By Beth Baumann, Alien Gear Holsters
Two legislators, Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts and Congressman Ruben Gallego of Arizona, introduced new legislation that is designed to limit minors use of guns. According to the proposed bill, known as The Help End Assault Rifle Tragedies (HEART) Act, the bill would “ensure that powerful, military-style weapons don’t end up in the hands of children.”
The bill would “prohibit the transfer, loan, or other disposition of a machinegun or semiautomatic assault weapon to an individual under 16 years of age.” The bill also explicitly states that a gun cannot be loaned to someone under 16 for the purposes of target shooting, including at a range, or for any other purposes.
The craziest part of Markey and Gallego’s HEART Act: their idea of what constitutes a “semiautomatic rifle” and a “semiautomatic pistol.”
According to the text of the bill, a “semiautomatic rifle” is defined by one or more of these:
- Has a detachable magazine and one of the following:
- A pistol grip
- A forward grip
- A folding, telescoping, or detachable stock
- A grenade launcher or rocket launcher
- A barrel shroud
- A threaded barrel
A “semiautomatic pistol” is defined by one or more of these:
- A semiautomatic version of an automatic firearm
- A fixed magazine that has the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds
What does this mean for teens interested in hunting with their family? Or a teen who shoots clay pigeons competitively for their school, the fastest growing interscholastic sport? The oppression of their Second Amendment rights.
Gun Safety and Range Shooting
Because my dad is a law enforcement officer, I’ve been around guns my entire life. I was taught to never handle a gun (carelessly) and to treat every firearm as if it’s loaded. When my dad finally decided to teach me to shoot a gun when I was 13 or 14, he sat me down and walked me through handgun safety at home. Once he felt I was responsible enough to handle a loaded firearm, he took me down to our local gun range. It was there that I fell in love with target practicing and the sense of accomplishment I received when I hit my target on point.
If the HEART Act was enacted when I was younger, I wouldn’t have developed my love of firearms or my passion for the Second Amendment. I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to bond with my dad over the latest and greatest sights or the new paper target designs that were just released.
The reality that anti-gunners fail to recognize: gun safety starts at home, with parents talking to their children about what to do if they see a gun. Most gun enthusiasts (not all), learn about the four rules of gun safety from their parents. They put that knowledge to practice when they visit the gun range and handle a firearm.
Hunting
In areas of the Midwest, families rely on deer hunting season to provide meat for their families for the remainder of the year. The HEART Act would disqualify many teens who hunt with their family members, which in many rural communities is not only a rite of passage, but a necessity. I have a co-worker who lived in Minnesota previously and both of her daughters took a hunter’s safety course. They went hunting when they both turned twelve. It was a rite of passage for both of them as it is for millions of kids throughout the United States.
Many families “party-hunt” where they can fill multiple tags because that’s how they feed their families for the year. And let’s not forget to look at the ecological impact of hunting and how it helps keep wildlife numbers healthy.
Wildlife Management
Implementation of the HEART Act would cut down on the number of young hunters, which can have a detrimental impact on wildlife management. While some may argue that hunting is cruel, there’s one harsh reality: hunting helps conserve and maintain populations that are compatible with human activity.
The money used from hunting licenses are also used for wildlife management, which include research, reintroductions and improving habitats. In Michigan alone, hunters pay for approximately 80 percent of the Department of Natural Resources’ wildlife management. Without hunter’s dollars and interest wildlife protections would almost be impossible.
Beth Baumann is outreach specialist for Alien Gear Holsters, a concealed carry holsters company. She is also a contributor to PolitiChicks and TheBlaze. Click here to visit AlienGearHolsters.com.