Guns - Another manufactured crisis brought to you by Barack Obama

By Rob Janicki

Law enforcement leaders who met with President Barack Obama Monday urged him to focus on strengthening gun purchase background checks and mental health systems, but did not unify behind his more controversial gun control efforts...  Yahoo News
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As a lifelong adult gun owner and a life member of the NRA, among other gun organizations, I believe I can honestly say that I don't know any gun owner that objects to the above statement.  Unfortunately, the  liberal progressive left would like people to believe that the NRA and by association all gun owners, that we oppose all restraints on gun ownership.  It's actually President Obama and his cohorts in Congress that are out of sync with Americans.

Most states already use the national computer system to make instant background checks.  I have no problem with strengthening the instant background check with greater data inputs and a universal application for all potential gun purchasers across all 50 states.

I also support greater efforts in providing mental health services across the United States along with legislation that would compel mental health providers to actively participate in a system that would identify and initiate mental health evaluations for individuals suspected of being a danger to themselves or others.  In the rush to give money to those without identified need, liberal progressives have given short shrift to those with mental health issues who are truly in need of assistance. 

In their zeal to grab guns and decrease my ability to defend myself, my family and my neighbors, they are putting me and law abiding citizens like me, at a disadvantage to the criminal element.  Banning high capacity magazines is the perfect example of this point.  Criminals will always be able to obtain firearms through the underground market and through theft.  What criminals don't want to encounter are people who are armed and dangerous to their pursuit of their illegal activities.

High capacity magazines are easy for a metal fabrication shop to reproduce.  With American entrepreneurs, you can be assured that an underground market will develop for these high capacity magazines.

The United States tried to outlaw alcoholic beverages when they enacted the 18th Amendment commonly referred to as the Prohibition Era.  It didn't work, as alcoholic beverages were so ingrained in our culture that we made criminals out of otherwise law abiding citizens.  Repeal of the 18th Amendment by the 21st Amendment was the obvious result and consequence of trying to change human nature and our American culture.  

What was not so obvious a result of the failed attempt at prohibition, was that it opened up the illegal market for alcoholic beverages to the Mafia and organized crime.  Up until Prohibition, the Mafia was a relatively penny ante mob operation in gambling, prostitution, loan sharking and extortion.     Prohibition, with its vast profit potential, is what funded the Mafia and gave organized crime the opportunity and financial ability to expand into all other kinds of illegal activity and on a larger scale than had ever existed.

The liberal progressive march to grab all guns or even a significant portion of guns will only repeat the failure of the Prohibition Era and create a huge underground market in firearms and accessories that will actually make it easier for criminals to arm themselves.  The 2nd Amendment issue and liberal progressives trying to grab guns or restrict certain kinds of guns, is a series of unintended and disastrous consequences just waiting in the wings to happen.  If history has taught us anything, it will be that restricting the 2nd Amendment will not work and our country could easily and most probably be worse off for the effort of liberal progressives.  I, for one, don't want to take that chance.