Do we have a gun problem, or a government problem? :: 01/25/2020

Following Monday's 22,000-plus strong rally in Richmond, Virginia – which Gov. Northam claimed was "some kind of über-Klan rally of white supremacists," but the only arrest was for an LGBT activist who refused to remove her mask – the state's Democratic lawmakers proceeded to push through a gun-control bill one day later. I don't think Virginia politicians realize what a hornet's nest they're stirring.

Despite all evidence to the contrary – and believe me, the left pays no attention whatever to evidence – progressives persist in their illogical, irrational mantra: "Guns kill people. If we outlawed guns, it would not be possible to kill people. So let's outlaw guns. People have nothing to do with it; it's all the gun's fault. Except guns in the hands of white people, of course. What are you, a racist?"

You see, progressives believe in a government solution for everything. Why aren't they calling to outlaw automobiles whenever a car-related tragedy occurs? Because deep down they know the car didn't cause the tragedy. "Blaming criminal actions on guns is like blaming financial crimes on money," observes Dr. Michael Hurd. "If there were no money, financial crimes would not be possible. I am sick of the lecturing and sermonizing of anti-gun zealots. 'Oh, I hate guns,' they say, with sneering and condescending superiority. The implication is that to hate guns is to hate the kind of violence we too often see take place. What rational person could not detest that horrific violence? But the issue is not guns; the issue is in whose hands the guns are located. The peaceful people who own guns for self-defense are not causing this violence. The people who will continue to commit acts of violence or terrorism will continue to do so, whether we confiscate the guns from peace-loving people, or not." [Emphasis in original.]

As Monday's rally abundantly illustrated, the promised violence was not originating from gun owners. Historically, violent protests originate from the left: from antifa, from Black Lives Matter, from other progressive groups whose savagery makes a mockery of peaceful law-abiding gun-owners nationwide.

The left wants to take away every possible chance for citizens to defend themselves. What progressives don't want to admit is this: We don't have a gun problem. We have a government problem. Big time.

Ironically, the group that would suffer the most from a gun ban is the group progressives purportedly champion the most: Women. Firearms are the great equalizer, allowing smaller and weaker women to defend themselves against bigger and stronger aggressors. And – news flash – those bigger and stronger aggressors usually have guns, often illegally.

Here's an example of how a single mom prevented untold tragedy for her and her two daughters by merely indicating she had a handgun. She didn't have to shoot anyone or engage in unnecessary dramatics. All she had to do was make sure the bad guys knew she was armed. "The mere sight of the firearm at my side did not cause violence. It prevented the violence that was brewing," she writes. "If you call yourself a feminist, why in the world would you be against the one thing that could keep you the safest and empower you the most?"

Yet the left wants to return women to a weak and vulnerable state, despite firearms being the ultimate empowerment tool. Um, logic?

It's the bullies who want to ban guns to make their potential victims helpless. Those who publicly support firearms ownership – many of them women – report how online bullies begin a harassment campaign against them, often involving violent fantasies of mayhem against children or other vulnerable family members. And this is supposed to convince peace-loving people they should be disarmed? As one of the signs at Virginia's rally said, "Making good people helpless won't make bad people harmless."

I don't think Gov. Northam or the Virginia legislature realize what a sleeping giant they poked – not just in Virginia, but the whole nation. Every state is closely watching to see what other unconstitutional legislation the Virginia Democrats will try to pass. Sure, they can pass a lot of junk. But enforce it? Think again.

The reason tyrannical politicians want to ban guns is obvious to everyone except the left. The Founding Fathers knew good and well firearms ownership had nothing to do with deer hunting or even self-protection, and everything to do with keeping tyrannical politicians at bay. In fact, no one knew it better than the Founding Fathers, who spent many years dealing with horrific abuses from their British overlords. There was no way they were going to impose the same potential for tyranny on the infant nation known as America. No way.

The abuses of government are kept in check by the threat of an armed citizenship. That fact is painfully obvious to Northam, which is why he tried to whip the left and the media into a hysterical frenzy about evil, violent white supremacists. When nothing – literally nothing – went wrong, Northam had the gall to take credit for the crowd's good behavior and his clever de-escalation of demonstrators who were supposedly bent on "acts of violence." "Seems to me there was nothing to de-escalate, because the whole thing was completely peaceful, despite your efforts to foment trouble," noted one attendee.

Above all, the madder the people get, the more the Virginia government tries to pass additional firearms restrictions – like that will work. Essentially, the Virginia government is using guns (the threat of force) to force us not to have guns.

Read that again: They are using guns to force us not to have guns. What could possible go wrong with this scenario?

Politicians often portray fiction as fact (i.e., all gun owners are white supremacist terrorists). One of those fictions-as-fact lies is, "We would all be safer if we were disarmed."

Remember, we don't have a gun problem; we have a government problem. As proof, consider my favorite quote from the world's biggest airhead, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: "Owning guns is not a right. If it were a right, it would be in the Constitution."

I rest my case.

https://www.wnd.com/2020/01/gun-problem-government-problem/