American Pie: Guns
"Democracy, otherwise known as the right of irresponsible people to do whatever the hell they please within the law, relies heavily on its success on the maturity, good sense and good will of the indiviudal, to succeed. I find little evidence that the majority of the citizenry of America and other western cultures comes even close to being able or willing to deal with this reponsibility.'' John Merchant writes of the grim illogicality of America's gun laws.
At midnight on Monday September 13, 2004, the 10 year old US ban on the sale of assault weapons expired. Without going into the technicalities of what constitutes an assault weapon, it is safe to say you don’t need one to do a little rabbit hunting or target practice.
The National Rifle Association (NRA), who defends the right of any US citizen to keep and bear arms as laid down in the American Constitution, claimed that the ban was “bad law,” and, in any event, only restricted certain “cosmetic” weapon features.
Frankly, if I find myself staring into the business end of a military weapon, I don’t much care if its capability for destruction is concrete or cosmetic.
The NRA gun lobby has fiercely opposed any attempt to restrict or control the possession of firearms in general, basing their position on the Second Amendment to the Constitution – “The right to keep and bear arms.”
That amendment was written at the time of flint lock muzzle loaders that used powder and ball. Each shot fired would, I imagine, take three minutes to prepare, even in the hands of an expert. A far cry from the hundreds of rounds per minute an automatic weapon can let loose. Further, an armed citizenry probably made sense at a time when there was no standing army.
Democracy, otherwise known as the right of irresponsible people to do whatever the hell they please within the law, relies heavily for its success on the maturity, good sense and good will of the adult individual, to succeed. I find little evidence that the majority of the citizenry of America and other western cultures comes even close to being able or willing to deal with this responsibility.
For sure, there are probably millions of ethical, strong, upstanding people, who are capable of being entrusted with this freedom. But there are millions more who see democracy as only a carte blanch to pursue whatever selfish whim passes through their vacuous brains.
It wasn’t in fact the expiration of the ban that drew my attention to fire-arms. In this US election year there was no chance that the Republicans would deny themselves the significant block of NRA votes by extending the ban. Rather, it was a piece in my local newspaper on the same day, headlined “Officers Need Guns, Hospital Union Says.”
The article described an abduction from a Queens, New York hospital, in which a hospital employee was shot by the abductor. Carl Haynes, the union’s president, stated his belief that this “accident” could have been prevented if the security officer on duty had been armed.
Well, what I know of the marksmanship and weapons handling capability of security guards tells me that a shoot-out in a crowded hospital would have resulted in more than just a single casualty, tragic though that was.
My point in writing about this incident and its possible outcomes, is that it symptomatic of the belief in America that more guns are better. And that a gun in everyone’s hand is a “good thing,” and is somehow a symbol of democracy at work. I have handled guns in the military, as a competitive marksman, and for shooting small game, and I know how diligent and careful one must be to avoid accidents. Diligence is hardly a quality one would expect to find in angry confrontations or criminal activity.
John can be contacted at: wordworks@hvc.rr.com
