If only it was this easy

One of the questions I often ask myself (other ‘can I afford a new gun?’ and ‘Is she over 18?’) is: Why do statists hate poor people? Time and again we see how their policies disproportionately affect poor people in increasingly negative ways. Case in point: I have an internet buddy from Australia. Being Australian, he is predictably progressive, but he is the rare breed of progressive that agrees to disagree on certain political issues, so even though he hates guns and knows that I love them, we can still get along without him calling me a baby killer. I was talking to him once about various aspects of shooting, and I mentioned offhand how expensive guns and ammo have become. He responded that he would hope that guns and ammo are expensive. I asked him point blank: Should poor people not be allowed have guns? His response was a rather terse and unapologetic ‘no they should not’. And just like that, we get to one of the hidden pillars of gun control: Elitism.

While the racist roots of modern gun control stemming from post reconstruction Jim Crow laws are fairly well documented, the class warfare elements are usually glossed over or hand waved away. This is true for the ‘may issue’ concealed carry permits in places like New York and Maryland which are only accessible to the rich and powerful, but it is even more stark when you look at the case of ‘Saturday night special’ laws. For those unaware, ‘Saturday night special’ is a slang term for inexpensive mass produced and usually low caliber handguns. Such guns were very popular among the poor, especially among working class black families in high crime neighborhoods. Obviously, we can’t have affordable firearms for black poor people, lest they wander off the plantation and find a sense of agency along the way. Thus, the anti-gun politicians went after these guns under the dubious claim that criminals were using them as burner guns at a disproportionately high rate. In point of fact there is no actual basis to this claim, but why let facts stand in the way of good old fashioned civil rights infringement. The gun control act of 1968 (back when people named their bills honestly) specifically banned these cheap imports by implementing a points system requirement for imported handguns based on size, caliber, and a host of other useless and outdated features. Fun fact: imported Glocks cannot pass the import system in their factory configuration. The ones built in Austria for import to the US (which I assume is all of them) are equipped from the factory with expensive target sights, which are removed and replaced with the standard combat sights after they make it stateside. This is also why many smaller imported pistols have ridges on their triggers. Apparently the ridges make them ‘target triggers’ which give them enough points to pass importation. Same goes for those beloved finger grooves on the smaller Glocks. They are ‘target grips’ required for importation. No, I am not making a word of this up, in case you somehow think that gun control laws could not actually be this arbitrary. Oh, and government agencies are exempt from these restrictions, of course, because no real gun control law is complete without a hefty side order of cop carve outs.

What? Criminals don’t obey the law? Not even gun control laws?

The effects of these laws on the underprivileged cannot be understated. A criminal does not care about the price of a gun. He can barter for one using drugs or other contraband. He can obtain them from criminal associates. He can simply steal one from an empty house or unattended vehicle. A poor law abiding person cannot, or more precisely will not, engage in these sorts of activities, and therefore is simply artificially priced out of the market. There was even a study done that shows that mid and high priced guns are more common as crime guns than cheap burners. Apparently criminals shop for quality and caliber over price. The purpose of these laws are simple: keep the proles disarmed and unable to fight back against their betters. The ruling class would rather have the poor defenseless in the street against criminals and their own corrupt police than allow them to defend themselves and risk a riot or power struggle.

Good thing such a blatant and obvious infringement would surely attract the attention of the various professional victims minority empowerment organizations who would immediately oppose and dismantle such a racist, elitist law, wouldn’t it? You bet it would! In 2003, the NAACP filed a federal lawsuit over the availability of handguns to minority communities. Oh wait, silly me! They filed suit against a number of firearms manufacturers for making and selling so called ‘Saturday night specials’ to minority communities. Huh… kinda went the other way with that one. Surely the NAACP values the self defense rights of minorities over oppressive disarmament schemes? I mean, it’s not like the NAACP is completely morally bankrupt or anything, right?

Right?