2008 – Page 225 – Shall Not Be Questioned

Winning Battles, But Losing the War?

Tam talks about the Newbery Medal, which is presented for outstanding children’s books.Â Particularly of interest is the 1942 winner:

Thanks to a good friend, I have just finished reading the 1942 Newbery winner, a book entitled The Matchlock Gun. I can only shake my head and agree with my friend that this wonderful little tale would never survive in a modern children’s library. You see, from cover to cover the whole book would be deemed thoughtcrime in today’s America.

I can’t imagine it today either.Â First off, few people know what a matchlock gun is.Â Secondly, it’s entirely unPC.Â We don’t think favorably of militia service today, because it’s become associated with exploding federal buildings, thanks to the hysterical media, but back then, the idea was properly understood.

I do believe on gun rights, that we’re winning most of the political battles these days, but culturally, things aren’t what they used to be.Â We have a lot of challenges on that front, and it’s rough to make any progress with today’s media culture.Â What we can accomplish politically is dictated by the limits of the population at large, and the further we drift from stories like The Matchlock Gun, the harder it’s going to be to make real progress in restoring the second amendment back to its original meaning.

Exposed!

The VPC has uncovered our dastardly scheme!

Austrian Women Buying Guns

What’s even more interesting is that they are buying guns for self-defense.Â I thought self-defense was a no-no in Europe as a reason for having a firearm?Â Well, the Austrian women shall not go poorly armed.Â I don’t have any complaints about my Austrian Tupperware, and I doubt these women will find much to complain about either.

We’ll All Be Open Carrying Soon Enough

One of the things that has made me a bigger advocate of Open Carry than I have been in the past is that technology is making concealment harder and harder.

You can count on societies moving toward democratic totalitarianism to develop technologies such as this, but in some ways it’s inevitable.Â It will be possible in the future to have near perfect enforcement of some laws.Â We have to argue what kind of laws we are willing to live under.

The Four Dollar Mark

Experts are saying we can expect to see 4 dollar a gallon gas this spring.Â As much as I hate the idea of this, because it costs me a 41 dollar tank of gas to see Bitter at current prices, I have to admit that as much as I might complain about gas prices, it’s important to put it in perspective.Â At four dollars a gallon, I would be paying 52 dollars a tank to fill up in order to see Bitter.

For tolls on the way down there and back, I pay 17 dollars.Â Delaware charges 4 dollars in each direction.Â Maryland charges 5 one way, and 2 dollars each way for the tunnel.Â Now, I bypass Delaware’s tolls both ways to save the 8 dollars.Â It only adds about 10 minutes to the trip time each way, so I think it’s worth the savings.Â Most of the times I stop for gas or food on my bypass route to kill two birds with one stone.

But today, Bitter and I went for an early dinner, late lunch to Old Glory, our favorite BBQ joint in The District.Â I have to concede that on a typical weekend we spend more on entertainment and food than we do on gasoline consumption to see each other.Â The real danger to the economy is that everyone is going to cut back on this kind of spending because motor fuel is generally a fixed cost over the short term.Â But it should give us an idea how useful this stuff is, that we’re willing to keep spending more and more money on it, cutting back on other things in order to afford it.

Questioning What Shall Not Be Questioned

Pennsylvania has one of the most clear and indisputable right to bear arms provisions of any state in the country.

The right of the citizens to bear arms in defence of themselves and the State shall not be questioned.

Dave Hardy says that a new law review article, referenced by DC and its amici, is now online for the rest of us to read.Â Dave says:

The main theme is to try to demonstate that Pennsylvania’s 1776 Declaration, which guaranteed the right of citizens to bear arms for defense of themselves and the state, meant something other than an individual right. The gist of the demonstration is that at the time lots of privotal Pennsylvanians were concerned about creating a mandatory militia. OK, so what? The 1776 Constitution had references to that. There’s no showing that the fact that many wanted a mandatory militia caused the right to arms clause to be inserted in the Declaration.

I won’t go into detail because the article has been critiqued in depth by Clayton Cramer and by Dave Kopel. Clayton points out that the article actually cites Bellesiles!

Unbelievable.

Spring Ahead

I had totally forgotten that we were supposed to spring ahead today.Â Â It seems odd when Ohio bloggers are buried under snow.Â SayUncle is already preparing for spring.Â We didn’t get any snow in southeastern Pennsylvania, but we don’t really get nice spring weather until May, typically.Â March isn’t quite as cold, but still jacket and sometimes coat weather, and most of April is rainy and miserable.

On Endorsing McCain

Bruce of No Looking Backwards says:

I’ve come to terms with the fact that Fred Thompson is not going to be the next President of the United States. I am, hereby, officially endorsing the candidacy of John McCain for President.

Granted, he is far from being the “perfect candidate”.

Then again, no such man or woman exists. And, if they do, they likely possess the common sense that would compel them to avoid running for president.

I’d say I’m about 70% in agreement with McCain on the issues. But that number drops to approximately zero when looking at what the Democrats will have to offer us this fall. I see it as a choice between a D-student and someone who never bothered to show up for class.

I have not decided yet whether to actively shill for McCain, or just beat up on his opponents mercilessly.Â I’m still of the opinion that McCain is far far better than either of those two, and on my big area of disagreement with him, campaign finance reform, he can probably do less further damage as president than he can remaining a senator.

Tearing Apart DC’s Reply

Clayton Cramer analyzes some of the obfuscation made by The District of Columbia in their reply brief in the Heller case.

Scott Bach Hits Back

Scott Bash, President of The Association of New Jersey Rifle and Pistol Clubs, and NRA Board Member, hits back at Bryan Miller on why New Jersey should not be throwing otherwise law abiding gun owners in prison for ten years because they are unknowingly in possession of an assault firearm.