Stay Informed

This past Friday, a group of friends were at my house and I was talking with several of the guys about 2nd amendment issues and told them of my inability to purchase a firearm. I was surprised by their lack of knowledge on the subject, especially since two of them are long time hunters and gun owners. They had raised eyebrows when I told them of Washington DC’s absurd gun laws and weren’t even aware it was going to be argued in front of the Supreme Court this week.

Unfortunately, too many people think of the second amendment issue merely as something that it is ‘political’ and many people aren’t interested in politics. Yes, the issue is political, but it’s about rights. It’s interesting because I told them about DC they reacted (and family members the following evening reacted the same way) incredulously to the notion that a person who uses a gun on another person who breaks into their house in DC can be charged with a crime. There were variations of, “But that’s my house and my family and I’m defending them!” I assured them that while the discretion to be charged is left to the prosecutor, the fact is, as it stands now, there is no way legally to defend yourself with a firearm in the nation’s capital, even in your own home.

I told them that a Supreme Court decision ruling against Heller would open the door for any city or town (unless they’re obligated to follow the rules of the state) to ban the possession of handguns. Now, living in Florida and knowing that several higher ups in my hometown have CCW licenses and carry regularly, I’m not all that concerned. But what about states like New Jersey who already have absurd gun laws? What will a ruling like this do for infamous gun grabbers like Ted Kennedy and Frank Lautenberg? It will clearly embolden them.

The lesson I learned is that I can’t just preach to the choir.