SPEAKING OF DEUTERONOMY

Another Viewpoint column by Dr. Benito A. Alvarez in Friday's (1-18-2013) News Herald is meant to be a cautionary tale.  Dr. Alvarez writes about how bad things happened in Cuba after Castro came to power and then took guns away from the good guys.

Dr. Alvarez asks "When exactly did I become the bad guy?"  Which is the wrong question to ask. 

The actual question for Dr. Alvaraz is – "Who exactly IN THIS COUNTRY (NOT Cuba) is coming, or proposing, to take away your guns?"

The answer is NOBODY.

Although you'd never know that by listening to the Faux News echo chamber or the hysteria professionally created by the NRA – lobby for the gun industry.  The fact is that the reasonable gun control measures proposed by Pres. Obama have nothing to do with confiscating guns.  But creating fear is what the NRA does best.

Why?

Because when people are afraid they won't be able to get guns they RUN OUT AND BUY GUNS.

And getting people to RUN OUT AND BUY GUNS is why the NRA exists.  In the 1960's the NRA stated in its official literature that "…the NRA is not affiliated with any manufacturer of arms or ammunition …"  But that was then and this is now and this ain't your grandpa's NRA.

Today the NRA gets more than half its funding from the gun and ammo $12 billion a year industry.  There's big money in guns and good money in being a mouthpiece for the NRA. "Call me crazy" Wayne LaPierre takes home more than $1 million per year.

But mandatory background checks, one Obama proposal, is supported by 76% of NRA members.  And reducing the number of rounds to 10 per clip and eliminating Bushmaster type weapons (intended for use in wars) is supported by 56% of the American people.  It's significant that the maniac who killed the little kids at Sandy Hook elementary school had his choice of guns with high count magazines or hunting rifles.  His mother had both.  He didn't choose hunting rifles.  If he had the carnage would have been much less.
Fewer bullets means fewer killings.  Simple, huh.   

But, there is one sure way that responsible gun owners like Alvarez can guarantee that their guns WILL be confiscated.  It’s their choice. 

They can resist sensible gun control measures like those suggested by Obama and write editorials and simplistic Politics with Pete "Yahoo, I'm goin' shootin' at the shootin' range" blogs against them.  If successful, and sensible gun control measures are defeated, then one thing is inevitable.  Maniacs will continue to have easy access to lethal weapons and the mass murders will continue.  

Then, sometime in the future, an event or series of events will be so bloody and horrific the American People will rise up and say, "THAT'S IT.  WE"VE HAD ENOUGH."  And the Second Amendment will be repealed.  As it says Deuteronomy, "I have set before you life and death.  Now choose life."

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In other gun news: Celebrating Gun Appreciation day five people at gun shows were shot, one lucky victim right here in Ohio, and in Albuquerque a teenager shot and killed five people including three children.