Posted on 07/01/2018 3:45:17 AM PDT by marktwain
Do blind people have Second Amendment rights? Of course, they do. Should they be prevented from carrying guns for self-defense? No, they should be subject to the same laws as other people.
Carey McWilliams has demonstrated, through word and deed, that blind people are fully capable of responsible self-defense and responsible use of guns. It is a disability, not a death sentence. From postbullitin.com:
The blind guy with a gun permit became a minor celebrity who made national and international news in 2001, even getting a segment on Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” that showed him firing an assault rifle into the ground in front of a target.
“At first it was like, it was either a comedy thing or a villain thing,” recalled McWilliams, who insists he shrugs off detractors or jokes because he feels an obligation to educate other blind people about gun rights and gun safety.
In 2007, McWilliams self-published an autobiography about his hunting exploits and his efforts get a gun permit.
McWilliams' autobiography was published in 2007 but is currently out of print. Carey maintains a web page that tells his story.
He makes many valid points about the viability of a blind person's ability to use a gun for self-defense.
All of us have different abilities and capabilities. A blind person cannot see, but they often have superb hearing and know how to operate with little or no vision. Most self-defense situations occur in low or limited lighting.
Carey McWilliams made the decision to only fire his gun in self-defense when he is in contact with
(Excerpt) Read more at ammoland.com ...
I saw the video one time of Ray Charles driving a car... I think...
PING
Driving a car is considered a privilege, not a right.
But if a blind person could pass the tests, they should get a driver’s license.
As long as they dont shoot in hot pursuit on a crowded street :)
And circumcisions is where I draw the line! :)
But if someone was breaking down my front door, I am pretty sure that I could shoot from my living room or anywhere in the hall and hit the guy coming in with my eyes closed.
As it is, I know which room the cat or my wife is in when I hear noise. Not sure how, but I just do. And I’d know which room a thief was in when I heard him making noise.
10,000 walks around your own home makes you pretty savvy as to how to get to what room you want even with your eyes closed. Might be a little slower, but you’ll get where you want.
And shoot who you need to if it comes to that.
In Blues Brothers, Ray showed us he was a competent pistolero.
In my hometown, there was a feisty blind girl who insisted in pushing the envelope. One day at supper, my mom told us that she had seen this girl driving a car, at which point we all laughed at mom. Eventually, we learned that the girl's mother would occasionally talk her daughter successfully through a drive about town.
That girl is now a middle-aged lady with kids of her own, but she hasn't mellowed in her determination. If I were to hear that she had taken up combat pistol shooting, I might raise my eyebrows, but I wouldn't laugh.
So the guy that filed an ADA lawsuit against a drive thru restaurant because their menu wasn’t in braille actually had a case?
Daredevil, for example.
Many years ago I went to an NRA gun safety class. One part of the course was live fire at an indoor range.
Well, one class participant had palsy so bad that his gun was swinging wildly all over the place. The NRA instructor took the gun, then gently told him he could skip that part of the class.
I’m a strong believe in the 2A as written. That means must-issue CCW nationwide, not can-issue. I even think felons should regain their 2A rights after completing their parole/probation.
But what about that gentleman with palsy? Should he be issued a CCW permit?
Prohibiting the blind from their second amendment rights is probably just an excuse to require yearly eye tests for anyone else to be licensed to exercise their rights.
I think you got an apple mixed in with your bag of oranges.
Doesn't sound like it.
The point is we can create an infinite number of hypotheticals to show the need for legislation or regulations or any kind of state action.
In reality, I have not read of a single instance where a blind person used a gun irresponsibly and killed or injured someone.
I have read of a couple of instances where legally blind people have successfully defended themselves with firearms.
> Did he [the gentleman with palsy] pass the test? <
I don’t know. But I guess he should have, as by the end of the course I’m sure he understood gun safety as well as the rest of us. And even if the NRA instructors failed him - because he could not demonstrate how hold a pistol safely - such a course is not required in my state for a CCW permit.
If I were the county sheriff issuing permits, and this gentleman came before me, I honestly don’t know what I’d do. We’re talking about a right here, not a privilege. But this is a rather unique situation. This man simply cannot, in any circumstance, use a gun safely.
I suppose I’d take him aside and strongly urge him to buy a stun gun instead.
He didn't do it alone, he had Stevie Wonder guiding him from the passenger seat.......
I used to work on printing equipment and sometimes had to remove and replace parts in a “blind hole” where you had to go by feel only. I am right handed but sometimes after trying many times to do the job right handed I would switch to my left hand and do it with very little trouble.
Maryland does (or did) have a Blind Hunting Day.
Amazing! There are a lot of surprising things about how the human body works.
Why the hell not? He has just as much as right to shoot back as any of us!
I would venture a guess that most of us would know a shooter who is worse at putting lead on target than this fellow with palsy.
Its a GOD given right to own a gun for self defense. It doesnt matter how good or bad a shot you are or if you have eagle eye vision or blind as a bat.
“I’m a strong believe in the 2A as written. That means must-issue CCW nationwide, not can-issue.”
To truly follow the 2nd, why would one need a permit at all? That is just government granting you permission to exercise your God given right.
“Blind people have the same Second Amendment rights as other citizens. “
Then why don’t mentally ill people have unencumbered 2nd Amendment rights?
There is no difference.
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