H.R. 2640…WHOSE SIDE IS THE N.R.A. ON ANYWAY?

 By……Tom Kampert…AZOD Shooting Editor

One has to wonder …just what is going in with the N.R.A. and whose side are they on these days. 

 If you are keeping up with the activities in Congress, and gun control issues currently being considered, you will know that the N.R.A. is, and has been, actively supporting H.R. 2640, the so called “NICS IMPROVEMENT ACT”. . This Bill would require that the name of anyone, who involuntarily submitted to a mental health examination, be added to a list of those prohibited to own, or purchase, firearms.  Doctor/ patient confidentiality, and your RIGHT to privacy, carry no weight here.     

H.R. 2640, a bill that has the total support if every anti-gun zealot in the House and Senate, not to mention the Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence, also enjoys the support of the National Rifle Association. If one reads the text of this legislation, one would have to ask…WHY?  This piece of legislation,(Also known as “The Veterans Disarmament Act”)if enacted, will jeopardize the 2^nd Amendment Rights of over 80,000 veterans who MIGHT be suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, not to mention thousands of other citizens. What’s worse, it will cause many, and NOT just veterans,  who DO need help, to NOT seek mental health counseling for fear of loosing their 2^nd Amendment Rights.  Why is the N.R.A. supporting this legislation?  I don’t know for sure, but I DO have an idea.  First though, lets explore the other aspects of this Bill. 

According to the Bill, the Right to own a firearm would only be in jeopardy IF one was deemed mentally unstable by a Doctor or the Courts…and…was involuntarily committed for mental health evaluation. BUT….there is the liability factor here. What Doctor, or Judge, for that matter, is going to “sign off” on ones mental health without ordering an examination?  And, that’s all it takes to get on the list of “prohibited persons”…to be ORDERED to submit to a mental health examination. How many of you would want your Doctor, or some activist Judge, deciding whether or not you may exercise YOUR Rights?

 It is conceivable that, if this Bill becomes law, before one could legally purchase a firearm, one would have to show proof of mental stability. In other words, you would be required to visit your local shrink and be evaluated….at your own expense of course  In anti-gun states like California, Illinois, New York, or New Jersey, such a requirement could easily become law.  And, it’s not inconceivable, given the number of anti-gun members of Congress, that there would be Federal legislation submitted with the same requirements. Here, once again, there’s the liability factor.  How many Doctors would be willing to sign off on one’s mental health in today’s “let’s sue them for anything” climate?  Few to NONE!  Make no bones about it, Such a law would be a giant step towards total disarmament of the American people…And the N.R.A. is supporting it!

The N.R.A. says that there is, built into this legislation, a means whereby a person who in on the list may get his/her name removed. That is true.  But, there is also a means for convicted Felons to get their 2^nd Amendment Right restored too….BUT, thanks to an amendment placed on THAT bill by then Congressman and now New York Senator, Chuck Schumer, Congress is prohibited from funding such a relief process. Now, we have THIS bill…H.R. 2640…that the N.R.A. says has a relief process built into it.  Well, guess who’s the prime mover in the Senate?  Yep…none other than Senator Chuck Schumer.  Does the N.R.A. really believe that, this time, there will be funding for an appeals process?  They should know better.   Of course there WON’T be any funding.

 Then there’s the issue of Veterans being placed on the “No Buy” list. These veterans are NOT being notified when their name is placed on the list. Nope….they are NOT being notified that they are prohibited from owning a firearm.  They will find out when they attempt to buy one though. They will find out too that, unknowingly, they are  criminals in the eyes of the Government that they so faithfully served if they already own a firearm. Where’s the “Due Process” for these Vets?   The N.R.A. says that, buy passing this legislation, many of those veterans will be able to get their names off the list.  Oh Really?  How? File suit in Federal Court and wait a couple of years for the case to be heard?  Will the N.R.A. provide the Lawyers?   

 Well, here’s MY take on this situation.  The decision handed down concerning the D.C. gun ban has the N.R.A. worried. If the Supreme Court upholds that decision, it could have nation wide affect on existing anti-gun laws thus reducing the role of the N.R.A.  Don’t forget, those in leadership roles in the N.R.A. are being paid BIG BUCKS.  They see this D.C. decision as one that could end in the 2^nd Amendment finally being declared an individual Right…something that the N.R.A. has never been willing to pursue via the courts..  Now, getting back to this particular legislation….Sure, there’s an avenue for appeal and relief in this Bill, BUT, there will be no funding, and I think the N.R.A. knows this. It gives them a “reason to exist”. Once the fact that there is no funding becomes common knowledge among gun owners, the N.R.A. can swing into action on our behalf to get this travesty “fixed”.  It preserves those Big Buck jobs and it keeps the dues and donations coming in.

 I know that there are many N.R.A. members who will disagree with my position here, and that’s okay by me. But remember this…it’s YOUR money being used to advance Anti-2^nd Amendment legislation.  It’s YOUR money being used to take away YOUR Rights…as well as MINE. Is that what you’re paying your dues for?   

 No matter how you feel about the N.R.A., there is still the big question that has yet to be answered….Why is the N.R.A. openly crawling in bed with the likes of Rep. Carolyn McCarthy, Senator Chuck Schumer and The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence…all well known for their rabid anti-2^nd Amendment positions? 

 In closing, and as a side note: This little bit of information…The so called “Terrorist Watch List”, the one that is supposed to list only those with known ties to terrorist organizations, now has 755,000 names on it.  How did that happen?  And, most of those on the list don’t even know it! But,the Brady Campaign, and several members of Congress, want to deny anyone on this list their 2^nd Amendment Rights.( see Senate Bill S1237 and House Bill H.R.2074) Can you imagine how many names will end up on the “prohibited Due to Mental Health Issues” list if H.R. 2640 becomes law?

 How about it N.R.A., want to offer an explanation?  Want to tell us whose side you’re really on?  azod