Re: Your Outboard may next on the "Agenda"
Hey, I have nothing against the responsible ownership of guns. I own several myself, take care of them, and feel confident they will never be involved in any sort of crime, and I would hate to have someone tell me I could not own them.<br /><br />And, no, the NRA is not any sort of enforcement agency. You guys get so emotional and irrational over this issue, you cannot see what is going on, IMO.<br /><br />First, statistics tell us that gun control can and does work, regardless of the mantra that if "Guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns".<br /><br />Every civilized country in the world that has gun control has dramatically fewer gun deaths than the US. Like I said, Canada, the last I saw, had something like 165 per year, and the US had over 11,000 in the same time frame. Canada has approximately 10% of the population of the US. Other European countries are even fewer.<br /><br />It seems clear to me the constitutional argument does not hold water, as there are lots of specific restrictions in various communities, and the NRA clearly would have filed suit in Federal court, and the Supreme court would have ruled on it, if there was a serious constitutional question about it.<br /><br />I would also bet that the average sporting rifle and shotgun owned by the average sportsman is almost never involved in crime, and that the guns that are typically involved in crime are identifiable, and potentially controllable as are the gun manufacturers and shops and such that sell them.<br /><br />I used to be, years ago, a member of the NRA, and if they were effectively working to protect my right to own a sporting gun, I probably still would be a member. (Didn't Bush Sr. renounce his membership as well? I seem to remember he did)<br /><br />It seems to me, with their no tolerance of any regulation stand, the NRA are working harder for the criminal element than they are for any sporting element.<br /><br />At some point in time, in this increasingly urban country, Americans are going to get fed up with the violence, when it is clear that other countries have been successful in their efforts.<br /><br />To most of these urban voters, a gun is a gun is a gun, and they don't care about your sporting arm. In my opinion, the government authorities and the NRA knows how to go about how to limit the guns in the hands of people that should not have them, but the NRA has chosen to ignore this tack on the "slippery slope" argument. <br /><br />Eventually this will lead them to the edge of a cliff, and that is unfortunate, and not necessary, in my opinion.<br /><br />And yes, I am guilty of not knowing how to spell Abrams as in the tank. I offer my humble apologies.
