Firearms - The Great Debate

A year has gone by since my last "On the Road" tale and that is hard for me to comprehend. My excuse, however flimsy -- simply stated -- is that I am a fairly busy individual. The purchase of a new home coupled with my newest profession as a music maker are a couple of the excuses that I'll throw out there as a diversion to the fact that I am just a lazy man.

All of that said, I would like to fill this space now with my thoughts on firearms and all of the current media revolving around guns, unnecessary deaths in the United States, and the like. If ever there was any one topic that could cause so much hot and aggressive debate, I think that guns, and the 2nd amendment are that topic.

My report here is just one of many hundreds of thousands written jibber-jabber on the topic. For that reason, I'll pardon you if you choose to log-out now and move onto something of much more interest. You probably won't like what I have to spew out to you anyway, but here goes...

We, as a people...are stupid. Yes - people are stupid, and not only are we stupid, we're very gullible. See something in print whether on the internet, or in the local paper and "presto" it's gospel. " I saw it in the paper, it must be true". I heard it on the news, it can't be wrong". News flash! People are stupid! Even reporters.

I'll admit right up front that I have conflicting thoughts regarding certain bits and pieces of the "firearm hype" but that mostly revolves around the assault rifle topic. I for one, do not own an assault rifle or any weapon for that matter which could constitute a small army were I to show up fully loaded and ready to rock and roll. But this is not about assault rifles --it's about guns in general. Guns, and the way they are portrayed by us.

I still have in my possession a small semi-automatic handgun that I carried on-duty for many years. A gun which has the capability of killing a living being at any given time. A gun which has never killed a living being and hopefully never will.

I possess a cell phone --an iPhone-- which is capable of killing a living being. A device which has never killed a living being and hopefully never will.  I possess a Jeep vehicle too, which has that same capability. Okay, you get my drift. A comparison of sorts, which most people --even stupid people-- are aware of. But there is a reason I have headed in this direction with my story.

Whenever there is a firearm incident involving a large number of people, or a death, or a serious injury in this great nation of ours --faster than the ink can dry or the news anchor can sip another taste of his coffee-- the anti-gun people are out in droves screaming for stricter legislation. "Ban all guns. Guns kill people. The second amendment was written when guns were necessary, not for today". All good comments except for one simple point. They are stupid. Did you just log-out? No? Cool, follow along with me here, it gets better.

I would like now to explain why those comments filter into my head as "stupid comments" by a "stupid people,"  yes, we Americans.

Jane Doe yesterday was driving her new mustang on the interstate and while enjoying the amazing countryside, decided to text her friend Pat to let her know she was thinking of her. Within seconds --and before finishing her text-- disaster struck as she veered into an oncoming car. Have you ever seen what a head-on collision between two vehicles looks like when they are both traveling at approximately seventy miles per hour? That's a 140 mile per hour impact, and I have.

How sad that Jane Doe died on the scene. Much more sad is the fact that John Smith, his wife and their three young children perished in the blaze that followed the horrific crash. The coroner says that they were dead before they burned beyond recognition.

Six people dead instantly. The weapon? A cell phone. It was crazy how fast the news spread and the anti-cellphone people surfaced. "Ban all cellphones. Cellphones kill people."  The President of the United States finally was fed up enough with all of the senseless cellphone deaths, that he put together a committee to help and regulate cellphone possession.

Ironically, within two days of the above referenced incident, another terrifying crash took place on that very stretch of highway. This time the scene involved Jim Jones. Jim was a good guy and he really was trying to deal with his drinking habit in a responsible manner. Times were tough for him though, and he decided to have "one for the road" right before he left Lucky's. He too, took out an innocent family on the highway that day. The weapon? A 2006 Chevrolet Pick-up. This incident killed a family of four.  He survived with superficial injuries. His incident also made the evening news, and once again, within hours, the anti-vehicle people were up in arms. "Ban all vehicles. Vehicles kill people."

The incidents mentioned above along with the recent senseless killings of a school-room full of children all have one thing in common. A person committed the act. A gun, a cellphone and a vehicle were simply the tools used to carry out the task.

The difference however, is how we American people view this issue. Stupid people. Many of us, and perhaps you, would have this to say about the three incidents in a manner such as this:

A man killed a group of children with a gun. Something has to be done about guns.

A woman killed a family of 5, plus herself with a cellphone. Something has to be done about people texting and driving.

A drunk killed a family of 4. He should go to jail for life.

As soon as the term "firearm, weapon, gun, rifle, pistol, handgun etc" is mentioned in any crisis, there is a call for gun legislation.

In the other situations, the blame is always put on the person. Hence my firm comments about us being a "stupid people."  Facts are facts though. Think about it.

~Safe Riding

  The Chief