America…Let’s Keep it the Land of the Free

One of the most wonderful things about the Country we live in are the freedoms we possess. It never ceases to amaze me when people want to willingly give up those freedoms in the name of “Safety”.

My colleague, Palek Patel, in her blog entitled “Safety Itself" insinuates our country would be a safer place if handguns were banned altogether. In fact she referred to the banning of handguns as a “no brainer”. Several statistics were used to back up her statements as to the danger of owning guns including the homicide and suicide rates of gun use. I would love to know where those figures came from.

While I do agree that owning a gun might give a false sense of safety. I strongly disagree with making a law to ban them. Did we learn nothing from the prohibition? During the Prohibition of Alcohol as mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment, as ratified on January 29, 1919, along with the Volstead Act the sale, barter, possession, transportation, importation and exportation of intoxicating liquors was prohibited except as allowed by the act. These laws are largely accepted as responsible for the enormous illicit power of mobsters like Al Capone of Chicago as production, importation and distribution of alcohol was taken away from legitimate businesses. The Prohibition didn’t make alcohol consumption go away; it just put control squarely in the hands of criminals. It can arguably be said that the consumption of alcohol leads to death both of self and others. The abuse of alcohol is not good for the human body; families are ripped apart and children are often forced to take on the role of parents. But, making it illegal was not the answer. It didn’t stop people from buying, selling or consuming. It didn’t stop intoxicated individuals from hurting themselves or others. All the prohibition did, as previously stated, was criminalize the act and in taking the rights away from legitimate business owners; help bring mob bosses like Al Capone firmly into power.

Making it illegal to own handguns only takes guns away from citizens inclined to follow the laws of the land. Does anyone believe the criminal element will willingly hand over their firearms because a law was passed saying they have to? Can guns be dangerous? Definitely. Do innocent people die? Unfortunately. Will the taking away of individual’s rights to own guns prevent deaths? Probably to some extent. But, the same could be said of banning all knives, axes, ropes, matches and cars. All of the above can deliberately or accidentally cause death. I do not mean to be flippant, but the idea of a prohibition on guns as a safety measure seems to fall into a category of overzealousness and naivety. Currently, marijuana, cocaine, heroine and crack are illegal, dangerous drugs that most people can get their hands on easily should they so desire.

As with any of our freedoms, the ownership of firearms should be accompanied by responsibility. The responsible will take the time to not only learn about how to care and store their firearms, but will educate their children as well. The cost of freedom is not cheap. It should involve educating ourselves and others. We are not children to be led by the hand and only given the freedoms someone else thinks we can handle. As citizens of the United States of America, we must continue to strive to keep our liberties.