Gun control has become a huge topic in American culture in the last couple of years. School shootings have become just another tragedy in the constant stream of mainstream media. What can we do to end these savage attacks? More gun control? Less gun control? Mental Health evaluations?  I think it’s a matter of people having an understanding and respect of guns and gun culture.  I do not agree with the leftist view of completely eliminating guns from our culture. I believe that is not only impossible but idiotic and I’ll tell you why.

                Ok, back to why I think people should have respect for guns and gun culture. Most people pushing for complete gun control don’t know the first thing about guns. They don’t understand the culture. I believe it’s necessary for our civilian population to be educated in these matters. If kids learn at an early age, as I did, to respect guns they will not only be safer, but they will learn to respect  the gun and its capabilities. An educated public is a safe public. If kids truly know how dangerous a gun is maybe things like the shooting of that little girl in flint Michigan would not have happen. But today kids are taught to fear guns and look at the rise in school shootings.

                I personally do not think America has a gun problem. I believe we have a safety problem and a problem with mental health in young people. Most all your mass shootings have been carried out by men under thirty with either mental health problem or a history of mental health problems. Sandy hook and the Aurora Theater shooting are two prime examples of this. So should we go blaming guns right out of the gate?? I say no. So what should we do about this? I’m all for in depth background checks. I mean guns should only be available to model citizens. Say you have a history of violent mental health, domestic abuse or battery of a police officer, should you be able to own a gun? I know I’d feel a lot safer with the criminally and mentally insane not having guns.  But now I pose the question, are back ground checks really going to stop the people from getting a gun, who want to use that gun in a violent crime? I say no . Guns are to easily accessible through black markets. 

                Mass shootings have seemed to have been a particularly convenient time for our president and the leftists in our political system to propose and pass gun control laws. The shootings create panic and they need something to blame so they blame guns. This panic gives the president public support. This is an old tactic actually proposed during the Kennedy presidency to gain support for a war against the communists in Cuba. Public shooting were to be staged and the communists were to be blamed, but Kennedy rejected the proposal.  So what I’m trying to say is that mass shootings create the perfect environment for pushing gun control. Our president has used these to his advantage, passing 23 gun laws with the use of executive order. Although I do agree with him on the more extensive background checks he is pushing it with the assault weapons ban. Does the constitution say we shouldn’t have those?

                Now we need to take a look at the second amendment. The second amendment states, “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.” It clearly states that it is the people’s right to bear arms and it should not be infringed. You just can’t remove an amendment that has been there since the birth of our country. Our founding fathers clearly found it important for our citizens to be armed and trained. It is what made our country free isn’t it? Our citizen should at least be able to counter the small arms of our military, assault weapon, smg’s, machine guns, etc…  Now to some this might sound insane, but bear with me. These weapons should only be available to upstanding citizen that are willing to protect our nation. If our government becomes tyrannical we are told to over throw it and how are we supposed to do that when we are out gunned by our opposing force. I believe the constitution should not be tampered with.

                With gun control being a hot topic into days media and culture it is important for us to be informed on this topic. School shootings are a tragedy and it does need to be addressed. Schools should be safer, kids should be taught gun safety, parents should teach their kids morals and society should not praise violence. All these thing would help keep our public places safe from another tradgedy.       http://tenthamendmentcenter.com/2014/09/22/2nd-amendment-original-meaning-and-purpose/

The Rise of the Muslim Menace

ISIS or ISIL has exploded in Middle Eastern countries in the past year. I think ISIS is definitely a threat, but I’m not sold that they are a huge threat to western powers just yet. With how rapidly it spread and took hold of the previously “liberated” Iraq, I believe ISIS will have no problem taking control of countries with weaker set governments,  piecemeal militaries and a strongly Muslim civilian population.  I think this is one reason they are so attractive to young people and young Muslims across the globe. They are creating a powerful Muslim based fighting force. And  kids look up to a strong influence and they want to be part of it.

                I believe Africa is at major risk of being controlled, or at least occupied by ISIS.  With a strong Muslim population and largely untapped resources, Africa would be a big asset to ISIS.  With weak war torn and disease ridden countries it would not be much of a challenge for them to gain a foot hold.

                I do believe well placed airstrikes are the way to deal with ISIS right now. Weakening supply routes would severely cripple their capability to spread further throughout the region. Boots on the ground is not the way to fight this group at this point. They are too unpredictable and there’s no need to sacrifice more lives. The public doesn’t want another Vietnam.  Plus every time we get rid of a radical group another pops up. All we can do right now is try to contain them and keep them from spreading their influence.

Thoughts on executive order, Abraham Lincoln and the actions he took during his presidency.

LINCOLN

Abraham Lincoln is probably one of the most popular presidents of all time, but is what we learned in grade school about the tall skinny man in the big top hat that freed the slaves all that there is to be said about this iconic figure. When we dig deeper and shed light on areas of Lincoln’s presidency overlooked by your average history class we find out Lincoln’s real motives and how abolishing slavery was  arguably a mere tactic to bring an end to the war. In the movie we watched in class it does not highlight the effects that abolishing slavery had on the war. The movie was given a feeling of urgency to draw in the audience.

                As a citizen of the United States, I would personally like to see our president use executive order as little as possible, However, there are times when it is necessary to do so. President Abraham Lincoln, for his time used an average amount of executive orders.  A lot of people during Lincoln’s presidency claimed he abused his executive powers. I believe that the only time people complain about such abuses of power is when it affects that person in a negative way.   Some of your most publicly supported presidents could be labeled “executive power abusers”, but most of their uses of that power are shrouded by events such as early 20^th century imperialism, economic booms, world wars and even extreme economic decline. When the executive order is something that the people support and benefits them no one calls the president a tyrant, but when it is not supported by the public all hell breaks loose.  And this is where we get back to Lincoln. He used his executive power to put in affect of the Emancipation Proclamation and pave the road for the complete abolishment of slavery in the entire country, something that seemed unimaginable to a good chunk of the population. Therefor he was crucified on a political cross by the supporters of slavery.  The general public also didn’t realize the affect the Emancipation Proclamation would have on crippling the South’s economy.  It’s no different than our president today and his healthcare program. It scares people, just as freed slaves scared people 150 years ago.

                So there’s my rant about Lincoln and executive power. Basically what I’m trying to say I believe executive powers should be respected and backed by the peoples opinion. I believe Lincoln was under a lot of pressure to end the war and he saw that the war was a good way to cloak the passing of the 13^th amendment and gain the support to end slavery. I am still torn what to think about Lincoln. He did some shady under the table stuff, but there’s no denying the man got stuff done and that’s why I think he is still regarded as one of Americas best presidents.