Bill Engvall Should Stick to Comedy

David Codrea, writing as the National Gun Rights Examiner, takes Comedian Bill Engvall to task for statements made about the Second Amendment on Bill Maher's show. You can find it at Bill Engvall Owes Gun Owners and Apology. Kurt Hoffman, writing as the St. Louis Gun Rights Examiner has this to say:

Comedian Bill Engvall then disagreed--to an extent--saying he could not support giving up protection of the right to hunt and to defend one's family, but said, "I don't think there's any reason for a person like myself to own an AK-47." Maher interjected, "Can we have just one gun?" on the theory, perhaps, that the First Amendment protects the right to publish just one article. Meanwhile, Engvall offered to meet Wagner halfway, and ban guns on which, "You can just pull the trigger, and 60 bullets fire out." The oppressive laws on machine guns are apparently not oppressive enough for Engvall.

Of course, Engvall is a celebrity comedian, who can probably afford armed security wherever he makes a public appearance. Now, I like Bill Engvall's comedy routines. He makes you laugh without resorting to fowl language and overt sexuality. But Engvall is terribly ignorant about the reasons why the Framers included the Second Amendment. First, Engvall feels that he doesn't "need" an AK-47. That is fine and dandy, but what Bill Engvall needs or doesn't need hardly defines what the other 300 millions of Americans may "need." The Framers wisely left that open to each person to decide. Frankly, having studied the biographies of a few of the Founding Fathers, I would be very wary about second guessing these erudite students of history. Just sayin'. Now, it happens that I don't "need" an AK-47 either, having no place to practice with the weapon. But I know plenty of people who do feel a "need," and I wouldn't second guess these people. On the other hand, I am currently looking for a good pump action shot gun in 12 ga. Others may not feel the same. Thus the gun market provides guns for every purpose imaginable for just that reason.

Second, the Bill of Rights is notably not a Bill of "Needs." Under the Second Amendment, one does not have to demonstrate a need for particular weapon in order to keep and bear it. I would note that while Engvall apparently hunts with traditional bolt or lever action guns, many people are now taking their "evil black rifles" afield to hunt with. In the Eastern part of the country, there is little need for a long distance rifle because the forests are so thick, one can usually only see no more than 100 yards, perfect for an AR-15 platform weapon.

Katie Pavlich has some interesting points at Townhall.com. Pavlich points out that in every case throughout history, tyrants have always disarmed the people first, to gain control of them. She cites the Nazi use of the gun registration lists to confiscate the weapons Jews prior to launching Kristallnacht, the night of broken glass. It is a lesson worth remembering.