I got so pissed at work today I had to sit down and write this

[rxer311]

Sick and Tired
By Dr. Robert A. Planey

I am a member of the NRA. I am a gun owner. I also own semi-automatic rifles. My rifles have never been raised in anger or malice towards any other human being. I am sick and tired of people treating me like I am part of the problem every single time a tragedy like the shooting in Newtown, CT is perpetrated. There are some people who think that I am cold and heartless and could not care less about the people and children slaughtered by a deranged individual. They believe this because I am an advocate for the second amendment and the responsible ownership of firearms. In their own minds they have determined that they are somehow morally superior to me and others with similar mindsets. Why is it that I have to defend myself and others like me for the actions of a lunatic that I have no control over? Why am I the target of anti-gun groups like the Brady Campaign? Their hypocrisy is unfathomable. Only hours after acts of extreme violence, people from anti-gun groups and the Hollywood elites were calling for members of the NRA to be “shot.” This is a direct threat to myself, my family, and many of my friends. Why is it okay for them to call for violence against me while crying in outrage against firearms, inanimate objects? I intend to show the hypocrisy and bigotry that are the root of my frustration and facts on the fallibility of gun control. I will also provide a starting point for a dialogue about what has happened and what needs to be done about our culture of violence.

I must first say that I have a daughter of my own and I love her and I am proud of her. If she was taken away from me, my world would be shattered. I cannot even pretend to understand the grief of the families that have had their lives devastated by this monster. I pray for the families that they can find solace and peace. I hope that eventually they can piece their lives back together.

I am sick and tired of these hypocrites telling me that I don’t care about the innocents that were slaughtered. I know that if I had a chance to save even one single child I would do everything in my power to do so, up to and including using the use of deadly force with a firearm on the perpetrator. I would risk my life and my freedom if I could have the opportunity let one more baby go home to see their parents. I would not be able to live with myself if I knew I had the power to do something, but did not.

I am sick and tired of the politicians in Washington, D.C. We once again have law makers in the Capitol arguing over gun control measures. There have been talks of banning “assault weapons” and “high capacity magazines.” What exactly is an “assault weapon?” The answer to that question lies only in the hands of the people who draft the legislation and not the people for whom the government works for. The truth is that I can assault a person with a baseball bat, a knife, or my bare hands. Are these considered “assault weapons?”

The most insulting thing is that many of the people and legislators that are calling for these gun control measures have not even handled a firearm of any type. They will, however, hire private security and use the secret service to protect them with these same so called “assault weapons.” Even more absurd are the Senators like Dianne Feinstein. She is one of the few people that has had bestowed upon her one of the extremely scarce Concealed Weapons Permits in the state of California. Yet, this sophist is the same one who introduces and sponsors anti-gun legislation. It is farcical for them to believe that they have the right to defend themselves, but that I do not have the same right to defend myself and my family. And it is these same liberal politicians that will feign outrage over the tragic murder of 20 children, yet call the murder of thousands of our unborn, “a woman’s right to choose.”

At the same time our current administration, through the Justice Department led by Eric Holder, allowed the sale of thousands of these same “assault weapons” to drug cartels in Mexico. Some of these same weapons were used in the murder of Mexican and American citizens, as well as a border patrol agent by the name of Brian Terry. His family still does not have answers as to what actually happened. Our own attorney general, Eric Holder has been held in contempt of congress for not providing subpoenaed information to congress. Where is the outrage with this situation?

I am sick and tired of an industrial news complex that cannot accurately present the facts. Within hours of the shooting in the movie theater in Aurora, CO, the news media had already incorrectly identified the shooter as a Tea Party member from a Facebook page that nobody thought needed to be verified. In this recent shooting at the school in CT the media once again incorrectly reported the identity of the shooter and also incorrectly reported his mother as an employee of the school. The media was more interested in playing politics than reporting the facts and more enamored with being the first to report than having the correct report. Before the spilled blood was dry, the media outlets gleefully resorted to their smear campaign against guns and gun owners portraying anybody who disagreed as selfish individuals who would rather see innocent children be slaughtered than give up their second amendment rights. These same media outlets sensationalize the crimes by using buzz words like massacre, slaughter, and assault weapon. They ensure that everybody will remember the killer, but never the victims. This only secures the notion that copycats will try and outdo the others before them. Why is it that we cannot have “reasonable restrictions” on the 1st amendment of the freedom of the press, but it is okay to have reasonable restrictions on the 2nd amendment to bear arms? It would be just as crazy as saying we need to have reasonable restrictions on the 15th amendment that guarantees equal opportunity to vote. The truth is that none of the amendments of the constitution were meant to have “reasonable restrictions.”

I am sick and tired of so called journalists like Jason Whitlock who spew hate against organizations that they do not understand. In his ignorance, Mr. Whitlock called the NRA the “New KKK.” A bit of research and a look back into history would have informed this sports journalist that the NRA was founded by Union Soldiers after the Civil War to provide marksmanship training to freed slaves so they could effectively defend themselves against their white oppressors. I am sick and tired of sports casters like Bob Costas who use the halftime show of nationally televised football games to go on rants about gun control. While alienating millions of law abiding, gun owning Americans, he incorrectly placed the blame of a murder/suicide on a gun which is an object that has no moral structure. He did all this while ostentatiously ignoring that FBI statistics show that thousands of violent crimes in this country are perpetrated with a baseball bat. This is pretty ironic for a sports caster reporting on violent crime.
I do not pretend to have all of the answers but there are a few things that I do know for sure. First of all, the shooter in the Aurora, CO movie theater passed over numerous theaters closer to his house to make his attack in the only nearby theater that had “No Guns Allowed” signs posted on the door. These signs only guarantee a criminal that he will not be met with opposition. They only let the criminal know that unarmed potential victims are inside. It makes as much sense as a sign that says, “No Crime Allowed” or to make a law outlawing crime. By definition criminals do not follow the law and will break the rules. An imaginary gun free zone does not act as a magic barrier that will keep all firearms out, especially those in the hands of a criminal.

Secondly, in 1995 a man was able to kill 168 people including 19 children under the age of 6 years old in Oklahoma City without the use of any firearms (I intentionally refuse to identify the man by name in honor of the victims). He only used readily available products from a hardware store, some fuel, and a box truck to accomplish his task. A person can still easily learn how to build an explosive device on the internet, and as far as I know, you can still rent a U-Haul. The criminally insane will always find a way to carry out their evil intentions regardless of their access to firearms.

Another thing I know for a fact is that another man in Norway was able to murder over 70 children at a summer camp with the use of so called “assault weapons.” The laws for firearm ownership in that country are far more stringent than in this country. Furthermore, ownership of semiautomatic rifles is all but completely banned in that country. We can look even deeper into failed gun control measures even closer to home. Look at our own Columbine High School tragedy also took place during the height of our own Clinton Assault Weapon ban. A close look at the city of Chicago, IL will reveal some startling revelations. Up until the recent overturning of the practice by the US Supreme Court, gun ownership in the city limits was completely forbidden, even within the homes of law abiding citizens. Due to the hoops (or you could even call them rings of fire) that one must go through to obtain the proper permits, gun ownership is still all but impossible. With these prohibitive gun laws in effect there were still 446 school aged children shot and 62 killed in the past year alone. It goes to reason that a gun ban only prevents law abiding citizens the right to protect themselves while the criminals will still procure their weapons on the black market. Banning firearms or types of firearms does little to no good in the mitigation of violent crime.

Finally, these senseless acts of violence are not something new that have only appeared since the evolution of semi-automatic rifles. The bloodiest mass murder in a school in the United States of America occurred way back in 1927 in Michigan. A former school board member set off three bombs in the school, killing 45 people and injuring 58. The production of semi-automatic rifles was still in its infancy when this took place. This not only further solidifies the fact that these criminally insane people will use whatever means necessary to accomplish their goal. Just like in Oklahoma City, this illustrates that a simple home-made bomb is cheaper and more effective at producing massive casualties than a firearm.

As I mentioned earlier, I do not have all the answers to solve this problem but there are a few places that we can begin the conversation. We have too many boys growing up without fathers to teach them how to be men. They grow up without knowing how to provide for themselves and their families. We have a mental health system that is broken. There are months long waits for psychiatry appointments and we have closed all of our state run hospitals for mentally impaired. These people are now on the streets or with caregivers that cannot adequately address their needs. The high unemployment rate and skyrocketing debt is causing a noticeable feel of civil unrest. It is pushing people closer to the edge. We have cultivated a culture of violence on television, in video games, and in the lyrics of songs. Just the other day I turned on the television to see the image of a man cut in half with a chainsaw on the popular show, CSI New York. Finally, we have forgotten that evil can exist in our world. We try to lay the blame on all of these above things, society, and inanimate objects such as firearms. The blames gets placed on everything except for the violent criminals that perpetrate these awful crimes. It is time that we recognize that it is these deranged people that commit violent acts. These are just a few topics that we can start our dialogue about.

One thing is for sure. The answer to our culture of violence is not kneejerk reactions that will ultimately abridge our rights and freedoms. The facts simply do not support the conclusions. With freedom comes responsibility and not every man will act responsibly. I would rather live free with the risks associated with it, than live safe under tyranny. Once we relinquish a freedom to the government, it will be a formidable task to gain them back. And, I am sick and tired of making these arguments!

[internet troll]

There are a lot of things I have a hard time wrapping my head around. Foremost is that we have had certain rights since the founding of this nation that people are so willing to just give up. Rights are always being taken away, they are not so easy to give. Seriously, who says "I don't need rights". I just don't get it.

[rxer311]

I typed this out as a word document as a rough draft. I have no clue what to do with it but I had to get it all down on paper. I haven't written an essay since college LOL!

[marinville]

Your argument is well thought out and rational. I only wish it had a chance to be heard.

[Z12kVZU]

Letters to every major newspaper in the commonwealth? I've no idea if they have length limits though.

[nfafan]

What you speak of; the foaming-mouth viscious hatred spewing out of the "left", the so-called "liberals", is beyond comprehension - but is quite common and well known.

Even anti-gunner Marty Goofen of KDKA AM morning talk radio took note of the incredible degree of "leftwing hate" during the campaigns.

I know leftists who are so borderline-violently hateful and hate-filled that they had pretty much alienated all friends, relatives, acquaintences due to their extreme hate for anything not Democrat. Entire families stop speaking.

Recall for example the hate-speak out of the Hollyweird types over Bush II. Sadly, Alec Baldwin never left the USA as he promised when Bush was re-elected, but I digress.

All of which pisses me off to the point of apoplexy when the Republicans absolootely REFUSE to raise the taxes on the very limosine lib-tards that so fanatically and regularly attack them.

So stupid.

[shawnmmckenna]

Thank you for taking the time to write your thoughts down. I would send copies to local newspapers, in hopes perhaps it would be printed, and perhaps enlighten some people to the real problems.

[thefirstndsecond]

I share these thoughts with you.

[LifeInPa]

We're fucked aren't we? This is the first day I got back online fully to see what was going on as I had to get away from the MSM and this terrible event in it's entirety. At first I had hope listening to family and people at work blaming the mental health issue not the firearms. Then I came back here to listen to other peoples stories and how all the major political groups are reacting, to say the least my hope of retaining our current 2nd Amendment rights are being dashed quickly. I feel total helpless to stop what I think is about to happen which is the rape of the law abiding firearm owners in this country. I expect to hear about a new AWB with no sunset passed by the end of January. To grow my fears even more I hear of certain companies ceasing firearm sales, people who we have supported for years with our money are turning their backs on us.

What to do? I wanted to get at least one more hi-cap pistol and rifle before the shit hits but I won't be able to do it without harming myself financially. It seems like all hope that is lost and the belligerent fools responsible for these actions will not face any consequences. I just joined the NRA trying to support a major 2A organization but now I am getting this bad feeling that they will turn their backs on us next. Such a very dark time we are entering.....

[Z12kVZU]

I'm hesitant to use terms like manifesto or vision statement, but I wonder if there'd be any benefit to organizing a few paragraphs that encapsulate the rational arguments against any new anti gun legislation, why the second amendment is awesome, why lawful gun owners should be left the hell alone, etc... and distributing it to news outlets, members of congress, and anyone else that should be paying attention. A declaration of some sort.