E.J. Dionne: How Violent Talk Blocks Sane Gun Laws

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from truthdig:




How Violent Talk Blocks Sane Gun Laws
Posted on Jan 12, 2011

By E.J. Dionne, Jr.


The slaughter in Tucson hasn’t shaken us out of bad political habits.

Instead of promoting a sober conversation about the dangers of violent political talk, it has reinforced divisions between left and right. Even responsible conservatives have dismissed any suggestion that Saturday’s attack is reason enough to condemn the threats of violence that have become standard to the discourse at the extremes of their side of politics.

More importantly: We have not focused at all on how the militarized rhetoric on the right is tightly connected to our national failure to enact the gun regulations that might have saved lives in Arizona.

.....(snip).....

But in part from e-mail exchanges with ardent foes of gun control over the years, I came to realize that the real passion for a let-anything-go approach to guns has little to do with culture or hunting. It is rooted in a very peculiar view of how America has maintained its freedom. Rep. Ron Paul, as is his wont, expressed it as plainly as anyone.

“The Second Amendment is not about hunting deer or keeping a pistol in your nightstand,” the Texas Republican declared in 2006. “It is not about protecting oneself against common criminals. It is about preventing tyranny. The Founders knew that unarmed citizens would never be able to overthrow a tyrannical government as they did. ... The muskets they used against the British army were the assault rifles of that time.” ................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/how_violent_talk_blocks_sane_gun_laws_20110112/

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