Gun Grabbers up in Arms over Oregon Sheriff

In the wake of the tragic shooting that occurred at the Umpqua Community College in Oregon, the gun grabbers have set their sights on a familiar target. That is, anyone who doesn’t toe the Progressive line. In this case it happens to be the Sheriff of Douglas County, who had the audacity to have a controversial opinion. Gather your pitchforks everybody, there’s a monster in our midst.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin, a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, is under the microscope after a letter resurfaced that he had written to Vice President Joe Biden threatening not to enforce potential gun restrictions.

His esteem among gun control advocates suffered another hit following reports that he once shared a video on Facebook that suggested the U.S. government staged the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting to “disarm the public.”

“This makes me wonder who we can trust anymore,” he wrote on the since-deleted post. “Watch, listen, and keep an open mind.”

Hanlin later distanced himself from these conspiracy theories, telling CNN on Friday, “That’s not a conspiracy theory belief that I have.”

Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, has been leading the charge against Sheriff Hanlin. Due to his past opinions, Gross doesn’t think that Hanlin should be allowed to run the shooting investigation. He also thinks that Hanlin’s refusal to uphold unconstitutional gun laws is a violation of his “sworn responsibility as a sheriff.” I guess that swearing an oath to the US Constitution, something that all police officers have to do, just doesn’t mean anything these days.

What’s more shocking though, is that Gross doesn’t think that Hanlin should be a Sheriff of anything. In fact, he has since called for the Sheriff to be fired.

Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said, the “overwhelming majority of Americans don’t want a 9/11 and Sandy Hook conspiracy theorist leading the investigation.”

“We are calling on John Hanlin not only to be replaced as the lead investigator, but also to be immediately removed as sheriff,” Gross told reporters.

“As sheriff, he has shown he has no qualms about putting his ideology over his responsibility to protect his citizens,” Gross added.

Dan Gross seems to have forgotten that we don’t live in some despotic backwater where local leaders are appointed by higher powers. John Hanlin was elected Sheriff by the people of Douglas County, and can’t just be fired in the traditional sense. Gross must have noticed his Freudian slip, because in later interviews he called for the Sheriff’s ‘resignation’ instead. But I think we all know what kind of society Mr. Gross wants to live in.

Hanlin on the other hand, sounds like an ordinary guy who just wants to protect the rights of the people who voted for him.

This spring, Hanlin testified before Oregon lawmakers about legislation requiring background checks for private gun sales. He argued that the measure — which has since become law — would keep guns from criminals about as much as laws keep methamphetamine out of the hands of drug addicts.

“What I fear most,” Hanlin said, his face red, “is that we’re going to create criminals … out of some of our most ordinary, normal, law-abiding citizens.”

Altogether, we’re seeing the clash of two irreconcilable forces that are currently vying for influence in America today. On the one hand we have a bunch of busybody control freaks that want to restrict our fundamental rights in the name of public safety. And on the other hand, we have down-to-earth people who just want everyone to get along in a free society. Only time will tell which side is going to prevail.