The Gun Control Farce
Surely murder is a serious subject, which ought to be examined
seriously. Instead, it is almost always examined politically in the
context of gun control controversies, with stock arguments on both sides
that have remained the same for decades. And most of those arguments
are irrelevant to the central question: Do tighter gun control laws
reduce the murder rate?
That is not an esoteric question,
nor one for which no empirical evidence is available. Think about it.
We
have 50 states, each with its own gun control laws, and many of those
laws have gotten either tighter or looser over the years. There must be
tons of data that could indicate whether murder rates went up or down
when either of these things happened.
But have you ever heard any
gun control advocate cite any such data? Tragically, gun control has
become one of those fact-free issues that spawn outbursts of emotional
rhetoric and mutual recriminations about the National Rifle Association
or the Second Amendment.
If restrictions on gun ownership do
reduce murders, we can repeal the Second Amendment, as other
Constitutional Amendments have been repealed. Laws exist to protect
people. People do not exist to perpetuate laws.
But if tighter
restrictions on gun ownership do not reduce murders, what is the point
of tighter gun control laws -- and what is the point of demonizing the
National Rifle Association?
If some maniac blurted out his allegiance to Jesus Christ while mowing
down 49 innocent people, do you think there's any chance President Obama
would not showcase those remarks?
