How Gun Control Fuels The Taliban's Reign Of Terror

AP Photo/Zabi Karimi

Second Amendment supporters oppose gun control for a number of reasons, but one of them is the fact that we believe that without our gun rights preserved, horrible things can happen. The best-case scenario is being subjected to horrible crimes because we don’t have the means to resist.

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Of course, we’re told that’s not really an issue, that concern about that is ridiculous.

Then again, we can tell that to the Afghani people and see what they think.

In an effort to consolidate power, the Taliban are confiscating all weapons and ammunition from civilian Afghans.

“We understand people kept weapons for personal safety. They can now feel safe,” a Taliban official told Reuters. “We are not here to harm innocent civilians.”

Wait, doesn’t that sound just like something an anti-Second Amendment advocate would say? In fact, they’ve said as much, telling us that we have the police, so we don’t need guns.

Oddly, most of these also support defunding the police without recognizing the inconsistency there, but whatever.

Now, I’m not saying gun control advocates are the Taliban. They’re not. Most are just people who are wrong about guns and gun rights. However, it is amusing that the two espouse almost identical thoughts on why we should give up our guns.

Moving on…

The confiscation of weapons is part of a string of authoritarian tactics deployed by the militant group since coming to power. Residents of Kabul have reported that the Islamists are going door to door searching for Afghans who collaborated with the U.S. military during America’s two-decade-long presence in the country.

The Taliban have tried to present a more moderate face in their second turn at the helm of Afghanistan. They promised amnesty to those that worked against them, and offered to welcome women into seats of government power

The reality of their rule has been quite different. Within a matter of days, there have been reports of violence, including a woman being shot to death for not wearing a burqa, the execution of family members of American allies and beating and harassment of evacuees. Afghan Christians are trying to flee persecution and murder, and the Taliban has told women to stay home because its soldiers haven’t been trained to treat them like human beings.

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And yet, let’s remember that the bit above about people no longer needing guns? I can’t help but feel as if capitulation with that has at least helped fuel some of this. After all, the Taliban has zero reasons to be concerned if people don’t want any of this or not. What are they going to do?

Nothing.

Yet if they were armed, they’d at least have options. They’d have the means to resist the tyrannical rule returning to their nation. That’s something they don’t have if the Taliban hasn’t taken their weapons.

Meanwhile, of course, this is the same Taliban that has US-purchased weapons that are illegal for you or me to buy. Absolutely brilliant.

Anyway, at least we can see the outcome of gun control.

While some might argue there are plenty of western countries with strong gun control laws that aren’t tyrannical, I’d point to their history over things like free speech and ask you how you can honestly not see they’re just moving more slowly down the same path.

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