Generations of my family have carried the torch of liberty. All, including myself, were volunteers that defended our nation from the very people that would take our rights and liberties away. My father and I were the lucky ones, we served but were never called to fight. Others fought in wars, both foreign and domestic. One of my distant relatives has likely been in every conflict of our great nation back to the beginning. My family, like many of yours, spans the history of this nation. English, German, Scottish, and Irish blood flow through my veins, but that blend is what makes me, and you, uniquely American.
Today, the very reasons that we fight are being challenged; not by some evil foreign power, but our own government. Tragedies and terror attacks are being used as an excuse to subjugate the people and remove the rights handed down by our forefathers; rights paid for and defended by the blood of our people.
Many people ask why we should be allowed to have military style weapons and not just hunting rifles. The answer is simple: The second amendment gives us the right to form militias and the weapons for that purpose. The founding fathers, having lived under the tyrannical rule of Briton, wanted to insure that we would have a method to protect ourselves from any such rule in the future.The militias are for the "people" to protect themselves from the tyranny of government; there is nothing about hunting in the constitution. The police in this country have become a military force, with armored vehicles and automatic weapons. Does it really take a military tactical response to protect us from one armed person barricaded in their own home?
A gun, just like a brick, is just a inanimate object until it is picked up and used by someone. If that someone has evil intentions, they can kill you with either one. It is true that the rate of fire and amount of ammunition of an assault rifle makes it easier for a crazed individual to kill more people more rapidly but the real issue is the crazed individual, not the tool he or her uses. When did we change from blaming the person responsible to the tools they used? Passing the blame is one of the fundamental problems in our society today.
I ask each and everyone of you to stand for your rights and ask your Representatives to protect the rights that our forefathers fought and died to protect. If enough peoples voices join the call, they will hear us.
