C.G.Ayling

Tag: guns

  • on Guns

    In my youth I hunted regularly – not for sport, but for meat which we either ate or sold. For me any desire to kill another living creature ended after the war. But that is just me and other people are not subject to my feelings or beliefs. Generally, that is okay.

    Generally.

    It ceases to be okay when the feelings and beliefs of those other people lead to the injury, death, and suffering of innocents. Which leads me to the topic of guns in the USA, or more particularly, of the use of assault rifles in the commission of mass murders.

    Why are weapons designed for the sole purpose of killing other humans for sale in this country? The answer seems to hinge on the second amendment of the US Constitution, which reads, “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.”

    Are any of the people who have committed these horrific crimes members of a “well regulated militia”? I don’t think so, so why do they have weapons that only well regulated militias should possess? The US does have well regulated militias, they’re called the Army, Navy, and Air Force, along with their various branches.

    I’m not denying you the right to own and use hunting guns or target rifles. But if you want to bear a gun designed for killing other people then join one of these well regulated militias. Assuming they’ll have you… And if they won’t have you because you’re unfit to possess such a lethal weapon due to a criminal nature or mental deficiency then tough luck – you absolutely should not be able to get your grubby little hands on one as a civilian. Period.

    The time of the civilian population rising up to overthrow a tyrannical government by force of arms is long passed. So has the right for civilians to own weapons designed to kill other civilians.

    So how do we overthrow a government or any nature, let alone a tyrannical one? We use something called “the vote.” We don’t need to go into the streets or the hallways of schools or universities bearing deadly assault weapons with the intent to murder unarmed innocents. All we need to do is use “the vote”.  It is long past time we voted to eject officials who are more interested in obeying the dictates of special interest groups like the NRA than they ever will be in doing what the people who elected them want.

    Vote.  There is more power in that single right than there ever will be in any weapon designed to kill people, so use it already.

  • Reaping Karma’s Reward

    Back in the 1970’s I sustained a serious back injury that compressed four of my lumbar vertebrae, reducing my height by nearly two inches.  During recovery, I lay in a hospital bed, my self-pity fanned by the sympathy expressed by my family and friends, my every whim catered to by eager nurses.

    One morning a shorter friend named Nigel, who I hadn’t yet seen, walked in and sat down in the vacant chair beside the bed.  I turned to him, anticipating a stern faced nod of greeting, followed by softly spoken words of comfort.  Instead, Nigel held two flat hands toward me, then drew them about two inches toward each other before bursting into laughter so strenuous tears he actually shed tears.  On recovering, he chuckled, “Do that again, and we’ll see eye to eye.”

    In response, I shook my head and frowned.  Ignoring my glare, Nigel added, “There’s a life lesson in this – you have to be able to laugh at other peoples’ misfortune.”  I had difficulty accepting his words.

    About six weeks later, with my injury preventing me taking my place in our hunting team, opportunity opened for my younger brother to assume my role as spotter.  He jumped at the chance.  Nigel, the leader of this particular foray, handed his beloved BSA Model 12 sliding block .22 target rifle to my brother to carry to the car.  Inexperienced in the handling of rifles, my young brother took the rifle, holding it in the way rifles are commonly held – left hand on the front stock, right on the butt, finger through the trigger guard.  He smiled in appreciation as he hefted the beautiful little rifle, and promptly shot Nigel through his left foot.

    Standing on the veranda, I watched the incident unfold, saw Nigel collapse to the ground, and listened to a stream of creative invective until my elder brothers loaded Nigel in the car and drove him to hospital.  I stayed behind with my younger brother, now persona-non-grata, and shame-faced at his accidental discharge.  Though we discussed the incident, we didn’t discuss Nigel’s culpability, or stupidity, in handing over a loaded and cocked weapon.  Instead, we focused on the real lesson – that firearms should always be considered loaded, and unsafe.

    The next day I hobbled into hospital on my crutches.  Nigel lay in bed, bandaged foot elevated.  Hearing the tap tap of my crutches, he woke up, grimaced in a manly fashion, and generally behaved about the same as I had during my stay in the very same hospital ward a few weeks earlier.  After pursing my lips and nodding in apparent stern faced sympathy, I burst into laughter before saying, “You have to be able to laugh at other peoples’ misfortune.”  Nigel didn’t seem to appreciate the humor.

    This is a true story.  During the course of my life, I’ve collected thousands of itty-bits of wisdom, many of which hold little more than superficial truth.  However, all of them hold value, even if that value is restricted to contemplating how foolish some sayings really are.  At the time, I had difficulty accepting Nigel’s words could ever hold value, yet on that one occasion, they felt appropriate – beware the seeds you sow, lest you reap Karma’s reward.

    {This post originally appeared on the blog, Between the Covers.}