Gun control advocates are quick to point the finger any time a mass shooting or a tragedy takes place. Somehow the firearm is always responsible for the outcome, even when the perp obtained the firearm used legally.
It’s never the criminal’s fault. It’s always down to the chunk of metal…the tool that was used. So, naturally, we must do something. Outlaw it. Ban it. Because, you know, criminals would otherwise follow the law. Or something.
That narrative never seems to end despite the number of times we point out the flaws in blaming law-abiding citizens for the misdeeds of criminals.
You can see the same thought process playing out in a new article from The Washington Post. The author, expressing shock hand horror, slams Culper Precision, a custom gun shop in Utah, for creating the “BLOCK19.”
The gun is a custom GLOCK 19 made to look like it’s been created with Legos. According to the WaPo, the firearm could be confused with a toy, resulting in children accidentally shooting themselves.
What’s not fun, and went unaddressed on the sales page, is the reality that thousands of children unintentionally shoot themselves or others each year because they find a gun and pull its trigger. Culper Precision’s customization arrived at a time when that problem is only getting worse and firearm sales are soaring. As word of the new product spread on the Internet late last week, the idea struck many people as so profoundly misguided that it would inevitably cost children their lives.
Culper Precision founder Brandon Scott told the the paper he designed the custom firearm in hopes of getting people excited about the shooting sports. The goal was to bring to life the fake Lego guns lots of adults made when they were kids.
Instead, he was fulfilling a childhood fantasy for his adult customers, referencing in his conversation with the blog how the customization mimicked the “pretend guns” people made “out of the Legos you got from Santa.”
Although he weighed the potential outcomes of these toy-inspired guns, Scott told the the WaPo that responsible gun ownership — including safe storage — is a must that is ultimately each individual’s responsibility.
Scott told The Washington Post that before announcing his idea, he’d considered that children might think the altered guns are toys, but it didn’t dissuade him. He and his three children play with Lego blocks, and in his home, he keeps all of his guns locked up, something that he expects every other gun owner to do as well — an expectation divorced from reality.
The real kicker here is the WaPo article came out after Moms Demand Action founder and hoplophobic harridan Shannon Watts tweeted about it.
Shannon is triggered by… LEGOS! pic.twitter.com/nxNKVkfyDG
— Beth Baumann (@eb454) July 13, 2021
The truth is this: having a firearm is a God-given, Constitutionally-protected right. Utilizing your right to keep and bear arms comes with responsibilities…responsibilities the overwhelming majority of gun owners are more than up to.
Part of that includes safely storing firearms so that children can’t get ahold of them. But, more importantly, that responsibility includes teaching children to respect firearms and never touch one, even if it does look like a toy.
The Washington Post will express outrage and horror, acting as if the gun will touch off a wave of accidental shootings. But the fact is this thing is intended for a niche market. Not everyone is going to purchase one simply because they can. And they aren’t going to show up on playgrounds and parks across the nation.
Still, leave it to the anti-gun, mainstream media — prompted by one of their favorite sources — to make a mountain out of a mole hill.
