Comments on: If You Believe …

By: David

David — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 18:42:37 +0000

Wow. You would have thought that I had written a post about gun control.

By: Kent Perkins

Kent Perkins — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 13:16:19 +0000

Are you aware there is a new law coming close to being passed which will force all gun owners in America to list their guns on their 1040 tax returns, and to pay a $50 tax per weapon? Failure to do so would be tax fraud. This is being slipped in without allowing the voters to decide whether it’s a good idea.

Is this what we can expect from the new era of change? And is it positive change?

I only ask the question. David, clear your throat and answer that one. Thanks.

By: David

David — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 03:25:38 +0000

Yeah. Not hard to spot the “hot button” issues, huh? And thank you.

By: Ted

Ted — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 03:19:50 +0000

I only saw two phrases in this that pertain to guns… and all the comments seem to key on that topic. Hmmm.

Anyhow. Nice writing. And I agree.

By: James

James — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 00:59:46 +0000

I actually like the requirements for training, etc… in the Texas concealed carry law. When grandpa passes away, but grandma leaves the gun in the nightstand and grandchild finds it, etc… I wish there was a way to test responsibility for guns, cars, parenting, etc…, but who controls it if you do and how to you keep them honest? Thus we fall back to liberty and the pursuit of happiness, etc… as guiding lights. The ever increasing criminalization of the US is stifling and a drag on dreams, liberties, and tax rolls. More and more is made illegal (sometimes with regulation as a first step) until we’re in vanillaland and paying for the privilege of speeding small amounts, being first in line at parks, having better schools, etc… and split along class lines. In the mean time our prisons are filled at world-record-setting levels and taxes have to go up to cover things.

I don’t care who’s book you read, we all have a right to exist and we’re all better-off when folks can work to fulfill their dreams and better their lives relatively free from oppression and ignorance.

By: David

David — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 23:54:08 +0000

Who’s the Devil? Kevin?

By: Amy

Amy — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 23:24:11 +0000

I don’t believe any of that stuff but I must point out that he is the Devil….Says so in the Bible!!!!

By: David

David — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 19:51:42 +0000

Maybe Kevin has missed the obvious point here. Maybe we need the AK47 to defend ourselves against “them.”

By: Kevin C

Kevin C — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 18:04:39 +0000

When I was a child, the NRA was this really wonderful organization that taught gun safety, responsible hunting practices, and encouraged good citizenship. Somewhere along the way it transformed itself into this entity whose sole purpose is to keep its constituency frightened into thinking that left-wing radicals want to take their guns away from you. Trust me on this: Rational people will never call for the abolition of private gun ownership as long as irrational people are still allowed to own them as well. Nobody has any interest in seeing Charlton Heston’s flintlock thrown into a landfill.

The only thing that is ever discussed is assault weapon possession. Nobody at the NRA wants to explain why anyone needs an AK-47 to shoo raccoons away from their garbage cans, a MAC-10 to defend themselves from an unarmed intruder, or armor-piercing rounds to take down a 10-point buck. Instead of saying, “Yeah, OK, those are stupid things for people to have in their homes”, the NRA keeps coming back with, “OMG, they’re coming for your legally-purchased single-round .22 target pistol!!! The only way to protect yourself is to renew your NRA membership RIGHT NOW!!!”

I grew up in a house filled with guns. All of them were purchased legally, and I was taught from a very young age to respect them. I don’t worry about people with guns, I worry about stupid people with guns. I always say: If you’re stupid enough to think that people will believe you when you tell them that your gun went off accidentally while you were cleaning it, then you’re too stupid to own a gun. If your gun really DID go off accidentally while you were cleaning it, then you should probably set it down gently on a table and step quietly out of the room.

The problem today is that people who buy guns go through a waiting period to see if they’ve ever been convicted of a felony, but there’s no waiting period for determining if the new owner is knowledgeable in the proper handling of a firearm. There’s no place to go to prove competency, and there’s no incentive to learn. More people die from gun-related accidents in this country than from actual gun-related homicides. As long as we live in a culture that embraces private gun ownership, there needs to be an advocate who promotes responsible gun ownership.

Like the NRA used to.

By: David

David — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 04:12:50 +0000

Good point. We must always keep a vigilant lookout for “them.”