An appeal to gun owners
Many well-meaning people feel deeply about defending their right to own guns. I am not
a gun owner, but in a culture beset with so much random violence,
having a weapon to protect yourself and your loved ones may not be
entirely unreasonable.
Yet,
if you are a gun owner, there is an argument I would make in appealing
to you to support some restrictions, particularly regarding assault
weapons.
We
have many rights that are not absolute; there are many examples of
acceptable restrictions. Obviously, we aren’t allowed to drive without
proving that we are capable. Or drink alcohol until we reach the minimum
age. We understand government’s function in issuing regulations and
restrictions which try to balance individual rights with the benefit to
society.
Certainly,
banning assault weapons would infringe upon the enjoyment of using them
for target practice, or other legal pursuits. And, of course, it would
mean that you would have to find an alternative weapon for your
security. But isn’t that a reasonable trade-off for keeping society safe
from those, mentally unstable or otherwise, in schools or elsewhere,
for whom assault weapons are the weapons of choice for mass murder?
If
the federal government won’t act, state governments must. Other
measures can help, but without banning assault weapons, they are
band-aids. Please support the demonstrations coming up on March 14th and 24th and
the national school walkout on April 20 which will be asking for
additional regulations. You, the gun owners, are most important.
Dr. Carole Ford,
Publishing history
Albany Times Union 3/13/18
Middletown Records 3/23/18
Kingston Freemn 3/26/18
Middletown Records 3/23/18
Kingston Freemn 3/26/18
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