How about a middle ground on gun limits?
Heller told the two sides that they were each only half-right: The right to bear arms is constitutionally guaranteed, but reasonable limitations are allowed.
The first part is something many gun-control advocates did not wish to hear, but it was a needed dose of reality. Before Heller, the goal of some gun-control activists was an outright ban on handguns. Heller removes that possibility for good. Progressives should move on and work within the ruling. This means no longer harboring ideas of a future liberal majority on the court someday overturning Heller. It also means that states and localities should abide by the spirit of the ruling, not just its letter, and not seek to impose undue burdens upon law-abiding citizens seeking to exercise their Second Amendment rights.
The truth is, it was bad strategy to ever deny an individual right to bear arms and, similarly, the special place guns hold in our culture. That mentality alienated potential allies in the ideological middle of the gun debate — something I learned three years ago when my friend Ben Nelson invited me to Nebraska for my first hunting trip. I returned with true respect for how, in many parts of America, gun ownership is not just a constitutional right but a way of life. It has the same meaning in Nebraska that playground basketball did for me in my Brooklyn neighborhood. Heller understands that reality.









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there are already too many gun laws you luciferian schmuck.
tom daschle concerned on December 20, 2012 at 7:37 AM
How about a middle ground on politicians? Moron.
clippermiami on December 20, 2012 at 7:37 AM
If you are of a mind to and get the chance, drop me a note at this throwaway address.
hawkcontractor@gmail.com
hawkdriver on December 20, 2012 at 7:40 AM
How ’bout you take a long walk off a short pier, you gun-grabbing fascist d-bag.
catmman on December 20, 2012 at 7:41 AM
We’re already IN the middle ground, ass.
Washington Nearsider on December 20, 2012 at 7:47 AM
Hey Schumer … how about middle ground on entitlements? Or all the federal land grabbing? Or on the job killing EPA rules?
The reason we’re so protective of our 2nd Amendment rights is because you “progressives” (known in other countries as socialists and communists) scare the living crap outta us. Your non-stop attack on liberty makes us wonder what you’d do if we didn’t have any guns. We don’t want them to hunt, we want them because we don’t believe you, or trust you.
darwin on December 20, 2012 at 7:48 AM
OK Chuck, first lets talk about flash-bang grenades.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaX8CiweU-E
mad saint jack on December 20, 2012 at 7:49 AM
Can anyone point out a single case where magazine capacity made any difference whatsoever a) whether the shooting occurred or b) how many victims there were?
justltl on December 20, 2012 at 7:50 AM
He’s just firing up the frog kettle.
hawkdriver on December 20, 2012 at 7:50 AM
How about not. In case you haven’t read that quaint old Constitution thing lately, the one you took an oath to defend, its an enumerated right. Its not something the NRA made up last month; not some parasite welfare program created by you clowns in DC out of whole cloth to pander to your constituency. It was intentionally placed in that document by people whose shoes our present politicians are not fit to clean.
clippermiami on December 20, 2012 at 7:50 AM
Hitler ordered that the Jooos turn in their guns.
We all know how that worked out.
viking01 on December 20, 2012 at 7:52 AM
He may have a point in this. An unwarrented push to ban weapon in contradiction of the 2nd amendment was really dumb. If anything, it solidified action against such a measure and actually strengthened the amendments rights. Both in law and citizen’s minds.
The law of unintended consequences applies here.
The attempt to take away gun rights only bolstered the need to have them.
People who want to restrict gun rights must now live with the reality they created.
Jabberwock on December 20, 2012 at 7:58 AM
Nope sorry – I don’t trust you people.
gophergirl on December 20, 2012 at 8:01 AM
Exactly. People like Schumer and Obama say one thing publicly while quietly doing something else, hoping no one will figure out what they were up to until it’s too late. It IS frightening.
Night Owl on December 20, 2012 at 8:02 AM
Nothing short of banning all guns or locking up anyone who seems ‘weird” who have prevented what happened.
“Progressives” are way too anxious to get rifles and magazines out of peoples hands.
darwin on December 20, 2012 at 8:03 AM
It’s moving the Overton window. First ban this, then when something happens again ban that. Eventually overtime you’ll have no rights.
That’s exactly how “progressives” have worked over the decades. It’s what they’re doing with fossil fuels right now.
darwin on December 20, 2012 at 8:07 AM
Thinks were pretty dumb, huh..
wolly4321 on December 20, 2012 at 8:07 AM
Typical Schumer.
SC.Charlie on December 20, 2012 at 8:09 AM
He’s among the very first,, lamp lost. Actually for quite a while now I’ve thought he was at least one of the men behind the curtain.
wolly4321 on December 20, 2012 at 8:17 AM
Well, gee, Upchuck, your state is home to some of the most burdensome gun restrictions in the country.
Physician, heal thyself.
Bitter Clinger on December 20, 2012 at 8:25 AM
This.
petefrt on December 20, 2012 at 8:26 AM
when one sees a wrong – it’s best not to compromise with it, it just puts you closer to the wrong.
rgranger on December 20, 2012 at 8:27 AM
There is no such thing as a middle ground on a right. One either has it, or one does not.
Currently, because of various restrictions, there is no right.
OldEnglish on December 20, 2012 at 8:28 AM
Let’s see … no middle ground on health care. No middle ground on taxes, no middle ground on entitlements. Hey, it looks like the democrats only want middle ground when it’s something we give up.
darwin on December 20, 2012 at 8:31 AM
Partial-birth gun control?
BobMbx on December 20, 2012 at 8:38 AM
Middle ground for a lib is doing exactly what they want and in return they refer to you as a good person.
Pound sand and keep talking, every day there are 5,000 new gun owners who are flipping you the bird.
Bishop on December 20, 2012 at 8:44 AM
Can we discuss a middle-ground on the 14th Amendment and only let net taxpayers vote?
Or would that be a gross violation of Constitutionally-protected rights?
Then WHY is this different?
Washington Nearsider on December 20, 2012 at 8:49 AM
How about this for reasonableness, piss off!
HerneTheHunter on December 20, 2012 at 8:56 AM
Fast and Furious was the “under the radar” attempt at getting our guns. A miserable failure which has yet come to conclusion.
Now they have 20 dead babies, which we all know doesn’t bother Obama one bit, but its a great launch pad to get our guns “on the radar”.
They can’t have mine. Its just not going to happen.
BobMbx on December 20, 2012 at 9:09 AM
Move towards restriction now!
Then when something bad happens again, move towards restriction again.
and again…
and again…
and again…
Never mind the thousands of defenseless victims this creates and the power it grants to outlaws. It is for the children you know.
astonerii on December 20, 2012 at 9:10 AM
How about we only have people that are educated in firearms talk about this. Right know 90% of the people flapping their gums, including BO have no clue about what they are talking about.
Frank Enstine on December 20, 2012 at 9:18 AM
Schumer is nasty piece of work. That he’s a Senator from NY says volumes about that place.
claudius on December 20, 2012 at 9:22 AM
Liberals are users. They never care about the victims. They only view victims as tools to use for their cause. They don’t even care about firearms. They just want to make sure that their opposition doesn’t have any. They done a nice job brainwashing their useful idiots into being afraid of firearms and now they have to take them from everyone else. Otherwise they may not be able to accomplish the goal. I will make bets that if they manage to ban all firearms and there is another spree shooting that the media will spike the story and most will never know it took place. Same as most have no clue about F&F. After guns are banned dead kids will no longer be useful to the cause so they will not care about them.
Frank Enstine on December 20, 2012 at 9:24 AM
Refreshing to know that someone gets it.
Frank Enstine on December 20, 2012 at 9:32 AM
Exactly. Stole my comment. Was going to point to the socialist doctrine of ‘The Inevitability of Incrementalism’.
Beat me to it.
Mimzey on December 20, 2012 at 9:32 AM
The advantage to this approach (for them) is that they can claim to never totally take away the right. There’s always compromise, always halfway, never a whole measure. If every step you take is halfway to your destination, you’ll never actually get there. Of course, in the real world, you *will* eventually get so close as to make no practical difference……
GWB on December 20, 2012 at 9:40 AM
This. He’s probing to see how far to turn up the heat…
d1carter on December 20, 2012 at 9:41 AM
OK, the gun thing is settled and reasonable limitations are allowed on constitutionally-guaranteed rights: now let’s move on to reasonable, common-sense regulation of how the media covers events like Newtown.
PersonFromPorlock on December 20, 2012 at 10:16 AM