Folks, I don’t usually go political in this blog, but this is important for those of us living in Colorado.
For nearly a decade I have had the feeling that the folks in the statehouse really don’t have Colorado citizens’ best interest at heart, certainly not from the standpoint of citizen autonomy and freedom.
They have taken measures that make internet commerce difficult (my AdSense ads became pointless, so I removed them).
They have added punishment in the form of fines for things as minor as missing the registration renewal of vehicles and/or trailers by a day, instead of merely letting the renewal fee stand for itself.
They have limited the autonomy of Home School families,
insisting that someone in the family either holds a teaching certificate or
under the authority of a certified teacher, thus limiting the content and methods
of teaching available to Home School parents.
There are other things, but this will do for background.
With HR 24-1292 Assault Weapons Ban the statehouse wishes to
restrict gun ownership, and NOT just banning AR-15 or AK-47 –style rifles.
It does call out these rifles particularly, but also many other similar firearms. Specifically, it mentions that any firearm that has a detachable magazine falls under the ban (other firearm features are banned as well).
In other words, your great granddad’s war relic Luger P-08
pistol from World War I is now an ‘Assault Rifle’.
Let that sink in.
Any firearm with a detachable magazine (not just external magazine) is now an 'Assault Rifle'. That's a bit sweeping; it includes semi-automatic pistols of every variety down to the .22 caliber Colt Woodsman that granddad learned to shoot with, back in the day.
(It sounds like if they could find a way to make any sort of
revolver, bolt action rifle or lever action rifle, or even a muzzle-loader into an
‘assault rifle’, they would.)
Any firearm that falls under the ban that you currently
own would be grandfathered. But that just postpones the ban: when you die, there is no provision for passing your banned firearms down to
your heirs. Nor is there any legal way to sell them.
And with the laws that went into effect last year, we cannot even buy a gun, then hand it to my wife or daughter for their own defense.
Our elected leaders have their backs guarded, why not sauce for the gander as well. It’s not that I begrudge our Governor his protection by the Colorado State Patrol. But I DO begrudge this notion of ‘Yes for me, but none for thee’ attitude.
I cannot afford to hire security personnel; I must needs take the defense of my person and of my family into my own hands. This means having the equipment in my own hands, and in the hands of my family members.
Furthermore, there are legitimate reasons for responsible gun owners to own these firearms, beginning with (just like owning a particular kind of automobile), “I Want One.” The last I checked, if you had the money you could buy a Ferrari, no questions asked.
"You don't need an AR-15 for hunting." Beside the point. If I want an AR-15 or similar, I should, dollars permitting, be allowed to purchase one. It’s not about hunting, it’s about self-defense. Coyotes come in both four-legged and two-legged varieties.
It’s also about tyranny. A government that does NOT trust its upstanding citizens with the tools to defend themselves from tyranny, is by definition tyrannical.
This government has shown its disregard for its citizens,
from the laws it passes that affect its citizens daily lives, to the edicts it
hands down that limit the citizens' freedoms, but not the freedoms of its special ruling class (the
COVID-19 travel ban famously ignored by our Governor for his Christmas trip, as
an example).
Our rulers do not deserve this law to pass.
We The People wish to keep our rights intact!
This citizen does, at very least.
