Monday, April 19, 2010

Gun Rallies - This is a Test!

Just today, in my former home state of Virginia, there was a rally in a public park expressing support for those who wish to be able to carry their guns in public.

This is part of an overall movement to redefine the role of government. The "guns" issue is just part of the rally cry.

To the people at this rally, our government has become too intrusive, and we are weak in the world because we rely on alliances and world agreements to shape our policy (as opposed to letting us just act unilaterally).

I wish I could have been at the rally. I'd have a "conversation" with the group. I'd ask them: Are they against the following:
Prohibition of drugs
Prohibition of prostitution
Speed limits (hey, can't I drive as fast as I want - why would I buy a sports car anyway?)
(There are plenty of others that I'm sure you can think of, if you catch my drift)

For me, SOME prohibitions make common sense. To me, SOME regulation makes common sense. My dogma is no dogma, I take each case as it comes.

So the question for me is not whether they are right or wrong - they are wrong - but rather, what do we do about it?

There are 2 parts to this battle - the ideological and the tactical. Within that there is the logical and there is the emotional.

I've explained the ideological - their view is dogmatic, not flexible, and driven by fear and rage. It preaches that we cannot live the life "we want" because of government. Yet, as I explained above, it is full of contradictions. They'll go along with government control when it benefits them.

Tactically, what we need to do is continue to win at the ballot box. I know that there were recent losses in Virginia and Massachusets, but if we have an effective strategy, the moderates will be with us.

Part of the strategy is to make sure that people understand the impact of having virtually no government. Imagine having a country where anyone can carry an Uzi, where health care is totally free market, where anyone can do anything they want to our air and water. Let's have explicit commercials, books, and web sites that describe this world, and let's see then what people think.

Thanks for reading. Comments welcome.