Challenge the Lies by Don Smith/Tom Reynolds
Wayne County Chairman Don Smith is one of our more active SCOPE members and when he saw a cartoon in the Times of Wayne County which blamed mass shootings on ‘assault weapons’ and absolved mental health issues of being a cause, he had to reply. Below is his response.
One of your misguided cartoons in the July 23rd issue requires clarification due to an obvious exaggeration. You are attempting to stigmatize a rifle commonly owned by law abiding citizens as a despicable firearm. You are likely hoping readers will interpret the gun as an “assault weapon”.
It would be far better to educate your audience rather than attempt to mislead them. “Assault weapon” is an invented term. In the firearm lexicon, there is no such thing as an “assault weapon”. A judge once commented at a Wayne County SCOPE meeting that the “assault weapon” encountered most often in his courtroom was a “sneaker”.
In most cases, so-called “assault weapons” are functionally identical though less powerful than hunting rifles, but they are cosmetically similar to military guns.
Nationally, “assault weapons” were used in 1.4% of crimes involving firearms and 0.25% of all violent crime before the enactment of any national or state “assault weapons” ban. In many major urban areas (San Antonio, Mobile, Nashville, etc.) and some entire states (Maryland, New Jersey, etc.) the rate is less than 0.1% according to Dr. Gary Kleck in his book “Targeting Guns”. Dr. Kleck is a criminologist and professor emeritus at Florida State University.
There are many reasons people prefer to use these firearms:
- They are easy to operate.
- They are reliable in outdoor conditions (backpacking, hunting, etc.)
- They are good for recreational and competitive target shooting.
- They have value in many self-defense situations.
Don did what we all have to do when we see the emotional exaggerations and lies of the leftist media - he responded with facts.
Unfortunately, we are surrounded by misinformation on ‘assault rifles’ and our 2nd Amendment rights. But most people only hear the drumbeat of the leftist media, Hollywood, the education industry and Democrat politicians. If we are to keep our rights, we must do what Don has done and openly challenge this propaganda.
One small step but a giant step for our rights.
