Gun Control and Compromise

Some thoughts on the word “compromise” that I keep hearing with regard to proposed gun control from those of you left of center who do not think that I should be able to own a semi-automatic AR-15 or AK style rifle, which basically includes any magazine fed center-fire rifle with any two of the following; a pistol grip, threaded muzzle, or a folding/telescopic stock. First, you may be surprised to read that I see where you are coming from. After all, these ARE derived from weapons of war, even though they are not fully automatic machine guns such as those used by the military, which have been heavily restricted since 1934 and outright banned in 86. Which brings up a good point, it was Reagan – not Clinton – who banned assault weapons. All Clinton did was ban a few cosmetic features outside of magazine capacity that neither made the guns less effective nor did he restrict the purchase or ownership of them. In fact, the bill was so unpopular when it was introduced that a 10-year sunset provision was put on it. So, you really look ignorant when you cite “studies” showing where crime went down, and mass shootings were reduced during the “Federal Assault weapons ban of 1994” and the reason is – there WASN’T ONE! Also, Bush didn’t re-introduce assault weapons, as explained in the previous sentence, it would have happened had Gore been elected. Google it. I’ll wait.

Also, please understand that the 2nd amendment has nothing to do with hunting. NOTHING. It was not put in the bill of rights as a safeguard in case the deer ever turned against us. Sounds silly when you say it that way doesn’t it? Furthermore, the argument that AR-15’s shouldn’t be covered under the 2nd amendment because that was not the technology that our nation’s founders foresaw, is completely asinine. Trust me – they understood weapons development, our nation was founded in war. We had rockets in 1750 and Submarines in 1775.. but for the sake of argument let’s go with that assumption. If that were the case, then you must accept that the 1st amendment only applies to printed newspaper and spoken word in public, and not the internet/radio/tv, et al. Again, sounds silly when you say it that way. So let’s move on.

If you REALLY want something done to limit the ownership of semi-automatic rifles, you can’t just pressure Trump to come collect them. That will not happen, no matter how many town halls, marches, and protests, they simply know that if they tried there would be an instantaneous 3rd American Revolution, and you probably know it as well deep down. So where does that leave us? Well, it leaves us with existing federal firearms laws, specifically classifications. Basically, there are air guns and muzzle loaders, both highly lethal and neither require a license to have mailed to your house or a background check to purchase from a retailer. Then there are Curios & Relics, essentially historic weapons, but still functioning. You can, as an individual, have a C&R license and have them mailed to your house without the typical BATFE 4473 form/background check.

From there, we have the overwhelming majority of the firearms in the US – which you know as pistols, revolvers, bolt action rifles, shotguns, and semi-auto rifles like AR’s and AKs, which the ATF classifies as Title 1. And then the next delineation is a smaller, heavily regulated subset of guns which the ATF classifies as Title 2 weapons, which cover the following: Machine guns, Short-barreled shotguns (under 18″ barrel length), Short-barreled rifles (under 16″ barrel), Destructive devices (such as grenades and explosives), Silencers (often mislabeled suppressors), and a rather obscure category called AOW, or “Any Other Weapon”. These Title 2 firearms are, as stated, VERY heavily regulated and have been since the national firearms act of 1934. They are also quite expensive, particularly in the case of machine guns as those made after 86 are no longer legal to be transferred to civilians since the Hughes Amendment. For example, a transferable M-16 (full auto variant of the AR-15) goes for $10-$15 thousand to start. Some of them are in the hundreds of thousands and there are believed to be less than 200K transferable machine guns in the US in private ownership. To date, not a single legally owned machine gun on a Form 4 has been used in a crime that I know of. Can you use a slide-fire stock to “bump fire” and AR-15, sure, Paddock did it in Vegas, but you do not have to have a slide fire stock to do it; I can do it with just my finger and a belt loop or off my shoulder. But I digress.

But let’s go back to the subject at hand, compromise: I’ll assume that as a liberal you understand what you have just read for the most part, but you still do not want civilians to be able to legally purchase AR15s. What do you do? The most logical step would be for you to urge congress to have the ATF reclassify the AR, AK, and hundreds of its variants all as title 2. Then the existing ones out there are grandfathered, and no more new ones are purchased without an extended background check that can take upwards of a year, not to mention a $200 tax, for the paperwork to clear. This is firearm registration. Title 1 firearms are not registered at the federal level; however, some communist states do require it. Do I like the idea of this, hell no, I think the national firearms act of 34, the gun control act of 68, the Hughes amendment, et al. are prima facie unconstitutional; but many of us are realistic and I invite you to show me what you are willing to compromise if this is what you want.

The way I see it, giving in on something so important to us that we are willing to die for it, you should offer me quite a list of things that are important to you; none of which I would wager you would lay down your life for.

So here is what I propose as a compromise, if you want to heavily restrict ARs, just as machine guns and silencers are today.

Eliminate gun free zones that create target rich environments for murderers to rack up a high body count. Defend our children the same way we defend banks and government buildings, with armed guards. You need to issue a mandatory nationwide voter ID card, that is only attainable to US citizens. RADICALLY overhaul welfare, no more EBT cards where they can buy liquor and designer purses. Replace it with healthy and delicious blue apron style meals, delivered to your door. Defend the borders against illegal invaders. HEAVILY vet out immigrants from Muslim countries, including all their financial dealings, business ties, family members back home, to uncover radical affiliations of any type. End funding for planned parenthood. Term limits on congress. Audit the federal reserve. No more money to foreign countries that want to destroy us.

Until YOU are willing to compromise, do not expect me or a hundred million + of my countrymen to compromise, not any more.

After all, if democrats stopped shooting people in the US – gun crime would drop by over 90%.