GUN CONTROL

I had the opportunity to share my views on GUN CONTROL in a small setting, in direct response to my opponent, so I thought I'd share it here for discussion as well! I'm always learning and evolving on the issues, but I really think we have more in common than we don't - we ALL want to reduce gun violence, I just believe the "how" is not through gun policy, but through much earlier stages of prevention. Here are my thoughts on the main points:

The 2nd Amendment wasn't made for hunters, it was made for citizens to protect themselves from a tyrannical government. We're already at a disadvantage by not being legally allowed to own fully operational tanks and other "military grade" gear in a government takeover [not advocating increased tank ownership, but highlighting that limitations ARE already in place for private military grade gear ownership and AR15s are not in the same category].

And really, handguns are killing people at a 10 to 1 ratio against ALL other rifles COMBINED (that's all bolt, lever, pump, AND semi rifles). The AR-15 is just scary looking to civilians, so it's often used as the scapegoat for increases in gun control.

As for the bump stock, it was approved by the Obama Administration's ATF "to be intended for people with limited use of their hands." Like the current straw debate that the left is losing, I'm not interested in removing tools that primarily benefit the disabled because of a 0.0001% negative use of the product.

I'll support background checks as they stand, because 90% of Minnesotans want them, and because the massive drop in gun violence since NICS (National Instant Criminal Background Check System) was passed in 1993 seems to be strongly correlated. But I'm also not naive to the fact that MANY gun owners opt to buy, sell, and trade among themselves with no licensing or background check included. I don't believe that tightening these laws will do much except make life slightly more inconvenient for rule following gun buyers. Short of creating a thought-police, there's no way to have "no exceptions" to people obtaining guns without background checks.

As for red flag laws, in states where they've been enacted, they're prevented a handful of suicides by handgun, but the data couldn't account for how many chose an alternative method instead. I couldn't find any info on effective homicide prevention. The gun isn't the problem, the mental health issues are. Red flag laws should be in place for emergency psychiatric evaluation and treatment placement, NOT for gun seizure.

That said, where red flag laws ARE in place and as an advocate of domestic abuse survivors, I don't think most do enough to remove weapons from threatening partners, including police and military personnel who should be stripped of their issued weapons until their mental health issues are resolved or they're maintaining the OFP/RO from the person being hurt for a structured amount of time. Most states that adopted Red Flag Laws early also don't have sufficient due process steps in place, though newer adopters are adjusting.

And you can't blame the NRA any time a politician is pro-gun. I have NO connection to the NRA - neither as a member, nor a PAC dollars recipient - but I enjoy shooting guns w my Army buddies at the range, and I understand the Constitution enough to know that this is a right worth fighting for, thanks to my Native background:

The last REAL battle between settlers and Indians was on my reservation - the Battle of Sugar Point at Leech Lake in 1898. We put up a fight and won, so immediately after, authorities (settlers) began enacting their own set of "red flag laws" and creating erroneous charges against Natives to take our weapons and put us in jail. Once they had LEGALLY taken away our weapons and our best warriors, every other conflict between us and them was called a "massacre" not a "battle" and we all know how that has worked out for us since.....

We've already conceded so much from the original writing of the 2nd amendment, changing it more should not be our first idea to solve the issues. The biggest indicators for violence - gun and otherwise - are ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) - and we need to work education, family services, department of health, and a take a whole 360 approach to address those before we jump to gun bans. That's my plan, anyways, we'll see how it goes!