Reader Gideon Joubert writes:
We’re all now too familiar with the abhorrent event that occurred in Las Vegas last week. It’s impossible to adequately express feelings of sympathy and remorse for people who experienced something that is completely beyond our comprehension, and I won’t insult them by indulging in such empty gestures.
I also don’t believe in entertaining visceral political debate regarding gun control and dancing on the graves of the dead before the bodies have even had a chance to cool, unlike the Hillary Clintons of this world. Which is why I’m only writing about the matter now.
Understandably, the first emotional reaction of many people in the wake of such an atrocity is to demand stricter gun control legislation. And this is where we have a problem. Laws can be used to punish (or bring other consequences down upon) perpetrators of crimes after the fact. But preventing them is completely beyond the scope and power of legislation.
There isn’t a single law that could have stopped the Las Vegas spree killer from committing his wicked deeds. Just ask an expert on the subject. The law can certainly be used to bring such killers to justice, and in that manner act as some sort of deterrent. But that’s about the best we can reasonably hope for.
The reason for this is simple – criminals, and terrorists for that matter, by their very nature, don’t obey laws. Committing murder is illegal. Committing rape is illegal. Committing acts of human trafficking is illegal. The purpose of having laws to make these acts illegal isn’t to stop them from happening, it’s to punish those who commit them.
So it should hardly be surprising that criminals don’t obey gun laws either, regardless of how restrictive and onerous they may be. This is why there is no shortage of firearms in criminal hands in places like Jamaica, despite the island nation having banned civilian ownership of guns back in 1973. (They suffered a 400% increase in their homicide rate within a seven-year period as a result).
This is why France suffered three mass shootings in 2015 (resulting in 147 dead and over 390 wounded) during which the perpetrators used fully-automatic weapons, which are banned by both French and EU law. This is why Australia endured no fewer than 13 mass attacks after their 1996 National Firearms Agreement, of which five were perpetrated by use of guns.
Back home, here in sunny South Africa, we have some of the strictest gun laws in the world. In spite of this we have a murder rate of 34.27 per 100,000, which places us as the 8th most violent country in the world. There is no shortage of criminals armed with fully-automatic AK-47 or R4 rifles, as daily news reports attest.
Our incredibly strict gun laws fail to keep prohibited firearms out of criminal hands because they are incapable of doing so. In fact, corrupt police officials have actually used the firearm legislation and associated firearm amnesties to supply firearms to criminal gangs in the Western Cape.
None of this should come as a surprise. The so-called War on Drugs has been an abject failure. Possession, trafficking and use of controlled substances is highly illegal in most nations, and the penalties for being caught doing so can be incredibly severe. People have been put to death for smuggling drugs into Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.
In July 2016 the Philippines began a bloody and protracted campaign by government authorities against anyone suspected of drug dealing, and the bodycount currently stands in excess of 4,000. Yet, despite this, people still illegally procure and use narcotics all over the world. If I may twist a well-known adage, “If we outlaw drugs, only outlaws will have drugs.” Prohibition does not work: it didn’t work for alcohol in the US during the 1920s, it isn’t working for drugs and it certainly won’t work for guns.
Let’s also not forget that mass-murderers don’t need guns to kill and injure scores of people. Guns weren’t used in Oklahoma in 1995. They weren’t used in Boston in 2013. Nor were they used in Nice and Berlin in 2016, or at Manchester, London Bridge, and Barcelona this year. Yet in the wake of these incidents we didn’t see governments entertain calls for truck or fertilizer control. We only seem to fixate on the object used in an attack when it happens to be a gun.
“Common sense gun control” may be a powerful clarion call for some, but only those who forget the United States actually already has that. There’s a powerful impression that the US has no system of controlling who is legally allowed to buy firearms, despite the fact that the magic of the internet allows people to easily discover that this isn’t remotely the case.
Myths around so-called “gun show loopholes” and other media-ready euphemisms get lots of airtime, almost always spouted by people who have no idea what they are talking about, and who have never gone through the process of legally acquiring a firearm. Those who actually do investigate the facts of the matter are frequently convinced to change their minds, as Leah Libresco was.
The only thing that gun control legislation achieves is to restrict law-abiding citizens from owning firearms. This in turn leaves them defenseless against the very people from whom the law cannot protect them. It’s a uniquely perverse outcome, to put it mildly.
It’s telling that there isn’t a single country on Earth where murder rates have not increased following a gun ban. So perhaps when your politicians call for more gun control, they really should be careful what they wish for.
Yeah, well, we’ve already surrendered. The annoying red man will sign the bill within months, no doubt while telling us he’s “protecting our second amendment”. Many conservatives will actually believe because their strong man is doing it. Sick. And sad.
Farago, is that you?
Another one suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome. Give it a rest. The NRA itself is who introduced this idea.
That’s such a simple, but essential point that we often forget it. Laws don’t prevent, they punish. So obvious, but so easy to lose sight of when politicians get involved.
There’s not going to be any new gun control laws, well at least at the Federal level. Ryan already stated he rather see the ATF regulate bump stocks then introduce any new laws. DiFi’s proposal will quietly die in committee while other republicans who signed on to any bump stock ban will fall inline and support ATF regulation instead.
So ATF have no authority to regulate bump stocks. They looked at it and ruled according to what the law says, and they ruled correctly. Ryan knows this, NRA (should) know this, and if their saying they want to ATF to regulate it is a ploy, bravo. Hope it works. Republicans want gun control, just not like Democrats do.
That’s exactly how I see this playing out as well.
Republicans (aka RINOS) want gun control if and only if it furthers their political career. They are, however, kept in line by the NRA. There are few things more persuasive than having a come-to-Jesus meeting with a NRA lobbyist who reminds you that there is a 5+ million membership, substantial numbers of which live in your district, which will happily vote against you if you don’t support gun-rights. This is an old game for the NRA and the organization is very, very good at it.
Other countries success or failure s of gun control have nothing to do with America s RTKBA, There’s a piece of paper, paid for in bloid, that gives me the right to protect myself. The Heros of 1776 gave me that freedom, and if those whom do not like that freedom have the opportunity to leave this country. If they chose not to, continuing to shred the Constitution,and destroy my country, then I can only assume their are traitors and enemies. Yes something needs to be done about the army of unloyal traitors in Senate and Congress.
I like your moxie, but I want to point out that no document, or government, gives you that right. You have that right because you exist. That right predated the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Magna Carta, and even cuneiform.
I agree. I like the fortitude on display.
But just another example of failed education.
You are correct. We are endowed with inalienable rights. But people don’t even know what “inalienable” means!
But what did the previous generations think that government run schools were going to teach children? Freedom? Liberty? C’mon! Governments teach people that they ought to exist. People are real. Governments are fictions. It’s a con game. In order to extract your wealth in the form of taxes they must convince you that they have the right and authority to tax you and rule over you.
Indoctrination is best when it’s started at a very early age. We’ve now gotten to the point where, since both parents are debt slaves, they must work to live even a meager lifestyle and so little Mary and Johnny are shipped off to daycares and pre-schools where the indoctrination begins. And then that’s followed up all way, in many cases, into their 20s by way of State and Federally funded universities.
And we wonder why we have the government we deserve?
Church run schools are no better, unless you have control of the church. Independant church run schools can range from good to the worse.
Private schools that are not affilatiated with a church teach to college admissions, not so the students can think for themselves the same for home schooling
You are correct Jason, self preservation has been around since the dawn of man, it also exist’s in the animal kingdom. Protecting oneself from harm or death is a deep rooted survival instinct, the Second Amendment just gives us the means to do so easier and more effectively.
It’s becoming so obvious that if we need any sort of amendment to the Constitution at this time is is MANDATORY retirement ages for Congressmen, Senators and SCOTUS justices!
Not mandatory retirement ages.
Term limits.
The political class must be destroyed.
HEAR! Hear! 3+Million thumbs up!!!! And they must have a job, or be a business person…And No armed security, except at their own expense…Security, or police protection just as the general public would receive it….
1.) “SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED!”
2.) There is NO SUCH THING A PRE-CRIME!
3.) Murder is a “Capital Crime” it is already against the LAW!
4.) Can anyone “Prove WITHOUT a shadow of a doubt” that this Multi-millionaire suddenly went off the rails. Engaged in a large scale mass shooting spree, and acted alone?!
5.) Anyone remember that guy Ed Snowdon who blew the whistle on our Intelligence agency shadow gov… (re: Spying on Americans, invasion of privacy, US Constitutional-Bill of Rights violations!)
Maybe our reps are being chemically controlled.
https://www.statnews.com/2017/10/11/pharmacist-congress-drug-delivery/
Stepford fembots
So perhaps when your politicians call for more gun control, they really should be careful what they wish for.
Why? They have armed security paid for by our tax dollars, or their election campaigns. I doubt many politicians care about our safety as much as staying in power.
And it’s much easier to stay in power, when the population is disarmed. Western Europe began instituting gun control about a century ago out of fear of communist revolutions, not crime against its citizenry.
Can’t Understand Normal Thinking!
The U.S. already has numerous gun laws . . . and yet . . . this happened. So more gun laws will work . . . and then more . . . and more. There ought to be a law against making more laws.
The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws.
Roughly 22,000 gun laws, State, Federal and local already on the books. Nothing will ever stop bad things from happening, all of us American Patriots know this already. Its the indoctrinated mindless idiots who we are unable to educate with facts, truth and logic.
Diane Feinstein truly is a despicable and disgusting human being. To take advantage of a tragedy to do nothing but further restrict individual rights, even when you admit the futility of such legislatin, is abhorrent. The fact that she is still able to pull such stunts, because the scum in California continue to elect her, is overdue for an ending. I used to look upon gun control advocates as individuals with overwhelming ignorance and immaturity, but, I’m beginning to see them for what they are, evil. Anyone who supports denying and limiting people’s rights are as sick and twisted as the Nazis as well as all other fascistic and totalitarian political bents.
“Anyone who supports denying and limiting people’s rights are as sick and twisted as the Nazis as well as all other fascistic and totalitarian political bents.”
Progressivism has always been in alignment with fascism. We are very close to having a one-party state.
we need to stop talking about it here and start talking about it with our senators. because doing nothing will surely get some sort of ban passed. contact your senators and let them know how you feel.
Here’s what we know:
1) There’s the POS (D).
2) There’s the POS shooter in LV.
3) When push comes to shove, our POS Reps side with the above two problems AND AGAINST US (WHO ARE NOT ONE OF THE PROBLEMS).
4) THE SHOOTER WAS ANOTHER POS (D). If he was a Tea Party supporter or (R) in any way, the FING POS (D) woulda been conducting Congressional Hearings. They are keeping it quiet because they know we’d burn their sh_t to the ground after the VA baseball game shooter. Especially if there was any muslim /soros nexus.
The Legislative branch better open up about what they know about the shooter (that’s actually something that might help protect us) and the better just STFU about everything else.
” The purpose of having laws to make these acts illegal isn’t to stop them from happening, it’s to punish those who commit them.”
FINALLY! Somebody who gets it! I am beyond sick of the argument “why have laws at all?” It’s a twisted attempt to make a comparison between the action itself and the (one of many) method of committing the act. You may as well compare apples to door knobs.
What a refreshing article. Nobody is suggesting we legalize murder, rape, assault, etc. We are just opposed to the false premise that somehow we can “prevent” one of those immoral actions (murder) by legislating one of literally dozens of methods to commit it. That’s what I call insane.
Even Feinstein admitted that more gun laws won’t help.
http://libertyparkpress.com/feinstein-admits-gun-laws-couldnt-prevented-las-vegas/
Of course, it’s not like that ever stops her for seeking more citizen disarmament.
If your government ever says “We cannot protect you, unless you do _____________” or “We cannot protect you, unless and until you give up the means of protecting yourself” Then only the first part of those statements are true.
Whenever your government says “We Can’t ____________ ” just say WE KNOW STUPID, we never thought you could, now pack your sh_t and go to the house.
IMHO… You nailed it…
DiFi is Folly indeed…
From Proverbs 9
The Way of Folly
13 The woman Folly is loud;
she is seductive[c] and knows nothing.
14 She sits at the door of her house;
she takes a seat on the highest places of the town,
15 calling to those who pass by,
who are going straight on their way,
16 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
And to him who lacks sense she says,
“Stolen water is sweet,
and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
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