No One Dares Deny
Americans their Guns (Rzeczpospolita, Poland)
"The right to
bear arms is very firmly rooted in the American identity. Trying to confiscate
existing weapons would end with citizens in the South and Midwest - and this is
no exaggeration - attempting to secede from the Union. ... In the 21st century,
the belief that one needs a home machine gun to defend oneself against a
possible invasion may be a total anachronism. ... But it doesn't matter."
Americans won't give up their right to keep and bear arms.
The latest massacre in Newtown will change little.
Michigan Governor Richard Snyder has a problem. On his desk,
passed 24 hours ago, is legislation [Senate Bill 59] that allows Michigan citizens
to carry weapons into schools, churches, hospitals and sporting events.
If the governor signs the bill, Americans shocked by the
tragedy in Newtown will attack him for insensitivity. But backers of the right
to bear arms will argue that if the teachers in Newtown had guns, perhaps they
would have shot the gunman before he murdered so many children.
I'm confident that that the governor will sign the bill, and
for one simple reason: 89 percent of Americans are in favor of the right to
bear arms. An American politician who advocates for the removal of this right
would have to change the Constitution. There is no support for such a step, so
such a politician would be badly damaged by a public backlash.
There are those calling on Americans to try and constrain
this right on the margins - for example, by limiting the sale of automatic
weapons. But just this year, very strong lobbying by gun owners managed to have
provisions passed in several states to expand gun rights, Michigan for example.
The right to bear arms is very firmly rooted in the American
identity. Trying to confiscate existing weapons would end with citizens in the
South and Midwest - and this is no exaggeration - attempting to cecede.
It is obvious, at least to me, that the creators of the U.S.
Constitution, by including the right to bear arms, were responding to a
completely different reality than exists today. Back then, America had neither
weapons nor a well-armed police force. There was no FBI, Secret Service, or ATF
agents. All citizens had to be ready to defend themselves and their neighbors.
In the 21st century, the belief that one needs a home machine
gun to defend oneself against a possible invasion may be a total anachronism.
But it doesn't matter - a debate about limiting the right to bear arms in the
United States breaks out after each of this type of tragedy - and dies out a
few days later. So it will this time.
