Opinions? I would prefer this not degenerate into a bashing of Obama there are enough of those I would however welcome improvements to the text.
Senator Obama,
As a citizen concerned with civil rights I am curious about how you came to your position on gun control and how it relates to the 2nd amendment as outlined in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
I believe that the Bill of Rights and the additional amendments subsequent is an outline defining the limits of government. Throughout the letters and writing of the founders of our country the belief that an armed populace could and would protect against the formation of a tyrannical government and ensure the average citizen the tools to defend against the uncivilized amongst us. They clearly saw that the 2nd amendment would be used to ensure the continued existance of our other rights such as the right to free speech, habeous corpus, free assembly, freedom from unreasonable searches, the right to a speedy trial, equality as outlined in the 14th amendment, etc.
How do you reconcile the words "the right of the people to bear arms, shall not be infringed" with reasonable regulations? When restricting the right to free speech we carefully and correctly regulate actions such as slander, libel or words used to induce panic such as yelling "Fire" in a crowded theatre or stadium but not speech itself or the tools used to publish or project such speech. Shouldn't we be consistent with regards to the 2nd and restrict the actions of people who would harm others unjustifiably?
I also believe gun control laws are racist. As proof of this I would ask you to research the "Black code" laws passed in southern states in the period between 1865-1898 and see how often in our history the right to bear arms was denied African Americans in direct opposition to the 14th amendment. Examine the fact that the most often banned weapons are those that are inexpensive thus more affordable for lower income people. I would suggest reading Clayton Cramers "The Racist Roots of Gun Control" as well as the reasons for the original creation of concealed carry permits.
Additionally I believe gun control laws do nothing to increase the safety of citizens. As proof I would contrast the number of shootings in gun free zones to the number of shootings at gun shows or NRA conventions. Nor do I believe that violent criminals will be detered from possesing or carrying firearms because they already hold laws in contempt. I point again to shootings such as at Virginia Tech it was illegal for Cho to possess a firearm within 1000 feet of the school grounds. It did not deter him from destroying 31 peoples lives and injuring 17 more. In Pearl, Mississippi by contrast a Vice Pricipal of a school who reacted to a unstable and violent young man with a 30-30 went to his car retrieving a pistol and stopped the toll at 2 dead and 7 injured and without I might add injuring the teenager. One can look at Englands violent crime rate and gun crime incidents which have doubled since their disarming of their citizens.
Could it be that by disarming the public we unwittingly are increasing gun violence? Certainly it appears that way if one looks at the rise in mass murders since the 1968 GCA and other gun control laws passed since restricting the right to carry and what can be legally owned.
I would like to be able to vote for you in the WI primary and democratic principles in general but as it stands now I cannot. I cannot support a candidate for office that picks and chooses which parts of the Constitution to uphold.
Senator Obama,
As a citizen concerned with civil rights I am curious about how you came to your position on gun control and how it relates to the 2nd amendment as outlined in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
I believe that the Bill of Rights and the additional amendments subsequent is an outline defining the limits of government. Throughout the letters and writing of the founders of our country the belief that an armed populace could and would protect against the formation of a tyrannical government and ensure the average citizen the tools to defend against the uncivilized amongst us. They clearly saw that the 2nd amendment would be used to ensure the continued existance of our other rights such as the right to free speech, habeous corpus, free assembly, freedom from unreasonable searches, the right to a speedy trial, equality as outlined in the 14th amendment, etc.
How do you reconcile the words "the right of the people to bear arms, shall not be infringed" with reasonable regulations? When restricting the right to free speech we carefully and correctly regulate actions such as slander, libel or words used to induce panic such as yelling "Fire" in a crowded theatre or stadium but not speech itself or the tools used to publish or project such speech. Shouldn't we be consistent with regards to the 2nd and restrict the actions of people who would harm others unjustifiably?
I also believe gun control laws are racist. As proof of this I would ask you to research the "Black code" laws passed in southern states in the period between 1865-1898 and see how often in our history the right to bear arms was denied African Americans in direct opposition to the 14th amendment. Examine the fact that the most often banned weapons are those that are inexpensive thus more affordable for lower income people. I would suggest reading Clayton Cramers "The Racist Roots of Gun Control" as well as the reasons for the original creation of concealed carry permits.
Additionally I believe gun control laws do nothing to increase the safety of citizens. As proof I would contrast the number of shootings in gun free zones to the number of shootings at gun shows or NRA conventions. Nor do I believe that violent criminals will be detered from possesing or carrying firearms because they already hold laws in contempt. I point again to shootings such as at Virginia Tech it was illegal for Cho to possess a firearm within 1000 feet of the school grounds. It did not deter him from destroying 31 peoples lives and injuring 17 more. In Pearl, Mississippi by contrast a Vice Pricipal of a school who reacted to a unstable and violent young man with a 30-30 went to his car retrieving a pistol and stopped the toll at 2 dead and 7 injured and without I might add injuring the teenager. One can look at Englands violent crime rate and gun crime incidents which have doubled since their disarming of their citizens.
Could it be that by disarming the public we unwittingly are increasing gun violence? Certainly it appears that way if one looks at the rise in mass murders since the 1968 GCA and other gun control laws passed since restricting the right to carry and what can be legally owned.
I would like to be able to vote for you in the WI primary and democratic principles in general but as it stands now I cannot. I cannot support a candidate for office that picks and chooses which parts of the Constitution to uphold.
I'm trying to get more consise now.