BOHICA
Publicola sums up his absolutism with respect to gun rights in a long post called Subdivisions. I discussed my acceptance of incremental absolutism. Read it and come back. It has a good time line on gun control.
Now, all that said, here’s the deal. Gun control is about to become a major issue again. It died off for a bit but it is coming back and sooner than you think. There have, lately, been several mentions of global arms control treaties for citizens, of which the US has largely ignored. The mayor of New York has a real hard on for gun control lately because guns that are legal nearly everywhere but New York keep showing up in New York. He even has a coalition of mayors supporting him. Couple those things with this being an election year and gun control will be an issue. So, whether you’re content to be an incrementalist like me or you’re a balls-out absolutist like Publicola, we’re on the same side. And this isn’t the time to be fucking around with petty disagreements among the ranks while those pushing gun control walk all over both of us.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:54 am
I think his “gun control win/loss record” really says it best. Things are more progun now than they have been in a while, but we are still a long way off from having the enormous popular support it will take to start repealing the really bad stuff.
Remember that the import bans were instituted on behalf of american gun manufacturers. Normally an ally, they can be counted upon to screw gun owners if it gives them a monopoly.
Remember that the FFL system is supported by gun shops that derive their survival in the age of the internet to the licensing system.
The best targets, in the absence of any strongly motivating event, are probably sporting purposes, the 86 MG ban or national CCW. Sporting purposes will potentially gore the domestic gun manufacturers’ oxen, but the 86 ban and national CCW reciprocity would arguably have few enemies and many beneficiaries.
A good supreme court decision would be nice, but we still have a lot of work ahead of us. We need to get conservative presidents and we need to badger them to make sure they dont nominate someone like Souter or Miers. A very tall order and not something we can really exert effort towards now- the time will come and I’m sure we will all put in the appropriate effort.
May 1st, 2006 at 3:41 pm
Can’t those import bans/restrictions be challenged via the WTO? They may count as anti-competitive trade barriers.
May 1st, 2006 at 10:07 pm
I had thought of that, but nearly every country in the world prohibits the importation and ownership or arms except for official use and many insist upon having state control over the factories and armories. There arent many countries that can complain about US policy without looking like hypocrites. Almost all the manufacturers that were affected by the 89 import ban have since built factories in the US.
Built US factories (and the guns coming out this year):
-sig (556)
-hk (416 upper, nothing else so far)
-fn (PS90, FS2000, SCAR)
-steyr (aug, yes really)
-like a million AK and AR manufacturers
There really isnt anyone left to whine about import bans anymore. I think they all started ramping up when they saw how gun control was losing steam in 2004 when the AWB died.
May 1st, 2006 at 10:51 pm
[…] […]
May 2nd, 2006 at 10:33 pm
[…] SaysUncle notes that gun control might be coming back en vogue as a political cause; now, I’ve always been of the mindset that the current political climate in the US means that the gungrabbers’ best friend is stealth. After the way the Dems got spanked in 1994 on the heels of the AWB, they’ve largely tried to make gun control a non-issue at the national level. Sure, the anti’s are something of a vocal minority interest group, but Dems know that placating them whilst not angering the 60 million gun owners in the US is the best strategy to hope for. […]
May 8th, 2006 at 2:04 pm
Carnival of Cordite #58
Welcome once again to the Carnival of Cordite! Things are moving at blazing speed for me right now. I finished my last law school class on Friday. Now I have to get my personal life in order as my family,