Editorial - Nov/Dec 2005 issue
Protecting our Rights
Editorial by Chucky, Editor-in-chief
That right is important to you? The right to keep and bear arms, the right to freedom of speech, or is it the right to practice the religion of your choice? It could be your right not to be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law. Maybe it’s your property being taken for public use, without just compensation or your right to be secure in your person, house, papers, and effects, against unreasonable search and seizure.
Each of the rights that you are guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights is just as important as any other. If even one is changed, modified, or put aside by the Government, it would be the beginning of a slow erosion of them all. Many people do not understand this, nor do they realize what the 10 rights put forth in the Bill of Rights are. The Government that our forefathers put in place was one of compassion, consideration, deliberation, and a belief in freedom.
The other item that most people do not realize is that this country was founded in faith and the belief in God. The word “God” appears throughout our forefather’s historic documents, our monuments, and our culture. I am disturbed by the efforts of some to remove the word “God” from our pledge of allegiance, from courthouse steps, from the paper and coins we use as money, and from our national monuments. For those that don’t believe, remember this, in spite of the fact our forefathers believed in God they made sure the First Amendment specifically guaranteed that each and every citizen had the right to worship how and where they please, or not at all if that is their desire.
I believe in God, but I also believe in your right as an American to worship whomever and however you wish. I believe you have the right to live your life in freedom as long as you are not hurting others. It is your choice. It is also your choice to either support what our forefathers believed in or not. In this country it is even your choice to speak out against our rights and the country in which you live.
However, if the right to keep and bear arms to protect yourself and your family, or the beliefs that our forefathers fought for is degraded and put aside, those people that use the right of free speech to disparage others and our Constitution will soon find themselves without rights and the dissolution of the basis of the greatest governmental effort toward freedom the world has ever seen.
You might say, “Hmm, why is he talking about this in SHOOT! Magazine?” It is simple, many of us have become too complacent. We may think that, “Gee, as long as we still have our cowboy guns, its okay.” Who cares if they ban assault rifles (many semi-auto hunting rifles fall into that description). ANY ban on ANY firearm impacts your rights! More gun laws erode your rights. It has been proven that rather than being a deterrent to crime, they actually encourage crime. Firearms are used over two million times a year in this country to protect life and family; how often do hear about that in the news? I did recently see on the national news that a Katrina survivor, a woman, fired a warning shot as intruders entered her home. I was ecstatic to see it aired. Boy, was that unusual. If we lose our right to own guns and continue to let criminals out of prison I guess we are just telling them to commit more crimes against us. The police can’t always protect or reach you in time and if you can’t legally own a gun, the criminal can illegally posses one and he doesn’t care about the law in the first place. Do you think I am preaching to the choir? If so, have you ever thought, “Well, as long as the new law doesn’t affect my guns or the sport I participate in, I guess it isn’t too bad”? If you have thought that then, yes, definitely, I am talking to you and hoping that you think about what happened in World War II , Cambodia , Bosnia , and Rwanda . Don’t make the mistake of thinking that can’t happen here. It won’t happen here if we believe in and protect our rights, and continue to vote for those who are willing to protect the constitution and what its framers believed in, not just the second amendment but each and every one of them.
Visit our web site at www.ShootMagazine.com. Email Chucky at editor@shootmagazine.com.
Editorial by Chucky, Editor-in-chief
That right is important to you? The right to keep and bear arms, the right to freedom of speech, or is it the right to practice the religion of your choice? It could be your right not to be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law. Maybe it’s your property being taken for public use, without just compensation or your right to be secure in your person, house, papers, and effects, against unreasonable search and seizure.
Each of the rights that you are guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights is just as important as any other. If even one is changed, modified, or put aside by the Government, it would be the beginning of a slow erosion of them all. Many people do not understand this, nor do they realize what the 10 rights put forth in the Bill of Rights are. The Government that our forefathers put in place was one of compassion, consideration, deliberation, and a belief in freedom.
The other item that most people do not realize is that this country was founded in faith and the belief in God. The word “God” appears throughout our forefather’s historic documents, our monuments, and our culture. I am disturbed by the efforts of some to remove the word “God” from our pledge of allegiance, from courthouse steps, from the paper and coins we use as money, and from our national monuments. For those that don’t believe, remember this, in spite of the fact our forefathers believed in God they made sure the First Amendment specifically guaranteed that each and every citizen had the right to worship how and where they please, or not at all if that is their desire.
I believe in God, but I also believe in your right as an American to worship whomever and however you wish. I believe you have the right to live your life in freedom as long as you are not hurting others. It is your choice. It is also your choice to either support what our forefathers believed in or not. In this country it is even your choice to speak out against our rights and the country in which you live.
However, if the right to keep and bear arms to protect yourself and your family, or the beliefs that our forefathers fought for is degraded and put aside, those people that use the right of free speech to disparage others and our Constitution will soon find themselves without rights and the dissolution of the basis of the greatest governmental effort toward freedom the world has ever seen.
You might say, “Hmm, why is he talking about this in SHOOT! Magazine?” It is simple, many of us have become too complacent. We may think that, “Gee, as long as we still have our cowboy guns, its okay.” Who cares if they ban assault rifles (many semi-auto hunting rifles fall into that description). ANY ban on ANY firearm impacts your rights! More gun laws erode your rights. It has been proven that rather than being a deterrent to crime, they actually encourage crime. Firearms are used over two million times a year in this country to protect life and family; how often do hear about that in the news? I did recently see on the national news that a Katrina survivor, a woman, fired a warning shot as intruders entered her home. I was ecstatic to see it aired. Boy, was that unusual. If we lose our right to own guns and continue to let criminals out of prison I guess we are just telling them to commit more crimes against us. The police can’t always protect or reach you in time and if you can’t legally own a gun, the criminal can illegally posses one and he doesn’t care about the law in the first place. Do you think I am preaching to the choir? If so, have you ever thought, “Well, as long as the new law doesn’t affect my guns or the sport I participate in, I guess it isn’t too bad”? If you have thought that then, yes, definitely, I am talking to you and hoping that you think about what happened in World War II , Cambodia , Bosnia , and Rwanda . Don’t make the mistake of thinking that can’t happen here. It won’t happen here if we believe in and protect our rights, and continue to vote for those who are willing to protect the constitution and what its framers believed in, not just the second amendment but each and every one of them.
Visit our web site at www.ShootMagazine.com. Email Chucky at editor@shootmagazine.com.
posted by SHOOT! MAGAZINE | 1:39 PM
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