What about the other Amendments?
Like Maylon Rice (column June 15) I, too, have often wondered, when seeing a campaign ad where the candidate is bragging about how he stands for the Second Amendment, if he is equally fervent in his defense of the other 26? Does he(or she) make an equally strong stand for the Fourth Amendment, which covers search and seizure? Civil asset forfetiure remains a problem, with various government agencies taking people's property while alleging that it is the proceeds of criminal activity, when in fact most who are victims to this process are never charged, never mind convicted, of any criminal offense, often as the result of a search during a traffic stop (hint -- never consent to a search. You don't have to!).
Is the candidate going to stand for the Fifth Amendment, which addresses due process and self incrimination? The Supreme Court recently weakened Fifth Amendment Miranda protections. Is that candidate going to address that issue with useful legislation? There are many Consitutional issues besides gun ownership.
It's shameful that our elected representatives ignore the will of the people they represent. A large majority of Americans-- close to 90 percent according to some polls -- want some form of universal background checks, age restrictions on purchases of, if not an outright ban on, assault rifle type weapons, and red flag laws, given the recent frequency and severity of mass shootings. Yet our congressmen refuse to even countenance serious legislation to address these issues. Apparently it is more important to cater to the very small minority, who opposes regulation of any kind on any kind of firearm, regardless of the effect on public safety. Even arch conservative Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said that the Second Amendment was not absolute. By that reasoning, sensible restriction of a firearm intended for military use is not infringing on anyone's right to own and bear a firearm. Representative democracy is a dying form of government when congressmen and senators willfully ignore the wishes of a large segment of their constituency.
A ban on AR 15-style weapons will not make events such as Uvalde or Buffalo go away. But these guns not being available might make them a lot less deadly, since the shooter will not be able to kill as many victims as quickly.
The supreme irony in all this is that all of them were hailing the reversal of Roe v. Wade this past week. They stand strong for the unborn. Once out of the womb, however, all bets are off. Pray that you'll live long enough to graduate high school, and not be shot down in your classroom while the good guys with guns stand idly by.
Tom Beckett
Siloam Springs