990WBOB
  • WBOB Radio
  • Crush Cancer
  • Past Casts
  • Weather
  • Contact
  • About
    • WBOB Press Releases
    • Join Our Team!
    • CHARITY GALA

Dispelling the Standard of "Need"

3/22/2014

Comments

 
Picture
Mike Liberty

As I indicated in last week's post, I plan this to be the first in a series of columns defending the Second Amendment argument by argument. Yup, in case you haven't been following along, I'm one of THOSE guys. I believe that the Peoples' Right to Keep and Bear Arms underpins the entire Constitution of the United Sates, safeguarding every other Article within it. And it's my intention over the coming months to explain that position as clearly as I can.

Having said that, I also recognize the unique potential of firearms to be enormously destructive. In the wrong hands, almost any item can be used as a devastatingly effective weapon; none more so than a gun. So it's understandable how and why someone could draw the conclusion that guns are more trouble than their worth. There's no denying that guns play a daily role in crime and violence. What gets far les attention, though, is the fact that they also play an even greater daily role in deterring crime and violence. Which is why it's incumbent upon us all to ensure that the law abiding are not prevented from exercising this vital right while simultaneously doing everything we can to keep criminals from exploiting it.
If the Devil does lie in the details, that last sentence is the granddaddy of them all! It pretty much sums up both sides of the debate. It's also a topic for another day.

Instead, I wanted to start this series where most anti-gunners begin their own argument; with the question of need. "Why does anyone NEED an assault weapon with sixty round clips," they'll ask. Intentionally incendiary and outright inaccurate descriptions aside, it's a valid question. It's also an fundamentally flawed one.

Do we really want to live in a country where everything you WANT must be justified with a NEED?

After all, ours is a free society, largely predicated upon the unquestioned validity of merely wanting things. I wonder how those same people would respond if pressed about their need to own certain things, eat certain foods, go certain places or engage in certain activities. Is a standard of need really a path down which we want to venture?

For example, does the average anti-gunner want to apply the standard of need to the issue of abortion? Considering that something like a quarter to a third of abortions performed in the U.S. are medically necessary or in response to rape or incest, the question begs asking if there's a justifiable need for the vast majority that remains. I know that those who are pro-choice can answer that question, but I also know that when they do, they sound like me defending the Second Amendment.

What if we go a step further to compare mortality rates and destructive capability in calculating this standard of need? Then the case gets even clearer.
Killing some 200 to 300 thousand people per year, obesity is a leading cause of death in America. Homicides committed with a firearm pale in comparison. Even when suicide by firearm is added into the mix, the total is only a fraction of obesity related deaths. So I ask you, why does anyone NEED a Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese or a Big Gulp? When Mayor Michael Bloomberg asked that same question, in the form of restrictive laws, he was roundly condemned as a nanny state tyrant and his laws were stricken from the books.

I'm not going to go nuts with stats and hyperlinks, but obviously the same grievous case can be made in relation toalcohol. And a downright open and shut case when it comes to cigarettes. Yet, not since the run up to Prohibition has anyone asked with a straight face why anyone needed to unwind with a stiff drink or five. Regulate where people can drink and smoke? Sure. Impose stiff penalties for abusing the privilege after the fact rather than treating everyone like a criminal? No questions asked. Yet, when the pro-gun crowd demands to be treated the same way we're being unreasonable.

What about cars? Why does anyone need a car with 470 horsepower and capable of traveling at nearly 200 mph when highway speeds top out at 65mph and we're trying to cut down on greenhouse emissions? Omitting suicides, cars kill roughly three times more Americans per year than guns.
Plane travel for purposes of recreation, Playboy Magazine, gambling, backyard trampolines, selective vaccination... I could do this all day! But I only NEED to do one more: Did Rosa Parks need to remain in her seat when a white man demanded it? No, we all recognize today that she had an inherent, unalienable civil right to stay put. If the safeguard of all civil rights is the U.S. Constitution, then doesn't the second right enumerated therein apply?

Oh, just in case you're thinking to yourself that I completely sidestepped the question of why anyone would need a modern sporting rifle with a standard capacity magazine, I'll tackle that next time with some specific examples...

More WBOB Reads
  • Rhode Island State Police Arrests Suspect for DUI After Striking a Marked State Police Cruiser
  • Hashtag of The Week #UKRAINE
  • Interesting, this Ukraine situation
  • LGBT For Gun Rights - Another Day On The Wild Side
Comments

    WBOB
    Original
    ​Reads

    Picture

    Unbiased, Unfiltered. WBOB's Original Reads feature our brightest and boldest personalities, offering their two-cents on the goings on of news, sports, politics, entertainment, and business. -- Are our opinions always PC? Nope. Are they always perfect? Nah. But, are they always 100% authentic? Absolutely!


    LISTEN
    ​TO WBOB ORIGINAL PODCASTS

    Picture
    Listen to
    ​Past BOBCasts

    WBOB 
    Best Reads
    Brought To You By
    TripAdvisor.com

    Picture

    Celebrating David Clyde: A Wild Passionate Friend To All


    Picture

    Search 
    The Archives


    Reads From Our Friends

    Picture

    The Best Game Development Tools: How to Make Your Own Game


    Contact Us
    [email protected]


    Archives

    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012

Search For Your Favorite WBOB Author,
​or BobCast

990WBOB 
An Independent Media Outlet.

The views opinions and thoughts expressed do not  reflect those of 990WBOB, its management or its staff. All Rights Reserved 990WBOB.com 2007-2020
​
Contact WBOB HERE
Photo from nzhamstar
  • WBOB Radio
  • Crush Cancer
  • Past Casts
  • Weather
  • Contact
  • About
    • WBOB Press Releases
    • Join Our Team!
    • CHARITY GALA