I’m not all that old. But I never imagined I’d live to see so many protests, petitions and petulant politicians demanding the removal of Americans’ constitutional rights. Democrats couldn’t manage destroy citizens’ rights and freedoms with poorly written legislation — laws that would have no effect on crime — so they throw a hissy fit? Who saw that one coming?
The politicians parking themselves on the floor of the House of Representatives felt comfortable knowing that the general public supports banning new gun purchases for Americans on the Terrorist Watch List. A Huffington Post sponsored yougov.com poll reveals that “86% would back such a law, with only 7% opposed. Support crosses traditional partisan boundaries, with 87% of Democrats and 87% of Republicans in favor of the change.” Not to menti0n the NRA and Donald Trump.
Eighty-six percent of Americans may support a gun ban for suspected terrorist, but giving the government the power to list anyone they want as a potential terrorist is an extraordinarily bad idea. I can’t be the only one who feels that Uncle Sam should obtain evidence and charge a person before removing their rights. Otherwise, what’s to stop the government from declaring TTAG a terrorist organization and adding all of our names to that list? It’s not that hard to figure out that this is one of the worst ideas in the history of bad ideas.
We live in a constitutional republic. As RF points out, our right to keep and bear arms is not subject to a democratic vote. That’s why we have a Constitution: to protect individuals from both government tyranny and mob rule. Freedom means you have rights, and you keep them until you are charged and found guilty of a crime. This isn’t Minority Report.
By the same token, freedom should never be negotiable. It shouldn’t matter how many crybabies sit-in in the House of Representatives. It shouldn’t matter how many vote to strip your rights away. It shouldn’t matter how many sign a petition to have your guns confiscated. Natural rights exist.
The only good thing that came from this sit-in: the politicians involved made themselves look mentally unstable. The terrible thing that it revealed: Americans are unaware of the stakes involved in the battle to defend our gun rights. Let’s hope that our votes mean they don’t have to learn the hard way.