On November 8th, Maine citizens will go to the polls to cast their vote for several apocryphal referendum questions. From marijuana to the minimum wage, it appears liberal minds had their way with the ballot this year and did their best to mock the process.
However incredulous these questions may seem, there is no greater farce than that of Question 3, the “universal” background check initiative. At first glance this referendum may seem like a “common sense” solution to a very real issue in some parts of the nation, but the Maine background check measure is nothing more than a scheme for New York liberals to test their policies abroad before expanding them to other parts of the nation.
Maine, in this instance, is nothing more than a cheap date.
Question 3 would make it illegal for two parties who are unrelated to transfer a firearm between themselves without a back ground check (and another to return the firearm to the owner). Although it seems simple in theory, the writers of this referendum fail to mention that even the simple act of allowing a friend to borrow a rifle for the day could, in the long run, make a criminal out of you both, with the second offence landing you a fine of $5,000, five years in prison and a felony charge that disqualifies you from owning or possessing a firearm for the rest of your life.
To avoid this charge, every time you transfer said firearm a background check must be done (regardless of how well you know this person). Even though the Bureau of Justice Statistics states that a majority of firearms used in crimes were stolen or purchased through an illegal channel, i.e. drug dealer or black market, there are those that still believe making it harder for law-abiding citizens to purchase firearms is somehow the solution.
In the State of Maine, a respect for our hunting heritage has led to a great reverence of firearms. Not only do we use firearms more than most in the nation, we also care for them better. With minimal gun-control legislation and the newly passed Constitutional Carry Law, Mainers are not only safer than most of the nation, but we are emancipated by those who limit Second Amendment rights elsewhere.
Why then would ex New York City mayor and billionaire Michael Bloomberg attempt to crack down on the liberties of Maine people, wasting money on a problem we simply do not have? The answer is simple. More control over the majority of citizens, and an eventual statewide (ultimately national) firearm registry.
This year, the New York style liberal wants you, a logical and charitable Mainer, to be fooled into thinking that he knows better than you. Once again, big government is attempting a back door takeover of your rights, even if they have to go one state at a time to get there.
Bloomberg is hoping to sell Maine a law that will do nothing more than centralize power, limit the rights of law-abiding citizens and pave the way towards a system unrecognizable to today’s.