Take Your Gun Party Somewhere Else!

Since I don’t live in Columbus, OH, I don’t have the same familiarity with the issue of gun violence in that city that the people living there do. I just know that, in PA, the cities of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh tried to pass assault weapons bans, and our august state legislators basically passed a law that said that those cities weren’t allowed to do that and couldn’t attempt to do so again (tells you just how powerful the NRA is in my state).

Well, Columbus just passed an assault weapons ban (here is some background), and as surely as the Pope is German, the NRA cancelled their 2007 convention that they had planned for that city. This topic is the subject of today's CNN Quick Vote, with about 45 percent saying the NRA did the right thing, and about 55 percent saying they didn't.

I went to the NRA’s site to read their spin on this (predictable, I know, but I needed to get a better understanding), and of all their typical propaganda mentioned in their “news release,” this paragraph stuck out:

Speaking at a press conference at the Greater Columbus Convention Center, NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre stated that the NRA would return to Columbus when the Legislature enacts a preemption law that would override the Columbus ban.

Surprising that they would do this? No, since as I said above, this is their typical tactic. It’s just that I am continually amazed at the sheer, unmitigated gall of many conservative groups (and some liberal ones on occasion) when they make it sound so matter of fact that they intend to hammer people into submission to get what they want.

The NRA fights everything. What’s the problem with “one gun a month”? Anybody? What’s the problem with a ban on Teflon-coated bullets? As Ted Kennedy once asked, “Do deer wear bulletproof vests?” Making purchases illegal at gun shows without a background check? What’s the matter – reek too much of common sense?

Everybody knows our cops out there are outgunned. Most police are good, but all of them deserve a fighting chance.

The entire pro-gun vs. gun control argument should be framed in terms of what makes the most sense for the cops, but largely because of the NRA, that never happens. Also, I don’t know any product manufacturer anywhere that has immunity from prosecution for the product they manufacture, but that’s what the gun lobby has.

There’s a lot more that can be said about this issue on one side and the other, but I’m going to leave it for now after I say this. I’ve had the privilege to work with people who are members of the NRA, and they are extremely responsible individuals who practice gun safety and teach respect for guns to others. I have absolutely no problem with these people. Also, if someone legally owns a firearm, that is their property and no one should be allowed to take it from them unless it is used in the commission of a crime.

The problem I have is with the NRA’s leadership – you know, including Chuck “Pry This Weapon Out Of My Cold, Dead Hands” Heston…this bunch of lunatics that positively insisted on holding their 1999 convention in Denver, CO just says after the last victim of the nearby Columbine massacre was buried. They’re stone nuts!

(Here's an update - for that stupid remark about Porsches and sniper rifles at the end of the story, Chuck Cunningham should be made to awaken to the sound of gunshots in the middle of the night.)