Most Gun Laws have Nothing to do with Safety

June 20, 2016 LevelHead

The people who would ban or limit guns would also have you believe that they’re doing it in the interest of safety. In most cases, that is a flat-out lie.

Every gun owner I know is very concerned with safety, often to the point of annoyance. When I first learned about firearms, safety rules were drilled into me again and again before I was allowed to even touch a gun. To this day I cannot even hold a drill with my finger on the trigger due to these gun safety rules. Gun safety is that ingrained in me.

For those who have never heard of them, these are the four gun safety rules are as written by Col. Jeff Cooper in the 1970’s. (more…)

Arrogant Ignorance

December 23, 2015 LevelHead

Fear is a powerful emotion, and it tends to promote action. My concern is that far too many people have lost the ability to think about their fear and analyze its power. Blaming guns is easy, but thinking about our thoughts and considering the possibility that our fear is misplaced is hard. Sadly, I see this inability to think outside of emotional responses on both sides of this (and every other) issue today. “I’m right and you’re stupid” is not a valid stance in any argument, but watch the news, read social media, or watch anywhere else people debate topics these days and that’s what you’ll see on both sides. What’s worse, if you watch videos showing government in action, you’ll see it there too. (more…)

How Much Ammo is Too Much?

December 13, 2015September 12, 2022 LevelHead

It is unfortunately common to hear the mass media exclaim in disgust about how much ammo someone had. Usually this is after some horrific crime where the talking heads on the television need the viewer to understand how evil the perpetrator was. They would have you believe that anyone who has 5,000 rounds of ammo can’t be normal, and what better way to make someone appear to be a member of the lunatic fringe than to make obvious the depths to which they would sink in the name of preparedness? Take this quote from the LA Times in response to the December 2015 San Bernardino massacre:

Farook and Malik fired up to 75 rounds during their killfest and 76 while exchanging fire with police. Cops found 4,500 rounds at their home and 1,600 in their car.

Nobody needs that many bullets unless they’re arming for mass mayhem.

The message is simple: normal people don’t have that much ammo. But how much is too much? Well, that seems to be up to the people judging the alleged criminal in the name of news. Certainly 5,000 seems like a lot. But is it, really? The answer is, as is often the case, not so simple. (more…)

There Is No Such Thing As Common Sense

December 10, 2015September 12, 2022 LevelHead

A seemingly ubiquitous phrase in today’s gun control debates is common sense, as in “Common sense gun laws”. This phrase is used in an attempt to invalidate the opposing view since it suggests that anyone who disagrees is devoid of common sense. It’s an almost clever way of trapping someone in an argument because no one wants to admit to being stupid. But what is common sense, really? (more…)

Gun Confiscation in America

May 24, 2013May 25, 2013 LevelHead 2 Comments

If you’ve been involved in any gun debates lately, you’ve likely heard, or maybe even said, “No one is coming to take your guns.” This is often used in an effort to belittle the opponents’ arguments by making them appear to be paranoid conspiracy theories. Even Vice President Joe Biden says that the very idea is “bizarre”. I decided to see if I could come up with any examples of gun confiscations in America in an effort to come to my own conclusion. This list is the result of that research. (more…)

High-Capacity Magazines

May 12, 2013September 12, 2022 LevelHead

For my first post, I will explain why “high-capacity” magazine bans are not only illogical, but also result in the exact opposite result of the desired goal. Assuming, that is, that the desired goal is to limit the killing power of psychopaths determined to kill innocent people en masse.

First, let me get this out of the way: Many modern firearms are designed to use magazines with a high number of rounds. The capacity of a military force, unit, or weapons system to deliver gunfire to a target is called firepower, and when it comes to deadly conflicts, more firepower is usually better. (more…)