March 09, 200

Denver Gun Rights Examiner Dan Bidstrup recently posted a thoughtful article on trying to reach out to people that don't understand "gun rights" for what they are. This is a thorny topic, given that many reasonable people are already so fed up with being sanctimoniously harassed, attacked, and spat upon by the hardcore disarmers that they have no interest left for any attempt at discourse, even with those in the middle who may be more just ignorant than truly belligerent.

Personally, I've always been a sucker for hope and redemption, and although I sympathize--strongly--with the "decades of politely begging for a civil conversation has got us nowhere" point of view, I can't help but continue with each person as though the conversation has started all over from the beginning. Maybe it's the teacher in me, I don't know, but one on one I will grant anyone respect until he proves himself undeserving of it. (Sadly, many people can do this with absolutely stunning speed. To paraphrase a comment I first heard David Codrea make, some people immediately forfeit any right to a rational conversation.)

For those who are willing to carry the conversation forward, remember a few key points:

- Just as "the Constitution is not about duck hunting", so is it not about street crime. Granting a monopoly of force to the government is a historically proven path to misery and horror. There should be much common ground here, even with people that you may have little in common with. Find it!

- Statistics do not matter; any discussion of street crime, or safety, or saving "just one life" is nothing more than a red herring. We know that no new gun law is suddenly going to do what the tens of thousands that preceded it have not done. We know that every serious statistical work has shown that an armed populace is no danger to itself. And we know that the appetites of the disarmers will not be sated with any form of "compromise". We've known all this for years, and yet it does not seem to matter. Seriously: if you could put indisputable evidence to a disarmer that unrestricted access to weapons improves safety and reduces crime, would he suddenly lose the desire to disarm? Don't hold your breath. And likewise, be honest: if for some reason there was indisputable evidence that an armed populace did actually make crime worse, would you suddenly stop resisting the disarmers' efforts? Not likely. It's not about statistics. It's about liberty. Do not get derailed from that.

- Remember that we now live in a world in which some people are simply not aware that there is an alternative worldview to the disarmers'. This is pathetic, and tiresome, and ultimately inexcusable given the very clear warnings that our Founding Fathers gave us, but that does not make it not real. Ignorance may be exasperating, but it can be corrected. Some people, when shown an alternative worldview, DO actually stop, and take a breath, and look at it. (And once they do, of course, it pretty much sells itself.) I have seen it happen personally, and for me this is where our last best hope is. For anyone who still has the patience to carry the word forward, remember this tidbit. It is hard to show someone a completely different way of looking at the world--and almost impossible to do without a bit of time and a willingness to listen--but it is worth the effort.

I can no longer begrudge anyone who has just given up on trying to persuade the disarmers--their absolute refusal to leave the peaceable alone has earned them every conceivable contempt--but at the same time I applaud anyone who would take the time and effort to reach the ignorant. It is thankless work, unsexy, difficult, tiresome, and exasperating--but if there is any hope left for a peaceable future, it is work that has to be done. If you're willing to do it, make it easier on yourself by staying on target, and away from the red herrings.

Kevin Wilmeth aspires to be a writing teacher--or a teaching writer. An inveterate geek in most things, he pursues theory and technique to enable spontaneous improvisation. No musical instrument is safe around him. Teaching practical weaponcraft may be his highest calling. And a Jeffersonian passion for liberty keeps him honest. He may be found in Alaska, usually with an ear-to-ear smile, doting on his wife and beaming over his daughter.

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