In Our View: Gun Debate Distractions

One of the rare Internet memes that is consistently good for a chuckle has a photo of Abraham Lincoln and attributes these words to him: “The thing about quotes from the Internet is that it is difficult to verify their authenticity.”

It doesn’t take much analysis to figure out that Lincoln never said those words. But other quotes found on the Internet and often spread to support a particular point of view can be more problematic. As Lincoln also reputedly said, “85 percent of quotes on the Internet are made up” — which proves that passing along information from the World Wide Web calls for a little diligence. We think.

That is a lesson reinforced recently by state Rep. Matt Shea, R-Spokane Valley. While introducing House Bill 2975 — the “Washington State Firearms Civil Rights Act” — Shea included quotes from a variety of America’s Founding Fathers, such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. Except, as reported by The (Tacoma) News Tribune, experts say those quotes are fabricated.

This certainly is not the first time falsehoods have been used to spur a political agenda, and the proliferation of inaccurate Internet quotes has enhanced the practice. The official Monticello.org site even includes a list of quotes often mistakenly attributed to Jefferson. But the use of inaccurate words from Founding Fathers in support of gun rights appears to be particularly profligate.

This would seem to be unnecessary. The Second Amendment is rather simplistic in its language: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.” And in its 2008 ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller, the Supreme Court of the United States confirmed the rights of individuals to possess firearms.

Shea has said he will amend the legislation to remove the inaccurate quotes. Meanwhile, the comical kerfuffle has distracted from a spurious and unnecessary bill that detracts from serious debate about gun control. The Supreme Court ruling in Heller, after all, said that bearing arms is a right but, like the First Amendment, is not unlimited. Shea’s bill — and others introduced in this year’s Legislature — would work to undermine Initiative 594, a background-check law that was passed by 59.3 percent of voters in 2014.

Those bills appear to be going nowhere, but there are more moderate measures related to gun ownership that are deserving of consideration. Senate Bill 6158, co-sponsored by Don Benton, R-Vancouver, and Ann Rivers, R-La Center, would make it easier for noncommercial firearms transactions involving museums or nonprofit groups — which is a concern of I-594’s detractors. On the other hand, Jim Moeller, D-Vancouver, introduced House Bill 2354 to ban assault weapons and large-capacity magazines, which is an unrealistic proposal in the tense political climate surrounding the question of gun rights.

The hope is that some middle ground can be found in the discussion about guns. Reasonable regulations can be forged without reinforcing the ultra-conservative trope that the government is coming to seize all of our guns. Reasonable compromises can be built that can protect the Second Amendment while helping to keep guns out of the hands of those who have demonstrated a penchant for violence. No solution is perfect, but that should not be the end of the discussion.

Inaccurate quotes, meanwhile, only distract from that discussion.