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Community Corner

Second Amendment Guards Public Safety

Newport has a local chapter of the Million Moms Agains Guns that lobbied the Newport City Council last year to pass more gun laws. They said they were no going away just because they mostly failed last year. Naturally gun owners are opposed to their attempts to get more stringent gun laws passed. Gun laws do not work to stop criminals, however they do interfere with the citizens right to defend themselves.

I am a member of the Newport Rifle Club and every one of our 700+ members is interested in the 2nd Amendment being obeyed. The majority of our members live in Newport and Middletown. We oppose more gun laws since they do not work and only make the public less safe.

Many of the residents of Newport are veterans who retired here after serving on the Newport Navy base and most veterans are gun owners, at least every one I know. Veterans fought to defend the Constitution and all of the things enumerated in the Bill of Rights, the 2nd Amendment being one of those rights.

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Then there is the fact that many people are ignorant about guns and their many uses beyond self defense, so the more guns are talked about in the media the better informed the public can become. That's a good thing. After talking to many folks over the years about guns with people who did not own one I have informed and converted many to support the 2nd Amendment and once they understood how important it is to keeping our country free. Several became gun owners after talking to me about the issues surrounding them.

I have taught many people how to shoot over the years and every one not only enjoyed it, but many became a gun owner themselves. They can be fun and learnig to shoot is a great discipline to master. The Newport Rifle Club teaches courses on gun safety and how to shoot. We teach everyone from Boy Scouts earning their merit badges to the infirm and elderly interested in not being a victim of crime, to just folks interested in learning about firearms.

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If you read the history of America and her founding fathers you will discover that guns were one of the most important things in their lives and they enshrined that belief in the 2nd Amendment of our Constitution. They thought it so important that the people have guns that the language they used was carefully chosen to admit NO ambiguity. "The right of the people to keep and bear arm shall not be infringed." No wiggle room there because they intended none.

 

James Baillargeron

Newport


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