Trust But Verify

The older I get, the more determined I am to not get political or controversial. I can see that I am failing at this attempt. So I guess I’ll just go with it.
A few months ago I got pulled over by a policeman. When I am pulled over I do my best to make it as easy and painless for both of us. I grab my wallet and insurance info before they get out of their car. I put my hands on the top of the steering wheel and do all my business from there. If I am carrying (most of the time) I give my driver’s license and concealed carry license together. If the officer asks me to do anything that involves my hands I tell them what I’m going to do before I do it. Anyway, as we talked he saw my CC license and asked what I carried. I told him and then I asked what he was carrying. We got into a discussion about guns and he forgot about why he pulled me over. I told him I was an instructor and he asked about that. I told him I’d meet him at the range and show him some things and we exchanged numbers. Now I’m not the kind of person that takes advantage of anyone so I said, “what about my ticket?” He said, “Slow it down.” So, I tell this story to show you I usually get along quite well with the local police and law enforcement. Half of them I’ve trained! Most of them are fine individuals. There’s always that one though.
I was talking to a police officer friend the other day and he expressed a desire that 3D printed guns should not exist. I asked him how he felt about gun control and he was generally pro-2nd amendment. I said “Then why in the world are you against 3D guns?” He said, “Because it makes my job harder.” I then proceeded to berate him for being such a lazy officer. I said, “Then I guess you’re for gun registration.” He said, “Of course I’m not!” I said, “Do you know what happens when law enforcement wants to track a gun?” He did know. Do you know?
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives operates an electronic tracing system, often called eTrace, that is used to find the person who first legally purchased a recovered weapon. The ATF, using the make, model and serial number of the weapon, tracks down the original manufacturer. From there, they identify the federally licensed gun shop where the firearm was originally sent for retail sale.
Once the gun shop is located, federal agents request from the shop owners what is called a 44-73 form for the weapon in question. All gun sellers are required to fill out these forms with every purchase, recording the personal information of the buyer - name, address, telephone number - which they must provide to the ATF upon request.
It typically takes two days to perform a trace, though the process can be expedited in special cases.
If a gun shop goes out of business, the owner is required to send all of its 44-73 forms to the ATF. These documents are sent to the agency and stored, in paper form, in boxes in warehouses. The ATF does not digitize any of this information. There is no national database of firearms. There is a law against a national database.
This difficult process is why law enforcement, most of who are pro-second amendment, want a different system. This is also why rational people want irrational laws. Like background checks for private gun sales. Criminals definitely take advantage of our freedom in this country. Hiding money used to be easier in this country and even in other countries. Remember the Swiss bank account? This was an account connected to a number rather than a name. This is much more difficult these days because terrorist organizations hide their money in numbered accounts. I am a proponent of freedom and privacy. We have privacy in this country afforded us by our Constitution. This is why a police officer can’t just search your car or your house without certain criteria. Because we have a God given right to privacy. This is why no one needs to know what I do privately. If I am living within the law then what I do is of no use to my government. I can buy or sell my personal guns without breaking the law, and without anyone standing over my shoulder.
The ATF’s definition of a firearm is:
“Any weapon (including a starter gun) which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive.”
So by that definition, which was not determined by a politician or anyone elected, if you have a lower receiver of an AR-15, for instance, you have a firearm. But if that lower is only 80% finished, it is not yet a firearm. So there are several companies that sell 80% lowers or unfinished guns. This is legal and has been going on for several years. It got more main stream in the gun world after the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012 because of the call for more gun control. I bought my 80% lowers during this time because of my fear also. I’ve never built an 80% gun but I’ve built several rifles. I bought the 80% lowers because I want the option if crazy laws or other problems come to pass. But a 3-D printed lower is no different than buying an 80% lower. The hysteria of this is mostly caused by the media. Just as the crazy bump stock hysteria. The general public has little gun experience. Even pro-second amendment proponents sometimes don’t have a lot of experience or knowledge of guns. His includes law enforcement. Often I have found law enforcement knows what they need to about the weapon they use and carry, and some knowledge of weapons they deal with from criminals, but really lack a good knowledge of guns. I saw it in the military also. It’s OK. Not everyone is a gun nut. The problem comes with going insane because you can make your own gun. Or you can buy a stock that will help you to shoot faster. None of these things are new. It’s not like some sinister terrorist in a back room decided he would figure out how to make his gun rather than buy one. That is not how it goes. There have been some criminals who have taken advantage of our freedom. Just as bank robbers use cars for a quick getaway. So do we get rid of cars? Cars are registered yet they are used in crimes all the time.
In 2015 there were 12,979 deaths by gun. That same years there were 36,161 deaths by vehicles and 47,478 deaths by poisoning which drug overdoses are included in. Vehicles and drugs are highly regulated, yet more people die from them than guns. So my statement is this, anti-gun and media types aren’t really having a problem with guns as much as they are having a problem with the people that own them. They have a problem with PEOPLE!
It’s high time pro-gun people and law enforcement educate themselves. It’s even more important for the media, though I don’t think they will. There is so many hacks in journalism these days that it is no longer an honorable profession in my eyes. Gone are the days of Walter Cronkite. Stop giving in to the hysteria created by the media. Guns have been made for many, many years in people’s garages. It’s not illegal and it’s not a crime problem.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, knowledge is power. There needs to be more of us out there with power of knowledge. We need to stop being idiots and sycophants
Don’t take my freedom for your perceived security. The police have a hard job and I’d like to help them but I will not yield liberty to make someone’s job easier. It was Benjamin Franklin who said:
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Now I know that this quote was given in response to a tax situation but I think it applies here. Some may say that we should bug a few phones, look into a few medical records, whatever it takes to catch criminals and terrorists. I say no. Liberty is more important. When the FBI tried to force Apple to open a cell phone I was grateful to see Apple say no. Now don’t get me wrong, I want the FBI and law enforcement to prevail, but not at freedoms cost. My father, my Grandfather, and I fought enemies, and put our lives on the line so that our freedom would endure. We should not give that freedom away to make it easier on law enforcement. To be honest, law enforcement should step up and defend these freedoms. The FBI should have found another way into that phone, which they did. But they should have never tried to force someone into doing their work. Sometimes I think some think, including some law enforcement, that we should all bend over backward to make their job easy. I do not think we should. I think they should do their job and not expect civilians or anyone else to do it for them! Again don’t misunderstand. I will do all I can to help justice and not to impede it. I know this is a rant and I didn’t intend it to be. But law enforcement do you Dadgum job!
So to sum up: We the people need to stop believing everything we see on T.V., especially the news. We need to get a grasp of things how they are, not how someone with an agenda tells us they are. We need better honesty and integrity. But until then “Trust but verify.”
Semper Paratus
Check 6
Burn