Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has revealed the contours of her second-generation Assault Weapons Ban and it includes
restrictions on handguns as well as the mandatory registration of firearms.
Summary of 2013 legislation
Following is a summary of the 2013 legislation:
- Bans the sale, transfer, importation, or manufacturing of:
- 120 specifically-named firearms;
- Certain other semiautomatic rifles, handguns, shotguns that can accept a detachable magazine and have one or more military characteristics; and
- Semiautomatic rifles and handguns with a fixed magazine that can accept more than 10 rounds.
- Strengthens the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban and various state bans by:
- Moving from a 2-characteristic test to a 1-characteristic test;
- Eliminating the easy-to-remove bayonet mounts and flash suppressors from the characteristics test; and
- Banning firearms with “thumbhole stocks” and “bullet buttons” to address attempts to “work around” prior bans.
- Bans large-capacity ammunition feeding devices capable of accepting more than 10 rounds.
- Protects legitimate hunters and the rights of existing gun owners by:
- Grandfathering weapons legally possessed on the date of enactment;
- Exempting over 900 specifically-named weapons used for hunting or sporting purposes; and
- Exempting antique, manually-operated, and permanently disabled weapons.
- Requires that grandfathered weapons be registered under the National Firearms Act, to include:
- Background check of owner and any transferee;
- Type and serial number of the firearm;
- Positive identification, including photograph and fingerprint;
- Certification from local law enforcement of identity and that possession would not violate State or local law; and
- Dedicated funding for ATF to implement registration.
A pdf of the bill summary is available here.
Did you catch that? The Assault Weapons Ban of 2013 will require
registration of firearms, which is
always --
always -- the precursor to confiscation by a tyrannical government.
REGISTRATION IS CONFISCATION
The Holy Grail of the gun control crowd is registration of firearms.
This is because once a gun is required to be registered, it is
virtually confiscated. The government will know who possesses which firearms and where those arms are stored. And when they desire physical possession of those weapons (which history tells us is inevitable), they can then order the citizenry to voluntarily turn in their weapons.
This has happened over and over again throughout all of recorded history. In the 20th century alone, mandatory registration followed by confiscation occurred in Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, Red China, and Cambodia. More recently, registration and confiscation have occurred in Great Britain and Australia.
Once registration has been accepted by the citizenry, the rules for gun ownership are gradually tightened. This serves to further reduce the number of gun owners and to help facilitate the eventual confiscation step.
THE "GUN SHOW LOOPHOLE"
The gun control crowd likes bleating about a "Gun Show Loophole" that ostensibly allows an individual to visit a gun show and purchase weapons without a background check. This is utter nonsense. The vast majority of guns sold at shows are by licensed dealers, all of whom must pursue background checks for each firearm they sell.
The background check requirement is only waived for
private gun sales, which helps prevent a registration list from being developed.
There is no "Gun Show Loophole"; there is only an exception for private sales. This protects Americans from a government run amok.
Because a government that pushes for gun registration distrusts its citizens, and have thereby earned the citizens' distrust.
IT WAS NEVER ABOUT GUNS
The clearest reason for the Second Amendment is to insure that the people retain a large measure of power, to balance that of the government.
The Second Amendment codified the God-given
right of the individual to defend himself, his family, and his community. It is a
right, granted by God, not a permission or license granted by government.
In the 20th century alone, the wisdom of the founders has been validated over and over again.
It could never happen here, you say? Perhaps. I wonder what the Japanese-Americans who were thrown into internment camps during World War II would tell us.
I suspect that this legislation will serve as a line in the sand for many.
Hat tips: Dean Weingarten and @HollyR_J.
