People often question my judgment for vacationing in Mexico during our cold North Dakota winters. They question how safe it is to be in Mexico because of the murders down there by the various competing drug cartels. The persons in the Mexican drug culture, from my perspective, seem to be killing each other and for the most part don’t seem to be very interested in killing old gringos who prefer Dos Equis by the pool to meth and coke in the alleys. There has been a recent killing spree in Las Vegas where the weapons of choice were automatic rifles. Emptying 30 round clips into a dense crowd doesn’t take much talent as a marksman. Talk about a soft target. As long as there are public events in America, there will continue to be terrorism like this in the future. Whether the shooter is an Islamist or a cranky old man from a retirement village is of little consolation to the loved ones of the deceased.
Predictably, there will be sympathy for those killed and wounded. There will be purists on the left who will want to outlaw all firearms. There will be purists on the right who want everyone carrying assault weapons to public events so we will all be safer. There will be the predictable apathy of the majority who will shrug their shoulders and have another sandwich. I am a gun owner. In fact, I have a concealed weapon permit which is no longer relevant now that North Dakota is an open carry state. That said, I’ve always wondered why anyone would need an assault weapon. Most persons who trained in the military with M-16s think they are 3rd rate. They aren’t exactly what one uses while hunting pheasants. My Ruger deer rifle’s only inadequacy is my lack of skill. I’m not convinced it’s kosher to hunt deer with a semi-automatic assault weapon. After the first shot at a deer, if you miss, they are a tough moving target. Besides, I have never seen a whitetail or a mule deer wearing black pajamas and carrying an AK47.
That said, The courts have ruled that we all have the right to possess assault rifles. It’s our constitutional right. Curiously, various businesses have the legal right to deny our constitutional right to carry our weapons into their premises. The government can’t deny our constitutional right to bear arms, but a restaurant can. The government can, however, deny our right to bear arms if we are certifiably insane. If we are secretly insane (except to our friends and family), or our Shrink can’t release his or her file regarding our lunacy due to confidentiality laws, we still have the right to bear arms.
I predict that the Las Vegas massacre will result in more divisive and angry rhetoric, and “dynamic inaction”.
How many more good-guys in America will be killed by bad guys carrying guns? How many good-guys do we want carrying guns everywhere? How many good-guys will turn into bad guys when drunk, high or jealous? Is it ironic that we might be safer vacationing in a narco-state like Mexico than Las Vegas? Is it American to have a problem without a solution? I have a great idea. Let’s keep on arguing with each other and killing each other. Look how well things are working now. It’s all about freedom. Should we call it the Right to Death movement?
