On guard: our gun rights have been eroding since the turn of the last century. Is the pendulum finally turning?

Fifty years ago, when GUNS was born, we had already capitulated to decades of federal gun controls. But a 1919 excise tax, a 1927 concealable firearms mailing ban, the National Firearms Act of 1934, requiring registration and taxing of machine guns and short-barreled shotguns, and a 1938 dealer licensing requirement, were, to most Americans, irrelevant.

Besides, guns were everywhere. You could buy pistols at hardware stores, or rifles through magazines. The handgun-enabled exploits of TV cowboys thrilled youngsters across the land. Parents bought them cap guns, and kids yelled "BANG! You're dead!" as playmates clutched their chests and dropped--all without fear of being dragged to a psychologist, doped up with Ritalin, or expelled under "zero tolerance." As they got older, many bought BB and pellet guns, then graduated to .22s, shotguns and hunting rifles.

Assassinations and urban riots of the Sixties were exploited to change the way gun ownership was perceived. The Gun Control Act of 1968 was the result, requiting interstate transfers through licensed dealers, defining prohibited persons, establishing record-keeping and age requirements, and banning importation of "non-sporting" firearms. Passage was inevitable, especially with high-profile backing from NRA, from domestic manufacturers, and from "cowboy" stars like John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and Charlton Heston.

GCA '68 did one positive thing: it aroused sufficient numbers of gun owners to become a political force based on the Constitution rather than sport. The Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986 was a reflection of their growing awareness of power. But while FOPA did improve our lot in some areas, it also prohibited from civilian ownership all machine guns manufactured after its passage.

The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993 was the gun banner's next major federal victory. It required up to a 5-day waiting period for handgun purchases (mandating unfunded local background checks was later ruled a Tenth Amendment violation), increased dealer fees, and ultimately included long guns when the FBI's "instant check" system was implemented.

Brady was quickly followed by the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, banning the manufacture and importation of firearms with detachable magazines and two or more features such as folding stocks and pistol grips. It also banned private ownership of magazines holding more than 10 rounds manufactured after 1994.

The 1996 Domestic Violence Offender Gun Ban was the next infringement, prohibiting persons convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence from owning a gun, including fighting teenagers or a parent using corporal punishment, and has been applied retroactively (a violation of Constitutional "ex post facto" protections).

Fortunately, a critical mass of gun owners has been awakened. Thanks to their organizing, to the new medium of the Internet which allows them to bypass a hostile "mainstream" press, and through political involvement, 1994's so-called "assault weapons" ban has expired.

Now is not the time to rest, but to understand how we got to where such clear infringements of the Second Amendment were considered politically feasible. Be forewarned: more "gun control" laws are waiting in the wings the instant we let down our guard. Where we will be 50 years from now, when GUNS will hopefully observe its centennial, is up to us.

COPYRIGHT 2005 Publishers' Development Corporation
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group