So there I was, minding my own business, looking at news stories, when out of the blue, I got slammed with a degree of stupid that was just mindboggling.
Of course, it shouldn’t have been. After all, we’ve all heard this line of reasoning before, but this was from a celebrity. You know those guys, right? The arbiters of all that is good and right in the world?
We all know that playing pretend for a living makes them experts on anything, so I was baffled how one could be so wrong.
And yet, here we are.
Sophia Bush knows a lot about guns and that’s why she wants more gun control.
In a new interview with People, the “One Tree Hill” star opens about about her relationship to guns, including the fact that she got her first gun when she was only 12-years-old.
“Going to the range was the thing my dad and I loved to do together and something that I really took to. Riflery, and then marksmanship in general, became a passion of mine and over the years has been something that I’ve continued to pursue. It proved to be both a lot of fun and a good skill set in my line of work,” Bush says.
Making her case for better gun control legislation, Bush says, “I’m a really passionate advocate for responsible gun ownership and for much stricter legislation around gun ownership. It feels a bit mental that we wouldn’t regulate guns in the same way that we regulate cars, for example. You have to pass a test, have insurance, get your qualifications checked.”
Now, Bush prattles on for a bit about other things, but when her fundamental knowledge is just so outright wrong, there’s really no reason to delve into the rest of it.
First, let’s start by pointing out that cars aren’t protected by the Constitution, but all arms are, including firearms.
Second, guns are already more highly regulated than owning a car.
For example, I’ve bought several cars in my lifetime. At no point was I required to undergo a background check. Cars capable of speeds greater than 75 miles per hour aren’t restricted in any state I’m aware of. I can purchase a car and take it home the same day, something that’s not an option for many gun buyers. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
All those requirements she mentions aren’t required to buy or own a car, but to operate it on public roads. That’s it. If you have a farm or other large patch of private property, you can operate that vehicle on that property without any of that. There are absolutely no laws against it, either.
In fact, as you read this, there are probably children driving on farms all over the country, all well before the legal age to drive.
Yet those requirements she mentions are for operating a car on a public road, which would arguably be more akin to carrying a gun. Yet in many states, there are training requirements and testing before you can get a carry permit. In fact, in every state that has a concealed carry permit, you have to undergo a criminal background check before getting said permit.
Now, would Bush tell me precisely which states conduct background checks before issuing a license? I’d be very interested to hear about it.
See, the problem is that there are people who will take Bush’s opinion seriously because they really liked her in some TV show. Yet we’ve already illustrated that despite her claims of being a shooter and gun owner, she doesn’t even understand the topic. Why would anyone take a celebrity’s opinion seriously?
Oh, sure, there are some who actually have some expertise in a given topic, but most are typically somewhere between vapid morons average Joe who willingly take the part of the dancing monkey to a director’s organ grinder and think that somehow makes them important.
Believe me, it doesn’t.
