The New York Times never met a gun control bill they didn’t like. When New York’s SAFE Act was passed as an “emergency measure” twenty-minutes after it was introduced in the legislature, nary a peep of protest did we hear from the Gray Lady. In fact, the paper’s editorial board lauded the act and all of it provisions, from the ban on “assault rifles” to the registration of ammunition sales to a seven-round limit on loaded magazines. As for the pre-existing requirements for firearms purchases – fingerprinting, background checks, tests, fees, etc. – and the de facto ban on law-abiding citizens carrying a concealed weapon in The Big Apple (which somehow doesn’t include the newspaper’s publisher), the NYT is A-OK with all of it. But, when Republicans pass bills requiring an ID to vote, we get this . . .
In all, nine states have passed measures making it harder to vote since the beginning of 2013. Most have to do with voter ID laws. Other states are considering mandating proof of citizenship, like a birth certificate or a passport, after a federal court judge recently upheld such laws passed in Arizona and Kansas. Because many poor people do not have either and because documents can take time and money to obtain, Democrats say the ruling makes it far more difficult for people to register . . .
“What we see here is a total disrespect and disregard for constitutional protections,” said the Rev. William Barber, president of the North Carolina N.A.A.C.P. and leader of the Moral Mondays movement, which opposes the changes.
On the face of it this article on new voter registration laws seems fair and balanced, but the headline tells the tale: New G.O.P. Bid to Limit Voting in Swing States. More to our point, if the Times and the Democrats are so up in arms about new regulations affecting voting rights for poor people, why aren’t they championing gun rights for this same constituency?
Americans’ right to keep and bear arms is no less sacrosanct than Americans’ right to vote. At least it should be equal. All the bureaucratic barriers to firearms ownership – all of them – are unconstitutional. All of them affect the poor more than the rich. Truth be told, the Times and the Dems don’t see the equivalence because they don’t really care about Constitutional rights. They only care when it suits them, because all they really care about is remaining in power.
That is all.