Denver, Colorado–When you hear a Democrat, especially an anti-gun Democrats, use the term “common sense,” you know that you’re about to hear a preface to yet another pro-gun control policy prescription. From President Obama to Senate Democrats, “common sense” is what’s attached to every one of their proposals that the Right has defeated endlessly in their flawed crusade to gut our Second Amendment rights.
Not allowing terrorists buy guns; that’s common sense. Right, until you find out that it will strip Americans of their gun rights without due process under this flawed Bush-era anti-terror program. Some people who advocate this egregious policy (looking at you Georgia Rep. John Lewis) have been erroneously placed on the no-fly list—one of many secretive terrorist watch lists maintained by the FBI.
Limiting magazine sizes, that’s common sense. It’s window dressing. California has a limit on magazine sizes; Eliot Rodgers was still able to commit a heinous crime. Expanding background checks is the main course of anti-gun proposals pushed by the left that offers the false narrative that a) background checks are full proof; and b) they can prevent mass shooting. Oregon has a universal background check law; it didn’t stop the mass shooting at Umpqua Community College. Moreover, the number of private sales conducted without a background check is incredibly small, and the vast majority of that number is between family members, which are usually exempted under these laws. At least that was the case for the failed Manchin-Toomey bill that was debated post-Newtown. If so, then what’s the point of the law?
At the RedState Gathering, contributor Brandon Morse moderated a panel with Townhall’s own Kimberly Corban and Students for Concealed Carry Antonia Okafor about rising demographic of new gun owners: women. The evidence is clear. Women are the next big things for the gun industry. They’re obtaining concealed carry permits at a rate twice of that for men between 2012-2016 and they’re flocking to firearms training courses.
Corban feels that if more women see how gun ownership isn’t just for the guys (and how it’s become more mainstream for women), others might be more willing to ask questions, take a course, and maybe become gun owners themselves. As for the onslaught of anti-gun rhetoric and meaningless pro-gun control proposals lobbed by the Left, she added that it’s easy to pin the hatred that someone has in their heart on an inanimate object than discuss ways to reform our mental health laws.
One area that gets women’s attention towards gun ownership is personal protection, especially when it comes to sexual assault. Corban viewed it as a tool of empowerment and an equalizer in a self-defense situation with a would-be rapist. Corban herself is a rape survivor. Okafor agreed, though she added that it’s not the only tool. For Okafor, the battlefield is slightly more fraught with difficulty. College campuses are cesspools of progressivism, and where an anti-gun sentiment is omnipresent. Nevertheless, she and the 40,000+ members of Students for Concealed Carry continue to expand Second Amendment rights to our college campuses. After all, providing tools that help in self-defense situations seems to be … common sense.
Speaking more to the self-defense point, Okafor mentioned that one of the best moments of her life was when she showed her mother how to defend herself with a firearm. Lastly, and something to keep in mind to ask gun control advocates, both women mentioned how the Left is now transitioning from being pro-gun control to being pro-gun safety. The use of children to convey this point is pervasive.
“These groups who call themselves for gun safety. Show me a pamphlet they've put out on gun storage,” said Okafor. Corban piled on, saying what have they distributed regarding cleaning, storage, and the use of safes.
Overall, the panel’s theme was clear: self-defense is a human right…for everyone.
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