The Virginia legislature passed a flurry of bills stripping away limitations on gun possession in the state. After intense lobbying from the National Rifle Association and over $1 million in NRA campaign contributions, the lawmakers passed 20 gun bills expanding possession and ownership rights in the state.
The bills include lifting the ban on buying more than one gun a month, allowing guns to be taken into bars and emergency shelters and allowing more people to get concealed handgun permits.
The timing of the passage of the laws is interesting with the arguments in the McDonald case only a couple weeks away. That case, to be argued during the first week of March, will determine whether the right of gun ownership, recognized in 2008, will be applied to the states as a fundamental right. That would mean that some restrictive laws could be found unconstitutional, including outright bans on handguns or concealed weapons.
For the story, click here.
From 1967 to 2006 the U.S. Population increased by 100 million. Currently the greatest population increase is among minorities. Coincidentally, the highest rate of violent crime is also among minorities.
Violent crime at a 35 year low, and murder rate at a 43 year low during a time when the population grew by 100 million, and it’s down because “the population is aging”?
In 2000 by age
15-19 20 million
20-24 19 million
25-29 19 million
In 1990 by age
15-19 18 million
20-24 19 million
25-29 21 million
http://www.censusscope.org/us/chart_age.html
It looks like we have about the same population in the 15 to 29 age group in 1990 as we did in 2000. We’ll have to wait until the 2010 census is in, but I bet the number of minorities in that age range has increased.
“Russia during Stalin – 16 to 17 million, Chinese Civil War – 6 million, China during Mao Zedong – 45 to 52 million.”
These numbers are not during wars, except against their own countries citizens, and neither are the millions of other small (by comparison) acts of genocide by some of the other governments, like the Khmer Rouge, Iraq, Somalia, Liberia, Ethiopia. There are many countries in Africa right now as I type killing their own people, because the people can’t defend themselves.
“Anyone who honestly believes that possession of a firearm will protect him and his family from a tyrannical government is so divorced from reality that he ought not be permitted to even own a gun.”
What would General Washington say?
Here’s a couple of simple facts. The population is aging. When the population ages, the crime rate drops.
Mike S.,
I think in Professional Hockey the Referees are the ones carrying the guns…..
That was funny….
rcampbell ably demolished the argument that an armed citizenry would have prevented the atrocities of the 20th century. Anyone who honestly believes that possession of a firearm will protect him and his family from a tyrannical government is so divorced from reality that he ought not be permitted to even own a gun.
On the positive side, however, a more prominent display of weapons at Little League games may improve the quality of the umpires.
rcampbell
“What would make one think their pea shooter, and those of every other gun owners’ for that matter, is any kind of defense against the US military in the ridiculously ficticious scenario of it ever be used against the people?
Are you saying the Taliban, and their pea shooters have not really held the entire military might of the US, and a few other countries for 8 years now?
Seung-Hui Cho, would not have killed 33, and wounded 15 others if they had been carrying weapons of their own at Virginia Tech.
Suzanna Gratia Hupp put it into perspective with her visions of gun rights.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1u0Byq5Qis
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ggg0LwhrH0&feature=related
My Favorite quote from her is.
“How a politician stands on the Second Amendment tells you how he or she views you as an individual… as a trustworthy and productive citizen, or as part of an unruly crowd that needs to be lorded over, controlled, supervised, and taken care of.”
“Gun Ownership at All-Time High, New FBI Report Shows Violent Crime at a 35-Year Low, Murder at a 43-Year Low”
“More Guns: There are 250+ million privately-owned firearms in the United States. The number of guns typically rises by about 4.5 million every year, though between 2007-2008, firearm transactions cleared by the National Criminal Instant Background Check rose 14 percent.
Less Violent Crime: Since 1991, the nation’s violent crime rate has decreased 40 percent (murder, 45 percent; rape, 31 percent; robbery, 47 percent; and aggravated assault, 37 percent. From 2007-2008, the violent crime rate decreased 3 percent (murder, 5 percent; rape, 2 percent; robbery, 2 percent; and aggravated assault, 3 percent.) States with Right-to-Carry laws have lower violent crime rates, on average, compared to the rest of the country: total violent crime by 31 percent, murder, 39 percent; robbery, 55 percent; and aggravated assault, 19 percent. States that have the most restrictive gun control laws tend to have the highest ratios of robberies (confrontational violent crimes) to non-confrontational property crimes.”
http://www.nraila.org/Issues/FactSheets/Read.aspx?id=206&issue=007
The way I read the city of Chicago vs McDonald is limited:
Whether the Second Amendment is incorporated into the Due Process Clause or the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment so as to be applicable to the States, thereby invalidating ordinances prohibiting possession of handguns in the home.
It is a simple argument with complex details.
@ Mack
Many of those millions were killed by air-dropped bombs, heavy artillery and machine guns. Should we be demanding rights and access to those weapons too?
Could those disarmed German citizens have stopped the luftwaffe if they still had access to their hunting rifles?
Privacy rights are another ball of wax and I think most here would agree that over the last decade our privacy has been eroded for the sake of the ‘war on terror’.
“…god given, constitutionally guaranteed rights to privacy…”
WTF!!! That sentence alone says volumes about the tortured logic required to justify guns.
The listing of the millions killed during the 20th century due to wars is supposed to justify citizen gun ownership? These were mostly country-on-country conflicts. The correct conclusion is NOT the fantasy that European Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, and the mentally deficient would have been better defended had they had guns, but that all wars and all violence and all death from the weapons of war are wrong.
To suggest any civilian population can defend itself against a modern (even a mid-20th century) army is so not grounded in reality. So, guns kill thousands every year in hunting accidents, etc. and that’s okay as long as folks gets to keep their guns to fight against the US Marine Corp or Tomahawk missles. Is that the argument?
VLF2112, Do you think the 100 million is to much?
If so you may need to start doing some reading.
WWII alone is between 62 and 78 million people of which 22 to 25 million were combatants, so that leaves 37 to 56 million being civilians. This was in just over 6 years out of 100 for the century.
Lets start adding in WWI – 13 million, the Russian Civil War – 8 million, Russia during Stalin – 16 to 17 million, Chinese Civil War – 6 million, China during Mao Zedong – 45 to 52 million.
These are all estimates by experts of civilian deaths by their own governments, not combatants. There are no hard numbers, and never will be.
Now start adding in the small atrocities of less then a couple million like Liberia, Somalia, Khmer Rouge, Iraq, and on, and on.
100 million may be way to small a number.
It took me only about 5 minutes to find these numbers, so I’ll not post links.
Lastly when are you big brother loving people going to stop using this tired old argument.
“I mean, if one has nothing to hide, surely, as a responsible, law abiding citizen wouldn’t mind”.
I think it is the other way around.
As a responsible government why do you want to know my secrets, in violation of my god given, constitutionally guaranteed rights to privacy.
Ah, yes: Virginia. Source of most of the illegal guns in New York. Where would we be without Virginia? Why, paying even more to the gun runners who’d have to go to North Carolina.
The professor in Alabama was a law-abiding citizen. Three people dead, four lives ruined. And the NRA can be proud. She attended gun safety classes, practiced gun safety, practiced shooting at a range. Three people dead, four lives ruined.
Yeah, that’s what we need—-more guns. Guns for every kind of lunatic. We need guns in bars to speed up service and settle baseball trivia questions. We must have concealed carry laws, so folks can feel like an eight feet tall cowboy.
An arguement based on the actions of totalitarian governments against their own people isn’t much of a defense for two reasons:
A)While waiting to defend one’s self against the totalitarian US government, people are killing one another with those guns. That high-sounding self defense theory doesn’t bring back to life most gun victims. Not those from domestic/relationship violence or road rage or children playing with guns around the house (weak defense part II: “…the parents should have…” or “…I keep my guns….” NEWS FLASH–those children are still dead) or vigilantism.
B) What would make one think their pea shooter, and those of every other gun owners’ for that matter, is any kind of defense against the US military in the ridiculously ficticious scenario of it ever be used against the people?
Personally, I think anytime individual rights are expanded it is a good thing.
“Germans who wish to use firearms should join the SS or the SA — ordinary citizens don’t need guns, as their having guns doesn’t serve the state.”
Heinrich Himmler
I would rather be a slack jawed gun lover than a chicken farmer that sent 6 million human beings to the gas chambers. Unarmed human beings I might add, that had their gun rights taken from them as one of Hitlers first orders in his “new” Germany.
Fascism wears many faces but it always wants people unprotected. They are much more easily intimidated when defanged and declawed.
We’re changing our ad campaign. It’s now: “Virginia is for slack-jawed gun lovers-bang, bang.”
“Over 100 million died last century because only government had guns. This 100 million were civilians, not soldiers. And the deaths were due to government slaughtering its own people; not a result of warring nations.”
Wow – I must have slept through this news report. Do we even have enough cemetaries to hold all those people, or were they just dumped in the East River??
Similar to those who wonder why illegal wiretaps on American citizens is okie dokie if one has ‘nothing to hide’, I find I must ask:
If you’re truly a ‘law abiding’ citizen, why the outrage over having to wait a few days to buy a gun until a background check is completed? I mean, if one has nothing to hide, surely, as a responsible, law abiding citizen wouldn’t mind …
Damn! Guess I’ll just move to Virginia, or Arizona, or maybe even Texas, for the purpose of bringing my guns into a bar so I could get to those secret, government agents who are killing millions of citizens before they get me.
Fabulous. Excellent. Marvelous!
When a central government (ours) becomes totalitarian (absolute power over every aspect of our lives), gun ownership is essential to avoid large scale slaughter by ones own government.
What leftists don’t understand is that citizens with guns are rarely ever as dangerous as government with guns. The last century proves this.
Now, I realize that leftists hate facts despite claiming that they admire them, but this is the sorry truth coming from the last century.
The more totalitarian a government the more the danger there is when only government having guns is.
The bulk of the slaughter last century BY GOVERNMENT was among people who were stripped of their weapons by government. Gee, that’s a real tough intellectual concept to grasp.
Over 100 million died last century because only government had guns. This 100 million were civilians, not soldiers. And the deaths were due to government slaughtering its own people; not a result of warring nations.
Leftists are bright but foolish. They see human flaws and do always advocate solutions that step on the gas instead of slowing things down.
Is it still illegal to yell “Fire” in a crowded gun store?
“What disturbs me is that the legislature did not address the only remaining frontier for NRA legislation: embryonic gun ownership.”
Well, that would certainly be a boost for pro-life advocates.
Embryo: Okay, doc, put that needle down and back away SLOW-like. This is my place and I’m stayin’ for my full nine months, and anyone sayin’ otherwise gets a round or two. Got it?