Ted Nugent Should Stop Supporting the 2nd Amendment for the Sake of the 2nd Amendment
The shooting in Aurora, Colorado was a national tragedy. It was a thoughtless act of despicable violence. No one is going to debate that. But in the wake of this tragedy what people are going to debate are gun control laws. It’s annoying, it’s inevitable, and it’s more or less unfair to try to base serious national and state policies on bizarre isolated incidents. The Aurora shooter was completely clean before the incident. He could have legally and easily purchased a gun just about anywhere no matter how strict the laws were. But it’s understandable that situations like this get the conversation moving again.
Are there certain gun control measures I don’t understand as being practical? Sure. For example I don’t actually understand why anyone would ever need to own an assault weapon like the one used in the Aurora shooting. It seems to me that if there were an intruder in your home and you wanted to send said intruder on an express train to hell before he stole your Blu-Ray player then a handgun or shotgun would do just fine. Other people disagree and believe it’s their God-given right to pump an AR-15 clip into a burglar. Never mind that while you’re firing your assault weapon into your dimly lit living room you’re probably going to end up hitting your Blu-Ray player anyway. Plus in the morning you’ll be patching more drywall than a fraternity house manager.
Any law abiding citizen should be allowed to own a gun if they so choose, but it’s also fair to debate the types of guns people should be allowed to own. As far as concealed carry laws go there at minimum needs to be a “shall-issue” requirement. Unrestricted concealed carry is nuts. Some rights you have to earn. I think that’s a pretty reasonable view of the Second Amendment.
Then there’s Ted Nugent, who, if he could, would be in perpetual bidding wars with Al-Qaeda operatives for mothballed heavy Soviet weaponry. Actually, maybe the U.S. should let Nugent into that market. He might actually keep a few weapons out of terrorist hands. But as awesome as it would be to watch Ted Nugent’s fiery jihad on deer, he’s still a fucking crazy person. There might not be a worse self appointed spokesperson for the Second Amendment than Nugent. His most recent statements, which related to the Aurora shooting, were as quality crazy as ever.
Yes, Ted Nugent, that dark, chaotic, smoke filled theatre needed MORE bullets flying through it. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that A) there probably were a couple gun owners in that theater and B) even if they had brought their weapons none of them were capable enough marksmen to squeeze off controlled shots in the horrific madness that was that theater. In fact the last thing I would want if someone walked into a theatre or a mall or whatever and started firing on a crowd is Ted Nugent standing on the other side of that crowd, firing back. But yeah, in a perfect world it would have been nice to have an off duty Navy SEAL hanging out with his side arm when the shooting started.
Considering the mediocrity of most gun owners I doubt that anyone having a gun anywhere would be that much of an effective deterrent. You only have to look back to the Gabby Giffords shooting in Arizona where an armed civilian nearly shot the wrong guy. By the time Joe Zamudio reached the scene of the Arizona shooting he pointed his gun at the man who had subdued Jared Loughner and taken his gun. Zamudio initially mistook that man for the shooter. Thankfully Zamudio was smart enough to tell the man to drop the gun instead of firing first.
Don’t celebrate Ted Nugent for being pro-Second Amendment, regret it. Having crazies on your side never helps your case. The only saving grace is that Nugent is probably so crazy that only other crazies take him seriously. Time to let the grown ups talk, Ted.
I actually really like the idea of a test like the driver’s license test for concealed carry. Everyone has the right to bear arms, meaning own guns, but concealed carry is different. If someone has to past a gun maintenance test, gun protocol test, and psychological review then they can have a concealed carry permit. I know it won’t be popular but I think the same thing should go for automatic weapons. A semi-automatic rifle, shotgun, and handgun are the only useful things the average citizen need in my opinion. That’s a fuckton of firepower as it is.
13 years ago at 2:09 pmya you have to go through a concealed carry course to get your permit already that includes a backround chech and all that. The problem is that you have to apply for the permit through your county and provide a good reason for wanting the permit. So how liberal or tough on gun regulations your state is often determends how hard or easy it is to get a permit issued. If you’re in California it almost take a miracle.
13 years ago at 2:32 pmYou also do need a class three FFL (federal Firearms Liscense) to own a machine gun. Its designed for major gun dealers and collecters. Liberals are trying to outlaw semi automatic “assualt weapons” like the AR-15.
13 years ago at 2:34 pmThere were FOUR members of the U.S. military in that theater including one that had served 3 tours. If you don’t think that if they were armed that they could handle identifying and neutralizing a hostile threat then maybe you should try to go and find another country were they have better trained soldiers(Good luck with that!). I’m going to speculate but I would be willing to bet that most people there weren’t running around like a chicken with its head cut off (first instinct would be to duck for most people). I am also pretty confident that most people would be able to identify the gunman based on the muzzle flash of a shotgun/assault rifle. I don’t care if he was wearing a vest he would either get the wind knocked out of him once he was shot or at the very least be a little scared and fire less shots. After all this guy was a COWARD.
13 years ago at 2:34 pm^ YES!
13 years ago at 2:44 pmHe aslo planned for his appartment to blow up first so all the first responders would be occupied. He basically walked into that theater knowing that no one would be able to stop him. The police said the gun man looked shocked when they showed up so fast because he was not aware that his appartment hadn’t exploded.
shut up and play ‘yer guitar…this is what happens when everyone goes ape shit over the 2nd Amendment. first of all, i am an NRA member and part of my donations to the PAC were in the +$40m spent last year in protecting it. but even i (and half of the NRA in recent polls) know that there is a large enough segment of people who seem to think the US Constitution ends at the #2. it doesn’t. the Constitution also protects the federal government from taxing us. it overrides the States. it also does alot of things which drive these 2nd Amendment supporters ape shit. including protecting the free speech rights and political rights of those who DON’T support the aims of the NRA as well.
we live in a free country and this is democracy. i think we all need to remember that, because America is great only because we allow this.
i give money to conservative causes and i get alot of emails and mail on this. and to be brutally honest, Romney wasn’t exactly what i’d call a 2nd Amendment ‘supporter’ as Governor. and remembering the first NRA campaign plea for money against Obama four years ago, people forget they had to dig really deep to find any real cause – because by actual voting history – he wasn’t that bad on 2nd Amendment rights. i think the NRA used only one vote he made on illegal possession of guns (which actually I’d probably support because if you illegally own a gun, shouldn’t you be criminally liable for it?).
personally i think all the 2nd Amendment talk by the politicians are bullshit after what happened. what’s not being said is that we should be putting more into mental health – because all these lunatics have mental problems. it’s not the guns, its the people, who are doing the killing.
just sayin’. my two cents which ain’t worth shit but i got the right to say it.
13 years ago at 2:34 pmactually meant to say the constitution actually protects the government TO tax us. and ALLOWS the federal government to override the states. damn me and my personal views which say otherwise.
and as for the ape shit 2nd Amendment supporters, i fucking received at least five emails today from groups saying the UN is conspiring with Obama to take away our guns? look, these groups think they’re talking to someone in Appalachia with a 3rd grade education? these kinds of stupid arguments in my view, invalidate rational national debate.
i think in the end, there will probably be little done – but not until the political consultants rake in millions. otherwise, take everything, including what Uncle Ted says – with a grain of salt. Uncle Ted also has the right to say whatever he fucking wants to say. This is America!
13 years ago at 2:46 pmDamn Bacon you are really getting fucked in the ass for this one possibly one of the dumbest articles you have ever written id love to get some feed back from dorn on this subject. Team Dorn.
13 years ago at 2:38 pmIf by “getting fucked in the ass” you mean people are getting pissy on the internet, then yeah, getting fucked REAL hard over here.
13 years ago at 2:48 pmOh so that’s how you get Aids…
13 years ago at 3:01 pm^Yes
13 years ago at 3:10 pmKeep it up Bacon. Believe it or not, there still is an educated audience actually reading this site, capable of rational debate on political issues. Don’t let the high schoolers and the “I vote Red because it’s what TFM tells me” people, rather than the rational Republicans, influence you.
13 years ago at 2:48 pmBrother, you are so right.
13 years ago at 2:57 pm^, ^^
13 years ago at 9:16 amWell said.
13 years ago at 2:50 pmSo Ted Nugent should reframe from using his 1st Amendment rights to affirm his support for his 2nd Amendment rights?
13 years ago at 2:55 pmJust because you use 1st amendment and 2nd amendment in the same sentence doesn’t make you right, dumbass. He’s saying that TN should see that his particular brand of exercising his 1st amendment rights actually hurts the argument of those trying to protect their 2nd amendment rights. Bacon is making the argument that if TN really cares about gun rights he’ll make a smart decision and exercise his freedom of speech in different ways, not that he HAS to do anything in regards to his 1st amendment rights.
13 years ago at 3:57 pm“You cannot invade the mainland of the United States. There would be a rifle behind every blade of grass”
This is from a highly respected Japanese Admiral, Yamamoto if I remember right. Sure I might have an AR-15 with several thousand rounds of ammunition in my garage, in a very large safe, but you can be damn sure it’s not for American targets, its for any dumb fuck who decides to invade this land that I love.
13 years ago at 2:56 pmThere we go.
13 years ago at 3:23 pmIn this thread: gun nuts, versus rational people trying to debate the issue of assault weapons and concealed carry, versus liberals. This is a train wreck you can see from space.
My 2 cents: I love my AR-15, it’s a great gun and fun to take to the range and plink a few targets with. However, some things are overkill. This is one of them. It wouldn’t be my go to for a home invader (glock or similar pistol with high stopping power would), or my go-to hunting weapon (my Remington 870 fills that gap). It’s a weapon I basically take to the range when I want to have some fun and practice my marksmanship, and I don’t need it. If they were banned, I’d be unhappy, because I don’t have my target gun anymore, but at the end of the day, it won’t prevent me from carrying out the spirit of the 2nd amendment with the rest of my guns.
13 years ago at 3:09 pmThank you. Uncle Ted is NOT the sole face of the 2nd Amendment and I think some folks would like to remind him of that. Respect him as a guitar player but knowing about his borderline pedo past, limited education, and outlandish behavior – it’s not like he’s the best role model for a Constitutional scholar either. Shut up and play ‘yer guitar Ted.
13 years ago at 3:49 pmFor all you fuckers saying that one needs a class 3 FFL to own a fully automatic weapon, you’re full of shit. You need an ATF form, background check, about $25,000, and the consent of your local Chief Law Enforcement Officer or you need to be a member of a trust established to buy those sorts of guns.
13 years ago at 3:09 pmya you get a class 3 FFL (federal Firearms Liscense) through the ATF. As I stated earlier this type of liscense is only intended for major gun dealers like you see on Sons of Guns or American Guns. So ya a backround check is a no brainer considering you need on to even buy a firearm and yes to even obtain your class 1 FFL you need to be able to prove that you run some type of gun selling business and must provide a list of every weapon that is sold. I’m not sure of the cost, but 25,00o sounds about reasonable.
13 years ago at 11:04 amThe process I described was for your regular non-FFL civilian to buy a fully automatic weapon that was registered with the ATF before May 1986
13 years ago at 12:40 am