No, we do not need additional firearm regulation

There has been a tremendous amount of mis-information dished out by talking heads on the 24 hour news channels and even guests who suggest they are experts in their field.

The tragedy in Aurora. Colo. was just that, a terrible loss for the families, friends and the community as a whole. I’m comfortable saying the entire country feels the loss, and I can not imagine what it would be like to lose a friend or family in that way.

That said, the government does not have to “do something” to ensure a tragedy like this “never happens again” simply because there is nothing they can do or say to ensure that. No legislation or new regulation will “solve” this.

Some additional thoughts…

Gun-free zones don’t work – Just come to the understanding that gun-free zones do not work unless you have TSA-type security at every venue, building, mall, movie theater, office complex, school, retail store and restaurant. Criminals and those with criminal intent could not give a crap about gun-free zones. Admit that one fact, and you’re making progress. I wrote previously on this subject here.

Fully-automatic rifle shooting events are rareExtremely rare as a matter of fact. I’m certain there have been a few of them, but the only one I can think of is the bank robbery shootout in Los Angeles captured by helicopter video footage. When you hear an “expert” mention an automatic rifle being used in a robbery or mass shooting, immediately question what is being said, as it is almost certainly bull shit.

You can not easily convert a semi-automatic rifle to automatic – On rifles that have been made in the last 20 years – unless they were made for dual-purpose military use and sold to the military – I don’t even think the parts required to convert the weapon will fit within the receiver. Of course, someone with the right tools and machinery can build just about anything can they not? Should we regulate the manufacture and sale of CNC machines?

Magazine capacity limits are worthless endeavors – I’ve seen a novice shooter – while stationary – put 30 rounds onto three stationary targets three or four feet apart and 15 yards away in less than 45 seconds. That was using a “high capacity” 30-round magazine. That same shooter took less than one minute to complete the same course of fire using three, 10 round magazines. All of that said, magazine capacity limits would only be adhered to by law-abiding citizens and I’m convinced, 10 rounds in a self-defense situation may not be enough.

These events are not happening more often – Really, these tragic events are outliers and happen so infrequently as compared to the number of gun owners or firearms owned by the public. This fact does not provide comfort for the friends and families of those murdered … I wish it did, but it does not.

A pistol round is just as deadly as a rifle round – As those who have been shot by a .223 round or a 9mm round. Ask if it makes a difference.

All guns could be defined as “military weapons” – Really, do you think there is a difference? Sure, I guess you could say an automatic rifle is a military weapon, but private citizens can and do own automatic rifles, you can’t buy a new one at your local gun store, but you can buy a used one from a private party or a dealer if you meet the federal requirements. (Some states restrict this.) Do you think getting hit by a .223 round from an automatic weapon hurts more or is more dangerous than getting hit by a couple of .223 rounds from the similar rifle in a semi-automatic only configuration? More here.

The “AR” in reference to an AR-15 does not stand for assault rifle – The term assault weapon or assault rifle is a made-up term used by the media and the anti-gun lobby. Rifles look different depending on their design and what they are used for. The assault weapon ban was ridiculous, “feel-good” legislation since they banned weapons that looked “military” … whatever that is. Weapons that used the same exact ammunition, with the exact same capacities were allowed … if they did not look evil. AR stands for the original manufacture of the design, ArmaLite, who used AR as a model reference to their company name. More on the stupid assault weapon ban in my post from back in May 2010.

Violent crime is down throughout the United States – Except for outliers like Chicago, who happens to have the most restrictive gun laws in the country, violent crime is down and is trending down. More … Biden outright lies about rape statistics, and view the FBI statistics yourself.

Speculation about a good-guy in the theater that could have stop the event is just that … speculation. We don’t even know if a patron was carrying in the theater when it happened. Having a self-defense weapon goes not guaranty you’ll survive, but it’s pretty certain even if you do survive, you’ll lose in one way or another.

Say a prayer for this guy who took matters into his own hands to protect himself and his wife in a public place; in some ways, he lost too. But he did something. Watch how the rats scatter when they are surprised by someone willing to step up and take the fight to the enemy.

https://youtu.be/1t5f5AwkkiY

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Steve McGough

Steve's a part-time conservative blogger. Steve grew up in Connecticut and has lived in Washington, D.C. and the Bahamas. He resides in Connecticut, where he’s comfortable six months of the year.

16 Comments

  1. phil on July 23, 2012 at 12:22 pm

    Last I looked, in my copy of the Constitution, the Second amendment says in part “….the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be? infringed.? Might be a typo, but I doubt it.??? So, unless automatic weapons do not meet meet the definition of? ‘arms’, our government is not meeting the ‘Rule of Law’, and restricting our Constitutionally guaranteed rights.? I looked, and I can’t find the words ‘reasonable regulations’ in the Second Amendment.? I do find the words ‘SHALL NOT.



  2. RoBrDona on July 23, 2012 at 1:57 pm

    An interesting statistic would be how many crimes were prevented because the victim had a gun. I truly believe in the rather worn maxim that if guns are banned only criminals and cops will have them. The anti-gun crazies hate this and have all sorts of stupid factoids to try to refute it. According to the House of Commons (Jan, 2012) 9.3 % of all homicides in England and Wales were by firearms. 44% were (the highest %) by handgun. Interesting as handguns are banned completely. We all know you cannot ban anything very well in the US. All it does is enrich organized crime (look at Prohibition).



    • ricbee on July 23, 2012 at 10:14 pm

      If I was there either he & I would’ve been quickly dead…I survived RVN.



  3. Benjamin Less on July 23, 2012 at 9:17 pm

    SteveM nice compilation and discerning facts.? Great piece of writing.
    ?
    Clear and concise.?



  4. dairyair on July 23, 2012 at 9:21 pm

    As horrible as the tragedy in Colorado was, it was interesting to see the government scrambling to “do something,” when in reality there is very little that can be done to stop such atrocities. I mean, local police departments beefing up security at movie theaters…really??



    • ricbee on July 23, 2012 at 10:12 pm

      Stupidest thing Ive ever heard but the cops don’t think so-gotta get that OT.



  5. ricbee on July 23, 2012 at 10:10 pm

    Please tell John Rowland that. He’s got a big government RINO mind.



  6. Dimsdale on July 23, 2012 at 10:48 pm

    It’s a shame that the libs couldn’t let the dead be buried before using them for their political fodder.
    ?
    Regardless of what the hoplophobes (see below) think, all of their feel good legislation has been shown to be more counter productive than productive.? Look at the increase in violence in England and Australia, not to mention all of the so called gun free zones in this country.? The more gun “control” you employ, the more gun violence you get.? Mexico has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the world, and you can see how that is working out for them!
    ?
    Feinstein’s whining about clip sizes was repelland, knowing that the only acceptable clip size for libs is zero.? More incrementalism.
    ?
    Holmes could have just as easily constructed some chemical weapons and killed far more people.
    ?
    Hoplophobia, n. Irrational, morbid fear of guns (c. 1966, coined by Col. Jeff Cooper, from the Greek hoplites, weapon; see his book Principles of Personal Defense). May cause sweating, faintness, discomfort, rapid pulse,…



  7. TexasDB on July 24, 2012 at 12:24 am

    Maybe passing Obamacare wasn’t so bad…in another few years when people are dying from 6 month wait times on their chemo treatment we can ban politicians!? With Obamacare guns don’t kill people, politicians do!



  8. Linda Mae on July 24, 2012 at 1:36 am

    Actually – if the Republicans were as well organized as the Dems with their “morning Talking points email blasts – we should all be demanding that mental health laws be reviewed and revised.? Do you remember the kid who shot Gabby Gifford showed erratic behavior but his school was forbidden to share this info with his parents and other authorities?? That is the lesson we should take from this.



  9. winnie on July 24, 2012 at 5:12 am

    Steve, as usual you make a cogent argument.
    ?
    Those who do not understand the content and/or importance of the 2nd amendment are typically the ones who, after every violent and tragic incident involving a gun/shooting become obsessed with enacting stricter gun control laws.
    The fact of the matter is, responsible gun owners follow our existing laws.? There will always be sick people (mentally ill or not) who commit heinous acts such as this one and there is, sadly, nothing we can do to stop them.? Human nature is to search for an answer as to why it happened.? Sometimes there is no why–it just happens.



  10. JBS on July 24, 2012 at 7:15 am

    Perhaps instead of the liberal anti-gun rhetoric, we should be hearing from the right. Firearms have been with civilization for many more years than “the movies. In that time, abberent events have become more common. Is there a causal link between the extreme violence of today’s (and yesterday’s) “films” and the increase in premeditated mass murder?
    Something to be considered.
    I worked with adolescents who had learned that violence could get them what they wanted. Sometimes it was just recognition they wanted. A lot of their behaviors were copied from the testosterone-fueled movie genre popular to thrill seekers. Risky, anti-social behavior was rewarded for those adolescents — to a degree. Some parallels?
    Perhaps it would be better to ban over-the-top violent movies featuring a hero(s) using bullets, explosives and whatever is at hand to overcome whatever gets in his or her way.
    Mentally and/or politically ill people who conduct mass murders are just imitating “art.”
    People kill people.
    ?



  11. rocncees on July 24, 2012 at 9:50 am

    With all these liberal do-gooders, if they ever checked Federal and State gun laws, there are more than 20,000 laws on the books. Try to ENFORCE them for a change. Thank You very much.



    • JBS on July 24, 2012 at 10:20 am

      It gets the blithering, bloviating, pontificating politicians media exposure. Whenever there is an unfortunate event such as the Aurora Murders, the politicians get out their prepared-for-the moment script on “we needa law” calling for more gun control. The LSM gets the call and responds that Politician Blather is going to re-release his/her DNC-approved “new gun control legislation.” The media obediently complies and predictable reports on the brilliance of this masterful milksop, i.e. Naggy Bloomberg. It is all emotionally driven. False hysteria generated for the moment. How cynical?
      How about some criminal control here. Other than instantly turn on law-abiding citizens . . . what does the Left have to offer? By the way, there is no way to ban around 30 million firearms in the United States. (Who legally has one firearm?)? That’s not even counting black-powder pistols, rifles and shotguns.?
      How about a two week waiting period to see a violent movie? (Fill out the form, we’ll send you a viewing number in the mail) Make people get a permit to view a violent movie?
      Hmmmmmmmm . . .
      ?
      ?



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