrel of a gun."
I also don't like the idea of treading on the Bill of Rights. I would think that they put the first ten amendments in order of importance. The first amendment is the freedom of speech, and despite the Republicans effort, we still have the right to it. The second amendment is hurting. I'm all for requiring registration of guns, waiting periods, and training. What irks me is when they start banning weapons, particularly when they do it in such a dumb way.
The assault weapon ban is a frightening piece of legislation. First of all, it bans fully automatic weapons made or imported after 1988 for personal use. Fun fact is that if you incorporate yourself, you can buy automatic weapons for the "company's" use, and it's fully legal. You just have to return or sell the weapon if the company shuts down. The next thing it bans is larger magazine sizes. A trained operator can reload in under 3 seconds, so what' the point? There are a few other points to the law, but that's the guts of the issue. Legislative stupidity.
The general idea out there, is that guns and particularly fully automatic guns are bad and lead to our insanely high firearm death rate in this country. It makes sense if you only take a quick overview of the issue. One thing most Americans don't realize is that there are other countries that have high levels of gun ownership without the death rate. In Switzerland, every household must have an assault rifle and a significantly sized stockpile of ammunition (500 rounds last I checked)
by law. Why don't they have have problems? Training and attitude. They are required to know all about the gun they have in their home. When you train someone in how to use a weapon, the first thing you teach them is gun safety. Attitude is also an important factor. The Swiss are generally fairly reserved and polite. They think of the group before the individual. Americans generally are none of the above.
Anyway, I'm sure I'll revisit this issue again, but for now I'll stop. Some people might gather that I'm a Republican or Democrat by what I say, but honestly, I'm neither. I think that there are pros and cons for both sides, but since there are effectively only two sides to the political spectrum in this country, the issues tend to get polarized. More people need to think for themself instead of being sheep on the Republican or Democratic bandwagon. And to end today's note, my favorite quote about the freedom of speech.
"I love my country because I have the right to hate it."
