Gun Control to Major Tom...

A couple of quick posts re: gun control

First of all, realize that in general I am against gun control, though I do support the idea that guns should be sold with accompanying safety devices (although it is the owner’s option whether or not to use the devices).

Second of all, I am very interested in following the story related to a recent law passed in Montana. It seems that they are using the 2nd, 9th, and 10th amendment to effectively repeal federal gun control laws in their state. The 9th amendment allows the federal government to regulate intrastate commerce, so anything the crosses stateliness can be federally controlled. However, if the courts determine the inverse to be constitutional (which maybe the case as per the 10th amendment), then anything that does not cross state lines cannot be federally controlled. (There are some really interesting things going on here if you are a fan of logic, and the validity of conditional arguments). So, Montana has said that any gun made, sold, and owned within the state boundaries is not subject to federal gun control laws.

This has interesting and obvious implications. It will be neat to see the outcomes associated with this. The most interesting aspects are associated with the legal implications. What other federal laws could be “repealed” under States’ Rights and the 10th amendment? The fireworks should be fun to watch. As a fan of the Constitutional Party, I love the possibilities!!!

On another note, it seems Utah and Texas are considering similar laws, and for you who are worried about your children being able to use their guns, here is a nice puzzle for them.


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Politics, as usual?

Well, I feel like the well of inspiration for my blog entries is already beginning to dry up, and it’s only been about 2.5 weeks… So, as a remedy, I began looking for news and op-ed sites for blog fodder. I didn’t quite find one that hit a nerve as a likely source of regular ideas, but I did find this site: The Political Compass

I think it’s a neat site. It, like many other sites, provides a quiz so you can see where your political views fall on a continuum, but unlike most of the others I’ve seen, it doesn’t limit you to a Left vs. Right ranking. Sure, it does have a left/Right ranking, but it also has an Authoritarian vs. Libertarian ranking.

I thought this was kinda unique. It still clumps the Left/Right ranking based on both fiscal and social criteria (I’d like to see a quiz that separates these), but it also has a reflection on your view of government and its role in the daily lives of citizens. At this point in my life, I think that the role of government has had a bigger influence in the way I vote than my actual views on specific social and fiscal programs/issues.

The site has a Facebook app, so you can take the quiz on Facebook and share your results with all your friends, which I may do soon. In the meantime, enjoy the quiz and be sure to vote!