Do Dyslexics Support the Right to Arm Bears?

I was going to put a photograph that I received in an e-mail above this post, but I can't find it!  It was of a yard sign that said something like:  My neighbor wants to take away MY right to bear arms.  Out of respect for his beliefs, if you attempt to rob or harm him, I pledge to take no action on his behalf.

One of my favorite authors is Edward Abbey.  Being a writer and former U.S. National Parks Service employee, you would think he would be the average tree-hugging progressive.  Reading his books, it's not hard to get a clear picture of where he stands on most issues.  "Leave me alone!!!!"  Probably with a few more colorful adjectives thrown in.  Desert Solitaire is one of my favorite books.  In it, he proposes doing away with all vehicle access in national parks.  If you have been to Yellowstone or the Grand Canyon during peak tourist season, you might think Abbey has a really good idea.  His point was that you can't really experience the wonder of the Grand Canyon from your air-conditioned car.  And I think he is right.  Now parks are having everyone park at the entrance of the Grand Canyon and ride a shuttle to the popular points.  It's not what Abbey meant (seeing the park afoot or on a bicycle), but it has alleviated the traffic that rivaled that of Dallas at rush hour.

That's not what this was going to be about.  Not sure where that came from.  One of my all time favorite quotes came from Edward Abbey - "If guns are outlawed, only the government will have guns."  That's scary to think about.  History shows that the first step to a dictatorship is to disarm the average citizen.  Progressives have been trying for my entire life, and probably longer, to take the right to bear arms from Americans.  That darn Second Amendment!  Whew, thank you founding fathers!  

I truly believe that this goal is part of the health care takeover.  Because of the Constitution, progressives can't take away firearms by law.  But make it a health issue, and maybe then they can get it through. 

My sister reminded me of a childhood experiment that she, Bobby, and I conducted.  We had moved into a new house.  In the garage, we found a toolbox with a chisel, the head of a shop hammer, and a handful of .22 shells.  Being curious kids, we wanted to see what was inside a bullet.  So, I held the bullet between my thumb and forefinger and held the chisel with my other hand on the bullet.  Bobby then tapped on the chisel to open the bullet.  We never got one open, just flattened a bunch of them.  My mom caught us and saw what were doing.  She told us to "Be careful!"  That was probably a good response.  If she had panicked, we probably would not have given up as quickly as we did.  Looking back, maybe we did need some federal government oversight!  

So, it's easy to see that the wise government employee is only trying to protect us and our children from our own stupidity or curiosity (the two seem to go together, huh?).  After taking away our guns, it is much easier to take our cars, knives, bats, or anything else that could possibly hurt us.  I picture a future where we all walk around in people-sized hamster balls.  That would keep us all safe, from everything but our government.