Responding to the tragic shootings of our police officers, Rep. Ross Hunter, Sen. Adam Kline and Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles will introduce a bill banning the sale of “military-style semi-automatic weapons” in Washington. These legislators are referring to firearms accurately known as AR-15s, often confused with fully-automatic military “assault rifles.” This bill seeks to gain safety at the expense of liberty, rather than addressing the revolving door that is our justice system.
Sen. Kohl-Welles asks, “Did the framers of our Constitution ever envision something like a semi-automatic weapon?” No, probably not. They likely envisioned the single-shot flintlocks of the day, yet should civilians be limited to owning only antiquated flintlocks? And shouldn’t she also be proposing bans on semi-automatic hunting rifles, handguns and shotguns, rather than only on those rifles that resemble the military’s rifles? She is proposing a ban on firearms based on appearance. Absurd! She says she doesn’t believe such a ban would violate the Second Amendment, yet she proposes restrictions where the framers did not!
Such logic from liberal state legislators is expected. However, it’s disappointing that the proposed bill is backed by the Seattle Police Department. The department needs to recognize that the overwhelming majority of civilians who carry semi-automatic rifles and handguns are allies, not adversaries. Many of us would willingly have laid our lives on the line to defend our fallen police officers.
In the words of Benjamin Franklin, “Those who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Eric M. Page
Bothell
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