People campaigning for “common sense gun control” like to trot out the example of keeping guns out of the hands of mentally ill people. I mean, that seems reasonable doesn’t it? When you think of someone who is mentally ill, you’re probably thinking of the movie “Friday the 13th” or “Halloween” or “Psycho,” aren’t you? You would want to keep firearms out of the hands of those people.
But, then the question comes, “How do you define who is really insane?” Now, understand, I’m not being silly here. The definition of what is a psychiatric disorder has changed over the years. For example, homosexuality used to be defined by psychiatrists as a psychiatric disorder but is not defined that way by most psychiatrists anymore.
There is another concern here, which John Vibes writes about. He notes that 1 in 6 Americans are currently taking some type of psychiatric drug and that all a government would have to do to bar these people from access to guns is to say that taking a psychiatric medication is evidence of mental illness of a level sufficient to prevent access to firearms. Right there, fifty million more Americans could lose their Second Amendment rights even if these people have no history of violence or aggression.
With additional diagnoses being recognized by psychiatrists like Oppositional Defiant Disorder (for people who don’t like to do what they are told to do) and Illusory Pattern Perception (for people who don’t believe the mainstream definition of things such as so-called “conspiracy theorists”), how long before the U.S. government begins to use these diagnoses as excuses to keep everyone from having guns? Or at least the people who disagree with the whatever the administration at that time says is the proper narrative about gun violence?
In case you think that this is just “crazy talk,” realize that there are historical precedents for these types of government activity. Vibes writes,
A policy like this could also allow the government to disarm dissidents and political enemies. As psychiatry became more influential towards the middle of the 20th century, rulers around the world began using “mental illness” as an excuse to lock away anyone who might disagree with them. The Soviet regime became notorious for this practice by labeling all political dissidents as “mentally ill” so they could be locked away in institutions where they were no threat to the establishment.
The United States government also has a long history of slapping unruly citizens with the mark of mental illness. President Franklin Roosevelt famously called his detractors “the lunatic fringe,” and this type of attitude towards activists has carried on in the halls of government to this day.
So, yes, there is a reason to be concerned. It doesn’t help that there has been a persistent trend among those in power in medical organizations to lean particularly left politically, and that political leaning tends to be anti-gun in general.
Too many people don’t realize that “common sense gun control” is just an excuse for the next step toward a total gun ban. They may not believe it, but history shows that this is true, and this is why we oppose any further restrictions on access to guns. The potential for abuse is simply too great.
Well done Caleb. The importance of this kind of message cannot be underestimated, and must be revealed at every opportunity until we all can finally ‘get it’, and generate the motivation to proactively unite to protect ourselves from Tyrannist rule. Thank you for being a Great American Patriot.
The key word here is “TAKE” because that is exactly what they would have to do. Anyone going door to door to collect private firearms would be a fool for it would be a death order, especially in rural areas.
“common sense” is the DEMOCOMMUNIST “buzzword” for complete disarmament of all Law abiding citizens. THAT is THE only way for them to gain complete CONTROL over the population and they KNOW if they cannot take our GUNS they WILL have a fight on their hands if they even TRY. REMEMBER all those countries over the years that disarmed their population for “common sense” and “protection”. WHAT happened? ANNIHILATION.
The DEMOCOMMUNIST ARE A MAJOR CONCERN. In my opinion. They are are the people who are mentally unstable.
The English professor who has tenure at Fresno State U. is mentally unbalanced.
She has no common sense. Will she be allowed to have guns along with her communist associates to take our guns away so the can kill us?
I am very concerned about the. DemCommunists.
Thanks for bring this group to our attention.
I recommend to those who don’t know. READ “YOU CAN TRUST THE COMMUNIST TO DO EXACTLY AS THEY SAY”
Until we have more medical consensus, who can determine who in legally insane? Not a judge. Not a family member. Psychiatrists/doctors fall back on client/doctor privacy. Only if someone is known publically to be insane could that ever work. Besides, it might take more than one medical profession to determine the actual mental state of a person. The most difficult situation would be someone with something like anxiety and such illnesses that can be treated. We have no program at present to make sure an affected person takes their medication regularly. Even then, that gets iffy. I agree with the idea but it is still down the road.
I am a Viet Nam veteran and naturally I have been diagnosed with PTSD which to the left wing lunatics means I’m mentally deranged and have a hand grenade in my back pocket with the pin pulled. I am also transgender and oh boy that puts me right in the luny bin yes from both sides. I am a gun owner, I hunt and fish and am damn good at it. I’m a republican through and through. I know the price of freedom and it’s paid in blood. Anyone who tries to take my weapons will pay a heavy price. We have to unite all the gun rights and all the hunting rights groups to stop this gun grab movement or we will be slaves. I will die on my feet rather than live on my knees!
Common sense means knowing that if a deranged killer has entered your home and you are unarmed you are dead meat. Common sense means that if a kid spouts off about the need for “gun control” he or she is ignorant of the 200 Million plus unarmed subjects slaughtered by their own governments in the 20th century. He or she is merely parroting the catch word used by tyrants for gun confiscation. But hey, these kids were not taught history in their government schools, they parrot socialist/communist claptrap. Common sense should tell you that removing God and discipline from our schools and our society is a Big mistake. Common sense should tell you that militarily arming the police and other government agencies is a huge red flag. Common sense should show you that human nature has not changed, and yes, unarmed subjects can and will be rounded up once again, murdered and buried in mass graves by government mass murderers because power always corrupts. Dear God, whatever happened to the informed armed citizen?
Anyone that calls this common sense ,belongs in a nut house,where I for one in our country of millions of people do not see a, hundred are more of we the people going around doing these kinds of killings ,it’s only those one to two people that do those kinds of killings with those types of weapons ,then one with common sense has to ask his are herself, why would one do such a thing ,And I for one of millions in our great country, see it as taking place by such types young people that are well know of by their police records in the places they live at, that are also known of by the FBI ,that looks to be more of paid up job by those behind their gun laws.and are rights to bare our weapons ,which been under attack for decades,that comes out every time such killings take place ,when the first thing we the people hear of is the types of weapons that been used and the attacks on our constitution with our God given rights to bare our weapons ,for which their gun laws come into play,and anyone with common sense can see why ,and I am mot going say why as most of we the people in our great country already know why ,and that is what may destroy those types of people behind the attacks on our God given rights to bare our weapons,which is one of God’s laws given to Mosses over thousands of years ago and written in our constitution by our fore fathers.
I have said for awhile that the democrats call for “common sense” gun control laws are an excuse to repeal the 2nd Amendment. For a few years the Democrats said they were not proposing to take weapons from American citizens. Now, the real objective has been revealed. They do want to remove all weapons from Americans, except of course, the body guards who are protecting the Liberals. My question is who gets to decide what qualifies as “common sense” gun control laws? The left thinks that common sense is that is was okay when Hillary had classified e-mails on her personal computer, but when one of President Trump’s cabinet members does the same thing, it is an offense that requires his firing. I have to say that we have to have a system that has the same punishment for everyone, regardless of Political affiliation. That my friends is common sense.
I agree with some of these comments in fact all I have read. These fools pushing for gun control are the same cowards that believe that their precious government can do no wrong and they are not haven’t a clue of the mass murder done in countless countries where governments have taken the people’s guns away in the name of protecting them from some made up terrorist group to keep them in fear, but unfortunately most people don’t study real history but only know the white washed lies that they teach in all these government schools they force our children to go to so they can be indoctrinated into the socialist doctrine of the new world order. We’ll there is a conspiracy but it’s not a theory if people would just open their eyes and do a little research and quit listening to and watching the mainstream news media which has been bought and payed for by the very ones pushing for all this gun control. Those of us that love liberty and this country need to stand together and use the internet while we still can to open people’s eyes because I fear if we don’t then our nation is doomed. I refuse to live in this police state and they pass law after law and the very nature of these laws are unconstitutional and yet the American people stand quiet. The people cower in fear about some terrorist group that don’t exist except in the halls of government so the people will give up their guns and trust the government to protect them. Wake up you cowards your country needs you. We cannot allow them to take away our 2nd amendment rights but none are more enslaved than those who believe they are free.
Like I said from the beginning ” WHO IS THE ONE THAT DETERMINES WHO IS MENTALLY ILL ” ………..
THEY ALREADY SAY TRUMP IS MENTALLY UNFIT …………..
Just remember Hillary called half the Nation “Irredeemable Deplorables”
Is this a term for “Mentally Unfit”
I think we should ask her.
The “poster child” for gun CONTROL seems to be the AR, which IS a legal hunting gun in many states WITH a smaller magazine (as required in many states). Most anti-gunners have little to NO idea how a firearm works, or they are surrounded with armed guards. The FACT that 99% of guns are used to protect others or harvest food for the family table. Americans need to have the EXISTING firearm SENTENCING LAWS enforced. There used to be a MANDATORY 5-year sentence for the unlawful possession of a firearm during a crime, that was above and beyond the crime itself. Mandating the restriction of ownership by lawful citizens is NOT RIGHT. Criminals and thugs will not turn in their guns and the current proposal of more gun CONTROL only makes unarmed victims, and soft targets.
GREETINGS ALL, I HAVE READ THROUGH ALL OF THE COMMENTS. HERE IS THE MAIN FACT THAT IS MISSING. I AS MANY OF YOU VETERANS, PARENTS,& GRANDPARENTS, WE AS CHILDREN LEARN FROM OUR PARENTS. NOW I WAS BROUGHT UP WITH RESPECT FOR EVERY THING RIGHT? NOW WE WERE TAUGHT TO RESPECT GUNS AND KNOW THE RIGHT & WRONG OF ALL THINGS. SO WHAT IS HAPPENING TODAY? NO RESPECT FROM PARENTS SO NO RESPECT FROM THE CHILDREN. I AGREE WITH ALL COMMENTS HERE. I AS MANY OF YOU ARE VETERANS AND LEARNED HOW TO USE WEAPONS TO PROTECT OUR SELVES AND OTHERS. IT GOES BACK TO THE START OF TIME WITH OUR GOOD LORD, AND OUR FOE FATHERS FOLLOWED TO PRESERVE OUR RIGHT TO LIVE. WE NEED TO KEEP OUR RIGHTS PROTECTED UNTIL DEATH. KEEP OUR HEADS HIGH & THEY WILL HAVE TO PRY MY WEAPON FROM MY COLD DEAD HANDS.
I suggest we stop whipping the NRA and get after the deep pockets of the pharmaceutical industry poisoning sick people with psychotropic drugs. Almost every mass murderer was taking these for anxiety and odd behaviors or feelings. It’s a fact: these depression drugs such as Prozac Cause violent behavior and/or suicide in those who use them. They need to be banned, not guns. But you never hear about them because they are a billion dollar industry whose obscene profits are untouchable. Shame on us!
Plainly, Common Sense and Gun Control are mutually exclusive.
Comments are closed.