In the midst of the tragedy at Virginia Tech today our president cited his support of the second amendment to the United States Constitution. I’d like to know what that had to do with the unspeakable tragedy that had occurred. As usual Mr. Bush was out of step with reality. He’s hardly been a defender of our constitution and invoking the second amendment at a time of great tragedy is myopia at its best.
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
The second amendment to the United States Constitution is talking about a well regulated militia not the license to own weapons of mass destruction and that is exactly what today’s firearms have become. How long must we tolerate the gun lobby? We license owners of automobiles and motorcycles and we cause them to be registered. We license pilots and aircraft and we cause them to be registered. Why is it necessary in this or any society to own a handgun? We have a first amendment to the constitution, but as we’ve seen recently that cannot be used without the exercise of responsibility. The argument has always been,
guns don’t kill people, people kill people.
That’s naive. Assault rifles and other automatic weapons ought to be severely regulated. You shouldn’t be able to buy them or the ammunition for them without a federal permit. Those kinds of weapons were designed not for sport but for the military and only the military ought to have legal access to them. We have a Patriot Act, why not a Safe America Act that outlaws most of the guns that abound in our country.
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all of us are created equal; that we are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights, and that among these are the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
A gun is a weapon and the right to own one ought not impinge on our unalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Oh, for pity’s sake!
The Iranian Foreign Ministry manages to come out with condolences that aren’t muddied by conflicting statements. It’s not that hard, is it? Practically every major world leader has to have the boilerplate by now. “The Martian people and the whole world mourn with the families and friends of those affected by this terrible tragedy.” A frequent addition is to note that said family, friends, and nation are in the thoughts and prayers of the country issuing the statement. Perhaps an offer is made to lay a wreath or something similar.
But you don’t take a moment to get in a political message against regulating the weapon in the tragedy, especially before anyone’s even had a chance to collect their thoughts.