The Truth About Gun Control, Part II by Robert Ringer
Here is an excellent article by Robert Ringer - Alain
The Truth About Gun Control, Part II
By Robert Ringer
At the end of Part I of this article, I told you that I am not a big fan of the Second Amendment. It's not that I disagree with its content. It's just that I have a problem with the concept of the government granting rights to Americans through amendments to the Constitution.
The concept of amending the Constitution to grant rights implies that any rights not specifically granted by government edict or Constitutional amendment do not exist. It's a dangerous trap, and one that we have walked into willingly while anesthetized by the phenomenon of gradualism.
So, while it's nice that the Second Amendment grants us the right keep and bear arms, it is, more importantly, superfluous. You have the right to own a gun for the same reason you have a right to own anything. The corollary to this is that the government has no right to forbid you to own a gun for the same reason it has no right to forbid anyone from owning anything.
The term gun control, therefore, is a misnomer. When politicians talk about "gun control," what they are really talking about is people control. As Morgan Norval put it: "'Order' may be the excuse; 'law' may be the argument; 'keeping someone else in his place' may be the emotional rationale; 'supporting the police' may be the civic slogan; 'ending violence' may be the dream - but the nightmare of reality is total tyranny of the state."
Thus, not only are all arguments that favor gun control invalid on the basis of logic, fact, and morality, but even those who are against it usually miss the real point. Gun control is a freedom issue. Guns are a tool for self-defense, and when government takes away any tool of self-defense, it not only violates our rights, it endangers our lives.
A gun is the individual's ultimate means of preserving his freedom, which is why the right to bear arms should be defended to the bitter end. Because in the bitter end, as the American Revolutionaries discovered, it may very well get down to a matter of whether or not you have access to weapons.
One last word of advice: A gun is a means of protecting your life and property from those who would try to take them from you. You should never point a gun at someone for any other reason.
Also, never pull out a gun unless you've already made the decision to use it. It is not a toy. It is not a means of threatening someone. It is not a prop for showing off. Though it is socially impolite to talk about it, guns were invented for the purpose of killing people (which is why governments own millions of them).
Bottom line: If you're not ready to kill, don't pull out a gun. Better yet, don't even own one. You'll only end up getting yourself killed.
But for the sake of your own freedom - whether or not you choose to own a gun - you should oppose any attempt to restrict the right of law-abiding citizens to own firearms. The right to own a gun, as with the right to own anything, is inherited at birth. It is not up to a group of politicians to grant such a right through a Constitutional amendment.
If you're tired of politicians telling you what you can and can't do, stand up and be counted. Consider the idea of teaching freedom as an avocation. Remember, every person you educate is one more person on the side of freedom - and in a democracy, numbers count.
Copyright © 2008 by Tortoise Press, Inc.
Robert Ringer is the author of three #1 bestsellers, including two books listed by The New York Times among the 15 bestselling motivational books of all time.
You can now tap into his profound wisdom and life-changing insights on a regular basis by signing up for a FREE subscription to his one-of-a-kind e-letter, A Voice of Sanity in an Insane World, at www.robertringer.com.
The Truth About Gun Control, Part II
By Robert Ringer
At the end of Part I of this article, I told you that I am not a big fan of the Second Amendment. It's not that I disagree with its content. It's just that I have a problem with the concept of the government granting rights to Americans through amendments to the Constitution.
The concept of amending the Constitution to grant rights implies that any rights not specifically granted by government edict or Constitutional amendment do not exist. It's a dangerous trap, and one that we have walked into willingly while anesthetized by the phenomenon of gradualism.
So, while it's nice that the Second Amendment grants us the right keep and bear arms, it is, more importantly, superfluous. You have the right to own a gun for the same reason you have a right to own anything. The corollary to this is that the government has no right to forbid you to own a gun for the same reason it has no right to forbid anyone from owning anything.
The term gun control, therefore, is a misnomer. When politicians talk about "gun control," what they are really talking about is people control. As Morgan Norval put it: "'Order' may be the excuse; 'law' may be the argument; 'keeping someone else in his place' may be the emotional rationale; 'supporting the police' may be the civic slogan; 'ending violence' may be the dream - but the nightmare of reality is total tyranny of the state."
Thus, not only are all arguments that favor gun control invalid on the basis of logic, fact, and morality, but even those who are against it usually miss the real point. Gun control is a freedom issue. Guns are a tool for self-defense, and when government takes away any tool of self-defense, it not only violates our rights, it endangers our lives.
A gun is the individual's ultimate means of preserving his freedom, which is why the right to bear arms should be defended to the bitter end. Because in the bitter end, as the American Revolutionaries discovered, it may very well get down to a matter of whether or not you have access to weapons.
One last word of advice: A gun is a means of protecting your life and property from those who would try to take them from you. You should never point a gun at someone for any other reason.
Also, never pull out a gun unless you've already made the decision to use it. It is not a toy. It is not a means of threatening someone. It is not a prop for showing off. Though it is socially impolite to talk about it, guns were invented for the purpose of killing people (which is why governments own millions of them).
Bottom line: If you're not ready to kill, don't pull out a gun. Better yet, don't even own one. You'll only end up getting yourself killed.
But for the sake of your own freedom - whether or not you choose to own a gun - you should oppose any attempt to restrict the right of law-abiding citizens to own firearms. The right to own a gun, as with the right to own anything, is inherited at birth. It is not up to a group of politicians to grant such a right through a Constitutional amendment.
If you're tired of politicians telling you what you can and can't do, stand up and be counted. Consider the idea of teaching freedom as an avocation. Remember, every person you educate is one more person on the side of freedom - and in a democracy, numbers count.
Copyright © 2008 by Tortoise Press, Inc.
Robert Ringer is the author of three #1 bestsellers, including two books listed by The New York Times among the 15 bestselling motivational books of all time.
You can now tap into his profound wisdom and life-changing insights on a regular basis by signing up for a FREE subscription to his one-of-a-kind e-letter, A Voice of Sanity in an Insane World, at www.robertringer.com.
posted by Alain at
12:37 PM
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