Alright, I deserve pitchforks and torches for this one.

Mitt Romney backed gun control legislation in Massachusetts. This is something a lot of my fellow gun nuts, especially the hard-right Repub ones, don’t seem to know, or at least don’t want to acknowledge. I am not trying to use the Doctrine of Relative Filth here when I say: If you honestly believe that OBAMMER’S GUNNA TAKE YER GUNNNNNS, you need to know that Romney wants to take them as well.

This is a common thing I have to explain to people all the time: stop worrying about the Feds, and start worrying about your local and state gov. THEY’RE the ones that can, and will, pass legislation to limit your 2nd Amendment Rights if they so desire. I’m fortunate to live in Texas, where any gun control politician is going to get his ass flattened in the polls, but other states and cities have been pretty draconian in their 2nd Amendment Infringements on the public at large. And in those two instances, let’s compare.

Per capita, California is #4 Nationwide in Gun Homicides. This is a state where you cannot buy a semi-auto pistol with more than 10 rounds, and your AR-15, if you own one, has to be kept in a crippled configuration. But there they are, number 4 on the list.
Illinois is worse. You need a special license to buy guns OR ammo, you cannot open carry, you cannot concealed carry even if you have a valid CC license from another state, and there’s a 3-day waiting period to even buy a pistol? Well, all that “gun control” works out really well, as they’re #7 in the nation for gun homicides. Out of 50 states in the Union, these two are in the top 10.

But what about Texas, where drunkards are everywhere, and you can buy guns and ammo with absolutely minimal hassle? Where we legalized concealed carry licenses in 1996? Oh, we’re pretty high up there – at #14. We have lax gun control, and still somehow aren’t anywhere near as bad as those other two, where guns are TEH EVIL and something the citizen CANNOT BE TRUSTED WITH.

Meanwhile Vermont, where they don’t even require a license for open or concealed carry, and they have pretty much NO gun laws whatsoever on the state level aside from “you can have ’em, as many as you like,” is ranked #49 per capita for gun homicides.

How did certain states get insane gun control laws? Wasn’t the President that made that happen. It wasn’t Congress. It was the local government.

Pay attention to your local government.

Alright, I swear, I won’t get this political again for at least a very long time. The joke was just in my head since the beginning of this comic, and I had to let it out. As for which of the candidates I’m voting for? At the time of writing this, more than a month in advance, I do not know. Maybe Obama again, although I really do have a LOT of gripes about his first term. Maybe Gary Johnson. Maybe a write in for Bugs Fucking Bunny, I dunno. Thing is, by the time you read this, I’ll have already voted – Mel and I always vote early. So this post will go up after my silly electronic machine has tallied my vote, and some cocksucker has hacked the machine to make it read whatever he wants.

If you really give two shits about MY political stances, I can detail them in the comments. TL;DR version: I’m a liberal moderate who likes guns. I support some social services, and oppose others. I’m anti-war at this time, although I do believe that going to war is something we have to do in special cases. I’m pro-abortion, anti-life, and yet anti-death-penalty. Blah blah blah, it doesn’t really matter what I think, does it? I’m just a damn cartoonist. But I think both sides need to agree: Cops are minutes away when seconds count. Your responsibility to protect your life, loved ones, and property ultimately comes down to you, when the hammer meets the anvil. And no matter what your views on guns are, there is no situation where knowing how to use a firearm safely, accurately, and properly, is a detriment to your life. The topic of firearms never should have become a partisan issue in the first place, because whether you’re a Democrat or Republican, a Libertarian or a member of the Green Party, a Pacifist, an Isolationist, a Marxist, or a Philanthropist, the truth is: If you live in the USA, your life and property are protected and made possible by guns, and those who use them – civil servants, or just citizens.

Let the hate mail commence.