There are so Many Other Amendments to Violate

NRA official Chris Cox:

...In the aftermath of this terrorist attack, President Obama and Hillary Clinton renewed calls for more gun control, including a ban on whole categories of semi-automatic firearms... 

...The terrorist in Orlando had been investigated multiple times by the FBI. He had a government-approved security guard license with a contractor for the Department of Homeland Security. Yet his former co-workers reported violent and racist comments. Unfortunately, the Obama administration’s political correctness prevented anything from being done about it...

There is just so much stupidity here to unpack...

Firstly, over a hundred years of jurisprudence prior to 2008 recognized no individual right to own firearms.  Even in Heller v. DC, the ruling still left open the possibility that types of firearms could be restricted.

Secondly, yes, the FBI interviewed gunman/terrorist/homophobe/nutcase and there was no evidence of a crime.  In this case, "political correctness" is referring to constitutional protections like the First Amendment's protections of religion and speech, the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable search and seizure, the Fifth Amendment's right to due process, and the 14th Amendment's right to equal protection under the law.

Thirdly, it's a bit ironic that people who are constantly bitching about vague notions of "political correctness" in which they're usually referring to the "right" not to have their fee-fees hurt for saying bigoted and/or sexist things, are implying that this man should have possibly been arrested for doing just that.

I do find the notion that someone could have something recognized as a right taken away for being on a list that is arbitrarily applied and lacks any kind of due process problematic, which is why I don't think individual ownership of firearms should be a right.  Humans just aren't that good with weapons of mass-destruction.

Despite all this, one freedom remains strong in America:  The freedom to get shot.

Today in Moronic Memes #2

 

Oh where to begin with this one.  

You Can Still Fly Your Racist Flag

 

It seems people really have a lot of trouble grasping what the First Amendment actually is.  The Confederate Flag has not been banned.  If you are a private citizen you cannot be arrested for displaying the Confederate flag.  You cannot be denied equal protection under the law simply because of your racist views.  That's what the Constitution guarantees and nothing more.

The flag in South Carolina will be taken down off State property.  The State of Mississippi might take the stars and bars off their flag.  This is the result of people petitioning their government for change, something that is actually guaranteed in the constitution.  Additionally, I can exercise my First Amendment right to call you a racist and my right as a consumer if I desire not to buy stuff from retailers.  Freedom of speech is not the freedom from social consequences.  Lenny Bruce's rights were violated because he was arrested, not because people were criticizing him.

I fully support the rights of anyone who wants to fly the Confederate flag, the Nazi flag, or the Islamic State flag if you want to.  The rest of us are then free to call you a bigot.

I'm Not Sure You Understand the Concept of Free Speech

One of my interests is free speech, particularly on college campuses, so when I found a Washington Post editorial titled Trigger warnings, colleges, and the ‘Swaddled Generation’, I took interest.  The editorials premise was that leftists everywhere are suppressing speech on college campuses.  It has been about nine years since I have studied on a college campus, so maybe I am out of touch with what is going on, and I certainly believe that there are attempts by the left to suppress free speech and silence unpopular ideas.  Largely, people only really believe in free speech when it's not something that personally offends them.  The problem I have with the editorial is that the examples of this suppression they give are unconvincing.  The first example given is trigger warnings, a concept that I find rather bizarre, but not exactly stifling either.

This was the case recently at Georgetown University when Christina Hoff Sommers , resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and author of “Who Stole Feminism?,” was greeted by sign-carriers warning: “Anti-Feminism,” with the room number of a “safe space.”