It’s always funny to me when someone tries to tell the NRA what it should do while not being part of the NRA, a gun owner, or anyone the NRA should remotely take seriously.

When a Second Amendment activist says they think the NRA should do something, that’s one thing. The NRA’s membership is made up of people like that, and that view might represent a number of other people’s views. It’s something that should at least be considered for a moment or two.

But when someone who isn’t part of the NRA or gun culture, in general, makes a suggestion, it gets hilarious.

Take, for example, this comment about how the NRA should support a ban on “plastic guns.”

The National Rifle Association has a wonderful opportunity to win the hearts and minds of those of us who are in the “center” of the gun control debate. By the center, I’m talking about the majority of people who support individual gun ownership rights but also see a need for more controls on certain types of weapons.

The NRA should come out solidly opposed to plastic guns built with 3D printers. People would better understand and accept the basic right of guns for self-protection if that right did not include undetectable guns that could be built and owned by anyone with a 3D printer.

Now, why would the NRA do that? There’s nothing for them to gain and plenty to lose. After all, it would push a lot of gun rights advocates away from the NRA. We don’t want the government dictating what we can and can’t do regarding our right to keep and bear arms. The phrase “shall not be infringed” is in the Second Amendment for a reason.

The writer then goes on to note, without a hint of understanding or irony, “These types of weapons will be nearly impossible to regulate.” Yeah, they are. New laws won’t make that any different. All it will do is make it so no one but the bad people of this nation will be manufacturing these guns.

He then writes, “Background checks and gun registration would become meaningless tools in controlling gun ownership.”

I’ve got news for the writer. People have been building guns without serial numbers for years. I built my first AK from a parts kit and an 80 percent receiver I got through the mail. When it comes to making guns that circumvent these supposed protections, that ship set sail long ago. Guess what, though? The apocalypse hasn’t arrived.

Further, it’s worth noting two things. One, undetectable guns are already illegal. Two, based on current technology, printed guns will still need metal parts to be more than just one-use items.

In other words, for all the freaking out going on, there’s not a whole lot to fear. Nothing has really changed when it comes to firearms. All that’s happened is that people see new technology and fear what they don’t understand.

And that’s why the NRA isn’t about to back a ban on “plastic guns.”  Even if they were inclined to do so, it would alienate their membership and still accomplish nothing so far as firearm ownership goes.

I don’t blame them.