The Gun Owner’s Manifesto
by Michael J. Erwin

Federal Agents Thwart Terrorist

July 19 – Redding, CA – Suspected domestic terrorist Dave Norton was shot and killed yesterday by BATF agents at his suburban Redding home. BATF agents recovered an arsenal of weapons including assault rifles, high-powered sniper rifles, various types of semi-automatic handguns, and a huge cache of ammunition. Agents arrested Mr. Norton’s wife, Tammy Norton, on federal gun charges and placed their two children with Shasta County Child Protective Services.

Thirty-two federal agents, in conjunction with local law enforcement, executed a search warrant at the Sequoia Avenue home at 3:00 AM on Tuesday morning. According to Supervising Agent Angela Martinez, Mr. Norton failed to comply with commands given by the agents as they entered his bedroom in the early morning hours. According to Martinez, “After several warnings, we had to resort to deadly force in order to protect our officers, and the children sleeping in the adjacent bedroom.”

A Life Flight helicopter transported Mr. Norton to Redding Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Norton suffered from multiple gun shot wounds to the head and chest.

The search warrant was issued as part of a major effort on the part of BATF to crack down on suspected terrorists who have refused to turn in weapons after the Federal Government banned private gun ownership as of January of this year. The Crime Prevention and Safety bill, that was passed last year by the Democrat majority in congress and signed into law by President Al Gore, went into effect on January 1st. Citizens were given 30 days to comply with the ban and turn in weapons to their local law enforcement agency.

Agent Martinez stated that, “None of the weapons seized were registered as required by the Gun Safety and Registration Act that was passed two years ago. We were able to locate this cache of weapons because of the diligent work of our office. Mr. Norton was identified as a possible danger because guns that were identified in sales records of area gun stores that were seized last year did not show up in our database of confiscated weapons. I just thank God that we were able to prevent a tragedy that could have resulted in the deaths of innocent citizens. There is no possible reason for anyone possessing these types of weapons unless they intend to commit a violent crime.”

Mrs. Norton is being held without bail in Shasta County Jail, pending charges on possession of firearms, possessing unregistered firearms, child endangerment, and endangering federal officers. If convicted of these charges she could face from 25 years to life in prison.

Time to Take a Stand

While the above article is completely fictitious, it’s plausibility seems to increase with every passing day. One need only look to the recent INS raid on Lazaro Gonzales’ Miami home to see the level of force that the current government is willing to use in order to impose it’s will on it’s citizens. If the photo of the INS agent taking Elian Gonzales disturbed you, just imagine how you will feel when the BATF is pointing their MP-5s at your wife and children.

Liberal politicians shriek about passing new gun laws and licensing gun owner’s “to protect the children”, major media has become nothing more than the public relations arm of the anti-gun lobby, and Hollywood has made gun control their caus celebr’e as they continually drivel on about the dangers of guns and the need for more restrictions.

Though these elitists rarely admit it, their obvious goal is the complete elimination of private ownership of firearms. An armed society cannot be easily controlled and total control is necessary in order to impose their vision of utopia. They have adopted a highly effective incremental approach that is slowly and steadily moving this country toward an unarmed citizenry.

Gun laws have been adopted in several states that have turned law abiding gun owners into criminals at the whim of a few gun-grabbing politicians. In California, owners of SKS Sporter Rifles became subject to fines and criminal prosecution with the stroke of the clock on January 1st, 2000 because the State Attorney General deemed this rifle to be an “Assault Weapon.” The SKS Sporter is an inexpensive Chinese or Russian made semi-automatic rifle that fires the relatively weak 7.62x39 cartridge. These guns that were legally purchased up to just a few years ago are now subject to government confiscation.

Let’s get a few things straight.

1. The US Constitution is not subject to interpretation. The purpose of the courts is to limit the power of the executive and legislative branches to pass and enforce laws that violate the provisions of the Constitution. The text of the second amendment is clear – the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

2. Gun ownership is an individual right, acknowledged by the second amendment of the US Constitution. The Constitution forbids the government from infringing on the right to keep and bear arms.

3. The US Constitution does not grant rights to the citizens of this country, it recognizes inalienable rights that are endowed by our Creator. The purpose of the US Constitution was to limit the scope and power of the federal government, not to limit the rights of individual citizens.

4. The purpose of the second amendment is to provide citizens with the means to protect themselves from government tyranny. It has nothing to do with hunting, target shooting, or other “sporting purposes.”

5. The right to keep and bear arms is the right to self-defense, which is the most basic of human rights.