I’ve noticed an interesting phenomenon in the week’s following the Supreme Court’s decision on Heller affirming that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual’s rights to bear arms-the emergence of the “Luger Liberal.”
In responses to the news coverage and posts on DailyKos and other left-leaning blogs, the number of posts that begin “I am a liberal and gun owner…” far outweigh those repeating the same tired, unsupported arguments that we should do more to limit gun ownership.
I used to be pro-gun control, repeating the stats and buzzwords with confidence. That all changed after I first experienced gun ownership, first as something of an experiment, but with an enthusiasm for the hobby.
I began to dig into the stats, and the real meaning behind phrases such as “assault weapons” and “cop killer bullets,” and came to the conclusion that, after more than 40 years of gun control laws, there is not one piece of evidence that it helps prevent violent crime. It also perplexed (and later frustrated) me that members of my own party would do mental back flips to claim that somehow that the Founding Fathers would plunk a collective right down in the middle of a list of individual rights.
I was also surprised at the number of liberal gun owners whom I have met, dashing my stereotype of gun owners as a bunch of red necks or wannabe John Waynes. The Supreme Court decision has given them the confidence to speak out on the issue. I honestly believe that the Democratic leadership is out of touch with the rank-and-file on this issue.
Why this is, I am not sure. Perhaps it is because the anti-gun “latte liberals” are the ones who donate money.
The party has largely chosen to ignore this issue, but now may be the time for a serious look at their position on individuals’ rights.
In responses to the news coverage and posts on DailyKos and other left-leaning blogs, the number of posts that begin “I am a liberal and gun owner…” far outweigh those repeating the same tired, unsupported arguments that we should do more to limit gun ownership.
I used to be pro-gun control, repeating the stats and buzzwords with confidence. That all changed after I first experienced gun ownership, first as something of an experiment, but with an enthusiasm for the hobby.
I began to dig into the stats, and the real meaning behind phrases such as “assault weapons” and “cop killer bullets,” and came to the conclusion that, after more than 40 years of gun control laws, there is not one piece of evidence that it helps prevent violent crime. It also perplexed (and later frustrated) me that members of my own party would do mental back flips to claim that somehow that the Founding Fathers would plunk a collective right down in the middle of a list of individual rights.
I was also surprised at the number of liberal gun owners whom I have met, dashing my stereotype of gun owners as a bunch of red necks or wannabe John Waynes. The Supreme Court decision has given them the confidence to speak out on the issue. I honestly believe that the Democratic leadership is out of touch with the rank-and-file on this issue.
Why this is, I am not sure. Perhaps it is because the anti-gun “latte liberals” are the ones who donate money.
The party has largely chosen to ignore this issue, but now may be the time for a serious look at their position on individuals’ rights.
