Agreeing with Reagan

I sometimes didn't agree with President Ronald Reagan, but we all acknowledge his great and lasting influence on American, and especially Republican Party, politics. So, on today's hot button issue of guns, where would President Reagan stand? On February 6, 1989 Reagan, a strong supporter of Second Amendment rights, also spoke of its limits and our nation's responsibilities.

I do not believe in taking away the right of the citizen for sporting, for hunting and so forth, or for home defense. But, I do believe that an AK-47, a machine gun, is not a sporting weapon or needed for defense of a home.

It is time to listen to voices of common sense and to take meaningful action to ban military assault weapons, to ban large clips, and to require background checks for all gun sales. I think President Reagan would agree.

Enough

Gabby Giffords' and Mark Kelly's commentary in USA Today announced a new campaign to curb gun violence in America. Their words make a lot of common sense that hopefully won't fall on too many deaf ears owned by the NRA:

Forget the boogeyman of big, bad government coming to dispossess you of your firearms. As a Western woman and a Persian Gulf War combat veteran who have exercised our Second Amendment rights, we don't want to take away your guns any more than we want to give up the two guns we have locked in a safe at home. What we do want is what the majority of NRA members and other Americans want: responsible changes in our laws to require responsible gun ownership and reduce gun violence.

Giffords and Kelly have launched a new PAC, Americans for Responsible Solutions, to help find ways to prevent gun violence while protecting responsible gun ownership. Check out what they have to say, join their effort, and make a contribution.

After all the killings including those at Virginia Tech, Gabby Giffords simple statement "enough"says it all. Only fools refuse to listen.

Ryan disagrees with the NRA

Over the past two weeks I've gotten several robo-calls from the National Rifle Association asserting in a dire and urgent tone a horrifying message to gun owners: If Barack Obama is reelected, we will lose our Second Amendment rights to gun ownership.

Never mind that, as President, Barack Obama has not even remotely suggested or supported any legislation that would limit gun rights. In fact, the only gun legislation the President has signed actually expanded gun rights by allowing weapons to be carried in national parks and AMTRAK trains.

Even Paul Ryan seems to acknowledge that the President is not a threat to gun rights when he says early in this interview, "If you take a look at the gun laws we have, I don't even think President Obama's proposing more gun laws. We have good strong guns laws—we have to make sure we enforce our laws, we have lots of laws that aren't properly enforced. We need to make sure we enforce these laws."

The NRA is intentionally promoting fear and angst among gun owners (I am one) in this conservative part of the commonwealth where hunting is a cherished tradition. By using the time-honored Nazi propaganda technique of telling the Big Lie over and over again the NRA is demonstrating its complete lack of regard for the responsibilities inherent as we exercise our First Amendment rights.