Don't Trust the Government With Background Checks

Dear Mark: I'm a law abiding gun owner with a small variety of pistols and rifles. I support the rights of gun owners but having a difficult time discussing the downside of background checks with some of my less than conservative acquaintances. Can you help me explain the problem with background checks for gun purchases? — The Rifleman

Dear Rifleman: The question is not whether background checks are good or bad. In a perfect world, background checks would be fine. The question is whether or not you trust this bureaucratic monstrosity of a government to handle the gun owners' information responsibly. I, for one, do not.

Think I'm being a paranoid right-wing conspiracy nut? Well hold onto your hats because even the ACLU agrees with my stance. In an interview with The Daily Caller, Chris Calabrese, a top lobbyist for the ACLU, expressed "serious concerns" that the current gun bill from Democrats Chuck Schumer and Barbara Boxer contain provisions that "could threaten both privacy rights and civil liberties."

The areas of concern involve the background checks and how long the federal government would retain the records and whether the data could be shared with other government agencies. Calabrese stated: "Unfortunately, we have seen in the past that the creation of these types of records leads sometimes to the creation of government databases and collections of personal information on all of us. That's not an inevitable result, but we have seen that happen in the past, certainly. As we've seen with many large government databases, if you build it, they will come."

My concern runs deeper than just the privacy issues. Ronald Reagan was fond of saying: "Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it.

In addition to the economy, this quotation can be applied to the gun debate, as well. Gun control proposals in various states across the country are already looking at creating new taxes for gun ownership as well as increasing the taxes on ammunition. Liberals like President Obama are well aware of the gun owners' mentality that "you can have my gun when you pry it from my cold dead hand." With that in mind, they know that most gun owners would pay those taxes to keep their guns and ammo.

Taxing firearms also helps fulfill one of the liberals' greatest dreams: It will either offer an opportunity to tax gun owners out of existence or create a new revenue stream for government, a la the cigarette tax. Remember that enforcement of Obamacare has been partially placed under the purview of the IRS, so don't think for a minute that new gun control laws won't fall under that same authority. Pardon the pun, but the IRS has a well-deserved reputation for shooting first and asking questions later.

Liberals also don't seem to mind that many of the proposals would criminalize behavior that has been legal for years. Hmm, criminalize guns but legalize pot ... what planet am I on?

With more vitriolic political anti-gun rhetoric coming from President Obama's teleprompter, it's evident that a basketball is the only thing Obama knows how to shoot. Although after his 2 for 22 shooting performance during the White House Easter Egg event, even that's doubtful.

But until this president seriously sits down with representatives from Hollywood, the video game industry, mental health professionals and the NRA, all of his anti-gun speeches are nothing but political bluster. No legislation should be passed until all possible contributors to gun violence have been thoroughly investigated and possible solutions have been properly vetted.

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