I live the Amendments, part II in an on-going series (I hope)

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

I have been held up at gun point. Not once, not twice, but THREE times in my life.

In NYC. Where the right of the people to keep and bear Arms is totally infringed. Also the right of the people to keep and bear bullet-proof vests.

The first time, I was 10. In the house alone (I KNOW! But in my parents defence, it was the 70's and latch-key kids were not so rare then). I let in a woman who said my parents had hired her to be the new cleaning woman. And she robbed us.

The second time, I was 16 and working at David's Cookies. The guy who robbed us was really not very smart as he came in only an hour after we opened.

The third time, I was 26 and working at Murder Ink, the World's Oldest Mystery Bookstore (now, sadly, defunct). The liquor store next door was much better protected than we were.

None of those instances made me fear guns. Nor did they make me fearful of gun violence. Nor did they make me want to run out and buy a gun.

We do own two guns. They came to our family in the early '00's. They are very tidily locked up away from our son and our son's friends. My spouse has held a concealed carry permit which he got in...2003? I think? in conjunction with some work he was doing at the time.

I have practiced at the range with both guns. Guns will never be anything for me to get passionate over, except where I feel that people aren't handling them safely. Keep them locked up. Especially if you have children in your house.

The question that always comes up for me about guns and the US is...why, if we have fewer guns per capita than either Canada or Switzerland, do we have more gun violence than either of those two countries?

What are they doing right? What are we doing wrong? Is it a difference in attitude? Is it a difference in focus?

Ooh! Here's a bit of gun trivia for you...while young women ATTEMPT suicide at greater rates than young men, young men SUCCEED more often...because they tend to have greater access to, and familiarity with, guns. So please keep your guns safely locked up away from your teens, too.

I live the Amendments, part I in an on-going series (I hope)

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

• Well, on the religion front: I was born to a long line of Jewish atheists. After an abortive attempt at going to a Yiddishkeit summer camp, my parents sent me to a Quaker camp that some of my friends (ha! see what I did there!) went to and I went there for the next 5 summers. I am, therefore, much more Quaker than Jewish, though I always say Jewish is a place you come from. So I'm a Jewish Friend of the Unitarian Universalists and if that's not freedom of religion, I don't know what is.
• As to freedom of speech and the press...hello! I'm a Blogger! I'm living that one quite nicely, thank you.
• The right of the people peaceably to assemble is one of my favorites. LCDC meetings, the Leesburg Obama rally two years ago, the No Nukes marches my parents took me on lo these many years ago....As an aside, did you know that Pete Seeger pled the First Amendment when he was brought before HUAC*? He is the coolest person on the planet, bar none.
• The right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances is a good one too. Again, I remember going on marches with my parents..."No Draft! No War! US out of El Salvador!". Writing to Legislators, signing petitions. All of these are excellent things.

My favorite thing about the First Amendment is that it means that I can go door-to-door to talk to people about what they want from their government and to ask them to vote for someone that I care enough about to actually be out walking and ringing doorbells. The First Amendment allows me to do that. (I always respect "no soliciting" signs though. Even though I'm not selling anything, I think it's rude to knock on a door with a "no soliciting" sign. I will leave literature, along with a nice note.)

My second favorite thing about the First Amendment is that I don't have to worry that someone's going to drag me and my son out of our home in the middle of the night just because we're Jewish. That's a feeling of safety that I truly appreciate.

*"I am not going to answer any questions as to my association, my philosophical or religious beliefs or my political beliefs, or how I voted in any election, or any of these private affairs. I think these are very improper questions for any American to be asked, especially under such compulsion as this." (Pete Seeger to the House Unamerican Activities Committee, August 18, 1955. Quoted, along with some other exchanges from that hearing, in [Wilkinson 2006], p. 53 as quoted in Wikipedia).

Here's a strong indication that you may be in the wrong

When people who agree with you are threatening to commit or are actually committing acts of violence.

Nice work, Sarah Palin. Gun sights on congressional districts where there have already been reports of violence! I'm glad to see that at least the phrase, "Don't Retreat, Reload" has been removed.

On my way...

...To my first NARAL-VA board meeting.

WOOT!

Just a brief note to say,

YAY!!!!!

THANK YOU CONGRESS!!


No one can be turned down for pre-existing conditions; no one can lose their insurance just because they become ill. It's not enough, but it's a start. Can we get a public option, or (gasp!) single payer in the next Congress, pretty please?