Open Letter to Public Servants

I wrote the following note to my three King County Washington legislators yesterday

I've just become aware that the state legislature is considering a new assault weapons ban. I find this to be highly disconcerting. I am an avid shooting sports member and I strongly support the second amendment of the united states constitution. Of course, the purpose of the second amendment has nothing to do whatsoever with hunting and sporting. It is primarily there to safeguard each individual American's right to arms in defense of liberty from the tyranny of the state or any other potential oppressor.

As such, the types of weapons with "military features" that are being considered in the ban are exactly the types of arms the Framers intended to protect. Contrary to the notions of gun-control groups like the Brady Campaign and the Violence Policy Center, these types of weapons are used in an insignificant number of crimes compared to other types of weapons. The United States Department of Justice and the FBI have both made this very clear. The recently expired federal ban on so-called assault weapons had no impact whatsoever on crime, but did infringe on the constitutionally protected rights of American citizens.

Most pro gun-rights citizens recognize these types of bans, which are primarily cosmetic with little plausible potential impact on crime, as another step down the slippery slope that inevitably leads to total gun confiscation, as was the case in England.

As your constituent, I ask that you please act against any gun-control measures that involve banning certain types of firearms or include gun registration. It is no surprise that the states with the most criminal violence (NY, NJ, IL, CA) also have the most gun control. Gun control does not work, and only disarms the law abiding majority among us.

I am fully in favor of extremely tough laws and sentences for criminal use of firearms. The record has shown that tough laws, sentences, and strong enforcement of these laws is the best deterrent to gun violence. Additionally, before any mention of the DC snipers, the fact that they used a so-called "assault weapon" was preferable to them using my grandpa's old .30-06 hunting rifle, which is much more powerful, accurate at long range, and cheaper than the Bushmaster rifle used by the criminals. The three people who survived the attacks probably would not have, had the snipers used a proper hunting rifle.

Sincerely,

Gun-rights experts: please feel free to critique my letter. I know there's lots of things I could say, but brevity is important. I doubt it will get a fair reading anyway. I'll post any reply I get. This is in response to the proposed AWB and .50 BMG bans being proposed in the capital this week. See this thread on THR, or this one, for more info.