Calling All Gun Control Pundits

[MO_Soldier]

I am about to start a college English research paper, and will be conducting my own interviews of BOTH, Pro and Anti gun control pundits from related professions.

I'm looking for politicians, notable NRA members, etc. that are credentialed and/or respected as a knowledgeable spokesperson for his or her viewpoint that want to be a part of my persuasive essay.

Volunteers can post on this thread, or private message me. Volunteers will participate in a short phone interview, answering a series of non-abusive questions so that I can present both sides of the argument in my paper.

Thank you all!
Austin

[LaP]

I'm looking for politicians, notable NRA members, etc. that are credentialed and/or respected as a knowledgeable spokesperson for his or her viewpoint that want to be a part of my persuasive essay.

Austin

Austin, you're going to get a limited number of responses by only including politicians and notable NRA members. There are many articulate members of this forum that have well thought out viewpoints.

Are you looking for legislative arguments or rank & file beliefs? A quick visit to the NRA website will fulfill your requirement for the legalities of the 2nd Amendment.

[MO_Soldier]

Austin, you're going to get a limited number of responses by only including politicians and notable NRA members. There are many articulate members of this forum that have well thought out viewpoints.

Are you looking for legislative arguments or rank & file beliefs? A quick visit to the NRA website will fulfill your requirement for the legalities of the 2nd Amendment.

I put et cetera on there following those examples. I certainly don't mean to just limit it to those 2 groups of people, and thank you for bringing that to my attention.

The purpose of the interviews is to gather opinions from notable individuals.
I, personally, take the words of forum members like Bawanna, Jocko, OldLincoln, and JFootin to be of such, but my professor requires they be notable figures on the topic; ones that he would also consider notable.

I don't need legalities from this aspect of my research. I will be doing that on my own.

[MO_Soldier]

I might also add that I need BOTH anti gun AND pro gun interviewees!

[Bawanna]

Well Jocko probably qualifies as notable, the rest of us probably just also ran or honorable mention at best.

[LaP]

I guess I'm not understanding how your professor will determine who is an authority and who is a layman. Will Law Enforcement, lawyers, judges and military personnel fit the expert category?
I'm just clarifying.... I'm already out of the running, so I'm trying to open it up for everyone else.

[MO_Soldier]

Yea, I'd say anyone notable in those areas would be fine. Maybe not military, since I'm military myself. But a police chief, or CCW Attorney, prosecuting attorney, etc...those would all work!

[DubDubU]

Here's a link to a pro 2a Missouri senator, www.senate.mo.gov/Munzlinger
and a pro 2a member of the house http://www.house.mo.gov/content.aspx...ber/MEM098.HTM
Shoot them and email and see if they will help you.

[JFootin]

I put et cetera on there following those examples. I certainly don't mean to just limit it to those 2 groups of people, and thank you for bringing that to my attention.

The purpose of the interviews is to gather opinions from notable individuals.
I, personally, take the words of forum members like Bawanna, Jocko, OldLincoln, and JFootin to be of such, but my professor requires they be notable figures on the topic; ones that he would also consider notable.

I don't need legalities from this aspect of my research. I will be doing that on my own.

I'm honored and floored to be mentioned with such great company, but my knowledge about these matters would fit in a thimble, and you could still put your finger in it!

[MO_Soldier]

The precursor to my research paper on gun-control. Thought I'd post on here to 1) See what you guys think and 2) possibly produce more interest in my thread.
Thanks for reading guys! A special thanks to Bawanna for my added vocabulary that so handily came of use to me in the paper.


Gun Control in a Modern Society
Throughout the history of man weapons have been used for hunting, as well as protection; from stones and clubs, to knives and guns, modern weapons have made leaps and bounds since the Neanderthals clubbed their herbivore prey. There comes a time when a society has to ask itself; “Are the existing changes in our best interests?” One must argue that since the development of guns, be it good or bad, they are not going away. Once this realization is reached, a solution to our nation’s gun problems can be resolved.
The fact is, gun control laws only place restrictions on law-abiding citizens; the ones that actually preserve the right to defend the lives of themselves and others. The gang bangers, thugs, muggers, rapists, murderers, and thieves have a complete disregard for current laws already in place. What makes legislators believe that all of a sudden those people would abide by a new law set in place? Quite simply, they will not. Gun restrictions take protection from the law-abiding “sheepdogs”1 of society, and give more criminal power and peace of mind to those that are raping daughters, robbing homes, and snatching purses from grandma. What seems safe about this?
Anti-gun legislators claim that they can take guns from everyone, including our nation’s outlaws. If law enforcement cannot take a joint out of criminals’ hands, they are not going to confiscate their weapons either. Arguments are also made that handling criminals are what the police are for. How often are police just standing around in the gas station that got held up? Whose house do police guard from being infiltrated in the midst of the night? The truth is, police are meant as a deterrent when present, and to conduct investigations after the crime is committed. Unless a sparsely present law enforcement officer happens to be around, the crime will be committed.
Recreational shooting aside: the complexity of gun violence in our nation is a great one, but one to fight fire with fire. Unfortunately there is no ridding our society of guns completely; so we, as good-hearted “sheepdogs”1 of the citizenry, must take it upon ourselves collectively to arm and protect ourselves and others from the omnipresent threat presented by wrong-doers of modern society. Citizens, take action and protect yourselves. May we present ourselves as protectors for the rest of the law-abiding citizens around us, and maintain our rights to protect life and limb.


1Sheepdogs are law-abiding citizens referred as such for their protective nature of their respective flock of helpless and oblivious sheep from the lurking death of coyotes and other predators.

[muggsy]

Go to the NRA website and look for the politicians with an A or A+ rating. You might also want look to the words of our Nations founding fathers.

[LaP]

MO_soldier: Your precusor sets a great tone for your paper. I, for one, would be interested in reading your final draft (if you're willing to share it).

[MO_Soldier]

MO_soldier: Your precusor sets a great tone for your paper. I, for one, would be interested in reading your final draft (if you're willing to share it).

Thank you Lap. Sure, I'll share with you all. I'm sure a lot of this will end up in the paper. I want to get interviews from some good attorney's, lawmakers, and law enforcers on both sides of the matter. That would make my paper rock solid.

[jlottmc]

Just a thought, but if you want contrary opinions from LE, then talk to the rank and file, most of them (soon to be us) are very pro gun, and the administration of municipal agencies are very anti gun because of the politics involved. Sheriffs on the other hand are usually pro gun and their deputies as well. It should be fairly easy to talk to an administrator or other department official if you don't mind talking to a smaller agency like the college police.

[MO_Soldier]

This is the final in progress...

Just decided to post this a bit preemptively.
I can't upload all of the graphic aids and citations on the forum though because the file is too large. Let me know what you guys think!