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Enterprise, Number 3, December, 1995.
The Time Is Then
By Vic Milan
Exclusive to The Libertarian Enterprise
My friend told an ugly story.
He had written a letter to Time magazine, protesting yet another slanted, inaccurate piece of anti-gun propaganda masquerading as fact. Time wrote back to tell him that, in its august editorial opinion, the "time for debate on gun-control is past." And it refused to print his letter.
Much as it hurts me -- do you feel my pain, Mr. Clinton? -- I have to agree with Time. The time for debate is past.
Everybody's made up his or her mind about "gun control," haven't they? We've had thirty years or so of unceasing media bombardment against the right to keep and bear arms. What's left to debate?
Either you believe people have rights which the government cannot infringe, or you don't. Either you believe people have the right to defend themselves, or you don't. Either you believe the Bill of Rights guarantees those rights, or you don't. Either you believe what the framers of the Bill of Rights said in the Second Amendment, or you don't.
I don't see how any amount of debate can possibly sway you, one way or another, any more. Not reason, not passion. We've all seen all the arguments, in all possible forms.
The time to debate is past. It's time to act. It's time to rally. It's time to prepare ourselves, individually and collectively, to do whatever may be necessary to preserve our rights. Also our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor -- because, don't kid yourselves, these are what lie at stake, not guns.
Let's draw a line and declare, no pasaran! You shall not pass.
Let's forget about compromise. That's a fancy name for surrender-by-degrees. How can we afford to give up another nanometer when we've lost so much already? Let's hold the line -- and then push forward.
Doug Casey likes to point out that the Chinese ideogram for crisis consists of the symbols for danger and opportunity. That's where we stand now. The enemies of freedom, those social engineers who have worked so assiduously and long to gain total power over our lives - for our own good, of course -- are in disorder. The Republican "revolution" was a pipe dream on the one hand, and on the other a cynical fraud, but whatever it was it gave our would-be masters a setback. And they never conceived that was even possible.
Their cheeks are still stinging from the slap the voters gave them just over a year ago. We can exploit that. Let's keep them hurt, angry, and afraid, emotions inimical to clear thought. It can be done legally and simply: just defy them.
Because if our enemies are allowed to collect their thoughts, they will return to the slow, frustratingly unsexy incremental strategy that has worked flawlessly for them for well over a century. We will return to being nibbled to death by ducks.
No. Let's keep the pressure on. Let's not waste wind arguing with fools who believe the way to prevent violence against women is to disarm them.
To those who hate or fear weapons: don't own them. To those who hate and fear the prospect of others owning weapons: pool your money and go off and buy some corner of Wyoming where you can build your Republic of Unarmed Virtue out of like-minded souls. I wish you all the luck in the world. But quit trying to take my guns. You can't have them.
And I will not debate you. There's nothing to talk about. The time for talk is past.
Prometheus Award-winner Victor Milan is the author of over 70 novels, including the just-released CLD from AvoNova and War in Tethyr from TSR.
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