A lot of us joke about the weirdness that comes out of California, but I’ve seen some really odd stuff. For example, anti-gun lawmakers removing laws specifically meant to reduce “gun crime.” That’s just one example, though, and you see it when you look at a specific context, namely that they’re not necessarily anti-crime but anti-gun owners. At least, that’s my take on it.
However, earlier this week, we had an official make a very odd admission on Twitter.
Now, for most of us, the name John Hamasaki means less than jack squat. For San Franciscans, though, his name means something. He’s one of the city’s police commissioners.
That’s right. He’s admitting that guns save lives.
And he didn’t react well to people who thought he might have been joking.
Now, let’s evaluate this for a moment. The NYPD confiscated a firearm from a 17-year-old, someone far too young to legally possess a firearm. In swoops a San Francisco police commissioner to tell them that while that might make things safer, it might also cost that 17-year-old his life because he doesn’t have the means to protect himself.
This is someone who was actually breaking the law when found with the firearm.
What Hamasaki is doing is apparently arguing that such people should be permitted to carry their firearms because it may solely be for self-defense.
Meanwhile, San Francisco and the entire state of California are downright hostile to law-abiding citizens trying to get firearms, and here we have a San Francisco police commissioner openly stating that a firearm in the hands of someone who can’t legally have one may just be for self-defense.
Well…ain’t that special?
Of course, he’s not incorrect. Much like we law-abiding types, criminals also carry guns for protection. They fear for their life as well. One major difference, though, is that they’re often doing something that will run them afoul of other armed people who are likely to decide to shoot them.
Most of us don’t make those kinds of enemies.
My question of Hamasaki is whether or not he will speak out against the draconian gun restrictions that exist in the state of California, particularly the conceal carry licensing system that makes it virtually impossible for a law-abiding citizen to get such a permit. After all, if he can advocate in favor of a 17-year-old kid in New York carrying a gun, surely he can advocate for law-abiding citizens in his city and state, right?
Somehow, I doubt he will.
See, unfortunately, the stance of so many people in our larger cities is that anything a criminal does should be explained away. These are the people advocating for no bail to put bad people back on the streets while also advocating for taking our guns. I’m sorry, but how does that work?
As Hamasaki noted, guns save lives. However, they don’t just save the lives of some punk in New York or San Francisco. They save the lives of law-abiding citizens who just want to be left alone from criminals who refuse to respect that desire.