Dear readers, I must apologise to you for my prolonged absence from the blog. I've been up to my chin in projects since my last post, and I simply haven't had the time to research anything new. However, between trying to fix an old Roper gas stove, painting, yardwork, moving in, and working on the Kerry campaign, I've noticed I'm still bitching about one thing more often than not. So here's a quick shout out to my kids in DC. Keep your heads down, because if you think gun violence is bad now...
I'd like to thank a bipartisan group of Congressmen (I had originally intended to target specific individuals, but hey, let's spread the love.) for making sure that Washington, DC, my home until one week ago, is going to be safer. Presuming the District of Columbia Personal Protection act passes the Senate in coming months the law abiding citizens of the District will no longer have to worry about those annoying little gun registration laws passed by the city council so long ago. Now, before I go any further, I'd like to point out that this bill is a piece of House of Reps grandstanding used by Dems to give them a little Second Amendment flava and Republicans for the opposite reason. It's no more a real piece of legislation than a letter to the editor of the Washington Times is a real piece of journalism, however, that doesn't change the fact that the citizens of DC are still looking under their beds for their enfranchisement.
I'll spare you the obnoxious details. Simply put, DC has strict gun control laws, extremely strict. Forget packing a handgun unless you're specially licensed as an armed security guard or a cop. Shotguns and rifles are legal, but you've got to register them with the Metro PD, and don't expect to transport them out of your house unless they're locked and unloaded. The bill repeals these regulations, put in place by the city council and mayor of the District of Columbia, without the consent of the citizens of the District. In fact, they don't even get a Congresman to vote on the issue. Now, I won't even get into the DC Taxation Without Representation bit right now, but sufficed to say that really starts getting agitating when Congress takes that rare oportunity to exercise it's power of the District's local laws. Folks, just so you're aware, DC is the only place in the country where they can do that.
As a nod to the "spirit" of the bill (H.R. 3193 By the by) I'll go ahead and point out that DC has a high violent crime rate. The idea, denounced by anyone with one whit of knowledge regarding gun violence statistics, is that if the law abiding citizens of DC had guns they'd be able to kill the bad guys. Okay real simple, you remember high school algebra, right? If 1 + x = 1 then x = 0, right? Meaning x has no value. Try this on. Canada + lots of legal guns = minimal gun violence and Italy + strict gun control = minimal gun violence, then what must be true of both lots of legal guns and strict gun control? That they both have little effect on gun violence? That, perhaps, they function similarly to the "0" in the previous equation? Don't peg me for a gun control nut here. I'm a gun lovin', trigger pullin' freak when it comes down to it. When I first moved to DC I was upset to discover that I couldn't obtain a conceal and carry permit, but that doesn't make me delusional regarding the role of gun control in violent crime or able to read the Second Amendment backwards and hear a message from Charlton Heston. The simple fact here is that DC doesn't want guns. The city has made it quite clear that this legislation is unnecessary and unwelcome.
To add insult to injury the bill cites that one of its goals is to "REFORM D.C. COUNCIL'S AUTHORITY TO RESTRICT FIREARMS." It cites a 1906 law regarding the killing of wild birds and animals which states that,: "The District of Columbia shall not have authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms." Believe me, I'm going to be on the look out for any laws of this nature which apply to segregation and women's sufferage, and I'll be emailing them to Mr. Ford and Mrs. Blackburn respectively. Frankly, Mr. Tanner, I just expected more from you. Welcome, dear readers to the land of dangerous precedents. Seems like we're visiting frequently lately.
This subject has become, at this stage, quite personal to me, as the legislation was voted for by every West Tennessee Congresman. Thank you, John Tanner, Marsha Blackburn, and Harold Ford Jr. I'll be in touch.
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