Opinion

Liberals Only Like State Power When They Wield It

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Scott Greer Contributor
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Jimmy Kimmel is once again trying to be the moral voice of our country in the wake of the Las Vegas massacre.

Two weeks ago, Kimmel dedicated his late-night show to stopping GOP efforts to repeal Obamacare. Now, he is using his platform to call for immediate action on guns.

In a monologue frequently interrupted by the comedy host being on the brink of tears, Kimmel condemned Republican lawmakers for letting the “gun lobby” take over America. He dismissed their offerings of prayers for the Las Vegas victims and suggested, “they should be praying for God to forgive them for letting the gun lobby run this country.”

All of this made for good viral material to influence the current gun debate. Liberals and Democrats are all behind Kimmel’s desire to act immediately on guns — yet, there is no real legislation that would have done a damn thing to stop the deadliest mass shooting in American history. (RELATED: Democrats Immediately Call For Gun Control After Las Vegas Shooting)

The current focus is stopping a bill that would remove restrictions on gun suppressors, an item the Las Vegas shooter did not use. Noted firearm expert Hillary Clinton has offered the theory that a silencer would have allowed the shooter to kill dozens with no one hearing him, apparently believing that a suppressor makes one of those dreaded assault rifles completely inaudible.

This notion does more to show liberal ignorance on guns than anything else. But this is the one issue where the Left is wanting immediate action on guns after Las Vegas — at least, as publicly stated.

Behind every liberal reaction to a shooting is the looming specter of gun confiscation. Kimmel even hinted at it with his comment that no one should own an M-16.

Confiscation makes more sense as the response to a dire threat that is going to kill millions of Americans — in the minds of liberals — than making sure suppressors are harder to buy. We need action now, so why not take all the guns? We can’t be safe until we know that no one outside of the state has them.

The odd thing about wanting gun confiscation is what it would entail. Prior to the Las Vegas massacre, liberal media was busy lionizing NFL players who kneeled during the national anthem to protest police brutality. The argument goes that law enforcement needs to be reined in and not be so militarized.

However, gun control would require a massive, militarized police state dedicated to brutalizing its population in order to get those now-illegal firearms. If implemented in the next three years, that would also mean President Donald Trump has the power over that police state, which should cause concern for the people who already think he’s a fascist.

The ideas that police are oppressing people of color, but that we need to give them more power to make us a gun-free country may seem to conflict. But that’s only if you think the Left should be in favor of all forms of state power.

Most liberals have come to terms with what they want state power to achieve.

Enforcing immigration law is tyrannical, but rounding up hate thinkers is noble. Police drawing guns on minorities is an outrage, but law enforcement mowing down armed rednecks is something to aspire to. The president criticizing left-wing journalists is a sign of fascism, but shutting down right-wing “fake news” on Facebook is necessary.

Liberals only like state power when it is in their own hands and is used to advance their agenda — which, unfortunately, is a lot of state power these days. Just look at Europe. (RELATED: Hate Speech Is Free Speech)

At the same time, the American Right isn’t as comfortable with state power. Libertarians and most of the conservative movement view state power as inherently bad, even when it is used for good or in their own interests. (The military receives an exception to this standard from conservatives.)

Trumpists seem much more comfortable with using the state to achieve their goals than movement conservatives, but they haven’t figured out a clear position like the Left has.

No matter the position on state power, Americans of all stripes who believe we are a nation of free citizens should oppose gun control. The right to bear arms gives citizens the ability to defend themselves and their property without the total reliance on the state to do it for them. It gives the citizen responsibility and power over their own lives, a fact that our Founders understood.

Taking guns away from citizens makes us a nation even more dependent on the state and the many left-wing bureaucrats who populate it. The Left thinks that is a good thing.

For everyone else, that should be a nightmare.

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