Disarmament the goal

Gun abolitionist Shawn Vestal’s latest assault on gun owners, Second Amendment activists and the National Rifle Association was outrageous (“ Gun hearing draws NRA, familiar attitudes,” Feb. 5). As always, Vestal’s diatribe was replete with dripping sarcasm, cheap shots (no pun) and ridicule aimed at those who defend freedom, which includes our right to arms.

It’s not paranoia or fear that our government might, one day, confiscate all privately owned firearms and use registration lists to implement those seizures, especially now that President Barack Obama and the Democratic Party are in power. The governments of Australia and England have used gun registration to locate, seize and destroy civilian-owned firearms; likewise with tyrants from Hitler to Pol Pot. Scores of officials like Sen. Dianne Feinstein have suggested that the American people need to be disarmed.

Vestal’s sarcasm aside, I think it’s a fair question to ask what the real goal of Initiative 594 is. Is it about universal background checks or is it really about universal gun registration? Remember Initiative 676, the handgun ban disguised as a child safety measure? We were assured that 676 wasn’t a radical step either.

The ultimate goal of the anti-gun lobby, and foot soldiers like Vestal, is to disarm the people.

Curtis Stone

Colville