Another horrific shooting occurred. This time a radicalized American citizen of Iraqi descent, armed to the teeth, went to a gay bar around the closing hour of two in the morning, and killed forty-nine innocent people, and then was shot dead himself. As might be expected, the first reaction beyond terror is that we need to curb gun sales and restrict who can buy guns. Similarly, gun rights advocates (disclaimer: I belong to this group) will retort with questions about restricting fertilizer, knives and rope, because they too can be used to kill people. Let the games begin.
On the periphery of the redundant debate there are other issues that need addressed. Gun control is not the central issue in play. It's the last issue that stems from other issues that are viewed by the Leftist pollyannas as insignificant. Unfortunately, and yet again, the Left is wrong.
First, we need to stop being politically correct. The idea that someone's feelings are going to be hurt because we identify him as a threat is non-sense. If an Arabic man is the one who is identified as a shooter, stopping Arabic men while investigating the shooting is only natural. It wouldn't make much sense to look for Swedish blondes. But we're so concerned about profiling, about insulting or offending someone who may in turn sue and win a money judgment for the pain and suffering. The touchy-feely United States is weakening itself from within.
Political correctness also preaches that guns are bad. Guns by themselves are inoperable. They take humans to wreak havoc and destruction. But by all means, so yell the Leftists, let's get rid of guns! They hurriedly tell us that they don't mean to confiscate guns from law-abiding gunowners, but mean to prevent sales to people who shouldn't have guns.
Well.
The vast majority of gunowners, such as myself, are law-abiding and bought their guns legally, after a background check. If the goal of stricter gun laws is to prevent people who shouldn't have guns from getting them, exactly who's the target audience? Criminals? They're going to get around gun laws. They are, after all, criminals. Children? I doubt very highly they apply for guns a lot? Blind people? Amputees? Who, exactly, are the Leftists looking to prevent from purchasing a gun?
Foreigners? I haven't heard this argument yet, but the conundrum is interesting: Come to this country, vote for our candidate...but you can't own a gun. Considering that hypocrisy is the unwritten part of their platform, I wouldn't be surprised.
But people with mental health issues -- we can't offend them either. No matter how deleterious their behavior can be to society when allowed to purchase a gun, we can't possibly stigmatize all of them for the actions of a few. On the other hand, it's perfectly permissible to stigmatize a few gunowners for the actions of a few wingbats who have an episode and kill people with guns. Better to punish those law-abiding people than a group that is infinitely more likely to snap.
The sad truth is that anyone, anywhere, at any time can lose control. There are countless examples of people who were perfectly normal one moment and then raving lunatics the next, the trigger being unseen or misunderstood by others. But political correctness says that those who complain the loudest -- not necessarily the most logically -- should be abided. Shame will follow for those who won't listen.
Political correctness, had it been in vogue during World War II or the Cold War, would have meant that the United States wouldn't have become the power that it is today. Ironically, a powerful United States allows these feckless Leftists to promote their brand of sympathy.
I'm sorry for what happened in Orlando. I don't condone it one bit. But had we had tighter controls in some things, and less controls in others, such as concealed carry laws, perhaps the tragedy could have been averted or mitigated.
Trying to explain that to some people, however, is impossible, because they have a monopoly on truth and knowledge.
(c) 2016 The Truxton Spangler Chronicles
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