Found out via Say Uncle, who found out via No Lawyers, that a NY Congresscritter is introducing a bill that will bar those who have committed certain crimes as a minor from ever purchasing a firearm as an adult.
Now, I am definitely in favor of preventing repeat offenders, the criminally insane, and various other "lost causes" from obtaining guns, but can we really just unilaterally deny the rights of self defense to people who made bad decisions when their brain is still being developed? Juvenile cases are always a very troubling issue; such turbulent events happening during a difficult, fragile, and crucial time in their lives.
John of No Lawyers, makes a very well-worded point that the bill seems to be trying to say that there is no possibility of juvenile offenders ever becoming rehabilitated or productive members of society. He also makes a good point regarding portions of the justice system that are completely broken, which when coupled with this law, could remove the rights of perfectly normal children (like the kids who got arrested for making stick figures, or bringing a Nerf-gun to school, etc.). As for myself, I get pretty emotional about it, as hits more than a little close to home.
When I was a teenager, I had a run-in with the law due to my own horrible decisions. My punishment was just, and it helped me realize the severity of my actions. I became extremely depressed, and there were times during this period when that I thought I had no hope, and that my only release would be suicide. Thankfully, I eventually came to the realization of the full extent of my retardation, and I immediately set out to make restitution for my actions, and to ensure I was actively bettering myself the rest of my life. I served my sentence, and to this day, I feel I am fulfilling that goal well.
One of the affects of my actions, included that my own second amendment rights would be postponed for quite a number of years. This rather frustrated and embarrassed me, because I didn't take the time to research the fact that my offense would cause that particular consequence, and so I ended up finding out while at the counter of a gun vendor! Yikes!
Long story short, I am not proud of the things I have done wrong. However, I am proud of the fact that I am no longer that type of person, and that I am actively seeking to be better the next day. The largest contributing factor in this, was a hope for the future, and the knowledge I could change to become a responsible person and upright citizen. It was the only thing that kept me going through the darkest of times.
Now, using this as an example, imagine a similar situation in which young person that is already struggling with their own identity and future. Now couple that with one bad decision. They will have their entire future marred by not only the memory of that mistake, but by the entire "justice system" destroying their confidence in a future of ever becoming 'normal', because it deemed them unforgivable, and that no amount of restitution will ever help them. Crushing to say the least, but at the worst, possibly permanently damaging. To the point that one could gain an irreversible thought process in which they could rationalize that they may as well stick with crime if they can never enjoy the freedom of other law-abiding citizens.
Before I finish, I'd like to quote Red vs Blue here. "Take your current age, now subtract ten from it. Were you smart back then? No, you were a big damn idiot...The truth is, you were always an idiot, it's just gonna take you ten more years to realize it." I suppose the point I'm trying to make here, is that most people can relate to going through a mischievous or rebellious time in their youth, so why not extend some empathy to those who were living under much worse circumstances? May that congressman truly realize his duty to protect the civil and human rights of his constituents, rather than potentially perpetuating a vicious cycle of degrading newer generations.
Now, I am definitely in favor of preventing repeat offenders, the criminally insane, and various other "lost causes" from obtaining guns, but can we really just unilaterally deny the rights of self defense to people who made bad decisions when their brain is still being developed? Juvenile cases are always a very troubling issue; such turbulent events happening during a difficult, fragile, and crucial time in their lives.
John of No Lawyers, makes a very well-worded point that the bill seems to be trying to say that there is no possibility of juvenile offenders ever becoming rehabilitated or productive members of society. He also makes a good point regarding portions of the justice system that are completely broken, which when coupled with this law, could remove the rights of perfectly normal children (like the kids who got arrested for making stick figures, or bringing a Nerf-gun to school, etc.). As for myself, I get pretty emotional about it, as hits more than a little close to home.
When I was a teenager, I had a run-in with the law due to my own horrible decisions. My punishment was just, and it helped me realize the severity of my actions. I became extremely depressed, and there were times during this period when that I thought I had no hope, and that my only release would be suicide. Thankfully, I eventually came to the realization of the full extent of my retardation, and I immediately set out to make restitution for my actions, and to ensure I was actively bettering myself the rest of my life. I served my sentence, and to this day, I feel I am fulfilling that goal well.
One of the affects of my actions, included that my own second amendment rights would be postponed for quite a number of years. This rather frustrated and embarrassed me, because I didn't take the time to research the fact that my offense would cause that particular consequence, and so I ended up finding out while at the counter of a gun vendor! Yikes!
Long story short, I am not proud of the things I have done wrong. However, I am proud of the fact that I am no longer that type of person, and that I am actively seeking to be better the next day. The largest contributing factor in this, was a hope for the future, and the knowledge I could change to become a responsible person and upright citizen. It was the only thing that kept me going through the darkest of times.
Now, using this as an example, imagine a similar situation in which young person that is already struggling with their own identity and future. Now couple that with one bad decision. They will have their entire future marred by not only the memory of that mistake, but by the entire "justice system" destroying their confidence in a future of ever becoming 'normal', because it deemed them unforgivable, and that no amount of restitution will ever help them. Crushing to say the least, but at the worst, possibly permanently damaging. To the point that one could gain an irreversible thought process in which they could rationalize that they may as well stick with crime if they can never enjoy the freedom of other law-abiding citizens.
Before I finish, I'd like to quote Red vs Blue here. "Take your current age, now subtract ten from it. Were you smart back then? No, you were a big damn idiot...The truth is, you were always an idiot, it's just gonna take you ten more years to realize it." I suppose the point I'm trying to make here, is that most people can relate to going through a mischievous or rebellious time in their youth, so why not extend some empathy to those who were living under much worse circumstances? May that congressman truly realize his duty to protect the civil and human rights of his constituents, rather than potentially perpetuating a vicious cycle of degrading newer generations.
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