GUNS: A right or a privilege?
Scenario No. 1 - At an outdoor political rally a lone gunman moves through the crowd. He pulls his gun and manages to get off nine rounds of ammunition, killing 4, and wounding 3 before he is subdued. Total 4 dead 3 wounded.
Scenario No. 2 - At an outdoor political rally a lone gunman moves through the crowd. He pulls his gun and gets off 3 rounds before he is shot by a bystander. A nearby person sees the second shooter and shoots him and within minutes guns are going off at will. Total 8 dead, 14 wounded.
NEITHER SCENARIO IS BEYOND REALITY
The Second Amendment was adopted in 1791. And the National Rifle Assn. was founded in 1871. During that period of explorers, the lure of the Wild West and the inability of law enforcement to be everywhere were all viable reasons for owning guns.
Forward to 1902, when mass production of automobiles had begun. They were a reliable mode of transportation, relaxing the need for horses and carriages. While modest attempts of licensing autos began around the turn of the century, it was not until 1913 when New Jersey became the first state to require an individual to pass both a written and driving test.
There are approximately more than 200 million legally owned guns in the U.S. today. If you add the military, law enforcement and libraries, that's about one per person. At the end of 2009 there were about 246 million cars legally registered.
Why do I compare guns and automobiles and guns? It is because each of them have their time of necessity and need. Just as in 1791, when guns were understandably everywhere. During that same period it is no doubt these gun owners primarily used their horses and carriages.
But this is a different time and a different era. Do we really need to bring guns to outdoor athletic events? The NCAA does not think so. Does it matter that the gun that killed John F. Kennedy was a mail order gun? Does it matter that from the time the Brady Bill was introduced to being imposed took four years? This is recent history.
Why do I compare automobiles and guns? Go to a police station and they'll say it's your right to carry a gun. Go to the Department of Motor Vehicles and they'll tell you it's a privilege to drive.
I prefer to look at gun owners who carry guns and wish they believed it is a privilege instead of a right and abide by all those stipulations put on cars.
Scenario No. 3 - I'm walking east along a street. And see two couples approaching me. One couple is on foot and the other, in a parade, are riding a horse and carriage. I stop, lean back against the concrete building and admire how life used to be. I notice as the other passes that they are carrying guns and cringe... wondering what they're doing carrying guns to an outdoor event, wonder where they've been, where they're going...
JIM GLEASON
Coeur d'Alene