The slippery slope of gun control – An Editorial
Editor’s note: In the past several weeks, the attack on gun rights and gun owners has exploded. I have been a 2nd amendment supporter, but now I feel like being just a supporter is no longer enough. I need to become an active advocate. As a result, I have decided to use my platform here to help others learn what they can do to preserve our rights as Americans . So from time to time I felt like I needed to step away from my preparedness focus and look at other issues. These are issues that will directly affect you as a prepper. Hence my editorial here.
If you are visiting this site to learn about preparedness and want to skip this editorial, then I encourage you to click here to find all kinds of great articles on being prepared. But if you value your freedom like I do, then please read on!
“We don’t want to take your guns! We just want common sense gun laws!”
When you hear that, it is a lie! Yes, the politicians and ignorant citizens that say that may not want to take your firearms right at that particular moment. But that WILL be the end result. And once your means of self-defense are gone, your other Constitutional rights will quickly follow. It is the 2nd amendment that safe guards ALL your other amendments. If you don’t believe me, let’s take a look at what is happening in Europe right now. Great Britain is a prime example.
In 1900, there were no gun restrictions in England. English citizens could own and possess firearms freely. But in 1903, England passed it’s first gun law. It was “common sense”. It required a permit to carry a handgun and it restricted the age of purchasers. No big deal right? Wrong….it was the beginning of that slippery slope that the anti-gun crowd does not believe in.
Then in 1919, the British government passed a law requiring citizens to show proof that they needed a firearm. This was done as a “Anti-crime” bill, though in England gun related crime was extremely rare.
In 1936, short barreled shotguns and fully automatic firearms were banned outright. The government stated that there was simply no need for any citizen to have one. Again, this was done to “protect the citizens” despite the fact that gun crime was still relatively low. The government also added a “Safe storage” clause so that firearms did not “fall into the wrong hands”.
In 1946, “self defense” was no longer allowed as a reason for wanting to possess a firearm, and by 1953 it was illegal to carry a firearm for self-defense purposes.
In 1967, 3 policemen were murdered by a man using a 9mm pistol. The British government responded by restricting the sale and possession of shotguns. I’m not sure where the logic is in that, but all shotguns had to be licensed to possess.
In 1982, those who possessed black powder muzzle loader shooters and handloaders were required to allow the police to inspect their storage areas of those items. The police did not require a warrant, and could show up at any time to inspect. (That would violate the 4th amendment here in the US.) And because all of these items were registered, the police had a list of everyone to search.
1988 saw the ban of all semi-automatic rifles. Pump action rifles were included in this ban. It was now illegal to own or possess them, and citizens were required to turn them in. Handguns fell into this same category in 1996. So did carrying knives with blades longer than 3 inches.
In 2006, the Violent Crime Reduction Act passed into law, which restricted all “realistic” toy/replica guns, and 3 years later airsoft guns were on the chopping block.
Ok…you get the idea. Within a life time, firearms were almost completely banned. And it started with just one simple law. Down the slippery slope it went.
Did this have the desired effect of keeping English citizens safer? Well according to the BBC, gun crime in London is on the rise, up by 42% in 2016. Violent crime in Great Britain is on the rise as well. And while violent crime is on the rise as citizens no longer have the means or ability to adequately defend themselves, their other rights and freedoms are slowly being taken away as well. And that is what is truly concerning.
Hopefully you have heard of Scottish YouTuber Mark Meechan, known as Count Dankula on YouTube. If you haven’t heard of him, let me give you a quick break down.
Meechan posts comedy videos to YouTube. In one video, he shows himself teaching his girlfriend’s dog how to make a “Nazi salute”. He said he did it to be funny and to piss his girlfriend off. The video eventually went viral, and he was soon prosecuted in Scotland for a “hate crime.” This month, Meechan was convicted of a “hate crime” and could spend time in jail. FOR A FREAKING JOKE on YouTube!!?!? Are you kidding me?
It does not matter if the joke was crude or offensive. What matters is that folks in Great Britain now potentially face jail time over what they say. Jail time for making “offensive” jokes. And who gets to decide what is offensive? The government.
In my lifetime, we have seen the citizens in Great Britain lose freedom that would be equal to the 2nd amendment, the 4th amendment, and now the 1st amendment here in America.
WAKE UP PEOPLE!! This should serve as a STARK warning for folks over here in the good ‘ol US of A. These “common sense” gun reform laws WILL eventually erode the 2nd amendment. And when the 2nd amendment falls, the rest of the amendments will fall with it. The other amendments will be chipped away at…slowly. Over time. With seemingly innocuous laws intending to “protect”. Just like they did with our gun rights.
Don’t think that will happen? Then I urge you to Google “Masterpiece Cake Shop vs the state of Colorado Civil Rights Commission”. Yep…the government is trying to force someone to do something that he feels violates his freedom of religion.
It is already here. And if the populace is unarmed, there will be no way to get those freedoms back. They will be gone for good.
When I created this site several years ago, my sole intent was to provide information on keeping you and your family safe during times of emergencies and disasters. I had no political motivations, as I have said many times that disasters and emergencies do not discriminate.
But as the erosion of our freedoms and rights continue, I feel that if I do not speak out, I could very well lose my ability to safe guard and protect myself and my family. Part of being prepared is protecting my rights to do so. And it is my right to own firearms that protect my right to speak about things…such as being prepared.
For more information on what you can do to help protect your rights, please click here to read the War on the 2nd Amendment.
Stay safe out there!
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Guns are not a toy though, if you have it it is your responsibility that it is not misused. And the laws that are being made are a bit too strict I think.