The man still doesn't get it

For a good roundup of the Zumbo affair check out The Smallest Minority here.

Jim Zumbo has posted a statement on Ted Nugent's website which contains the following:

They say hindsight is golden. Looking back, I can’t believe I said the words “ban” and “terrorist” in the context that I did. I don’t know what I was thinking when I wrote that. I can explain this as sheer ignorance and an irresponsible use of words. What I’ve learned over the last few days has enlightened and amazed me. As a guy who hunts 200 days a year, does seminars on hunting, wrote for six hunting magazines, had a hunting TV show, and wrote 20 books on hunting, how could I have been so ignorant and out of touch with reality in the world of hunting and shooting?

But I was. I really can’t explain it, maybe because I just summarily dismissed the firearms in question in my mind when I saw them in magazines and catalogs. I saw one “black” firearm in a hunting camp in all my 50 years of hunting, and I shot one last year off a boat when fishing in Alaska. To tell the truth, it was fun and I enjoyed it immensely, but I never considered one for use in hunting. I have to tell you that I have had a revelation. I’m learning that many of my pals own AR-15’s and similar firearms and indeed use them for hunting. I was totally unaware that they were being used for legitimate hunting purposes. That is the absolute truth.

My biggest regret is not the financial impact of all this. I’m almost 67 and retirement is an option. The dreadful impact here is that I inadvertently struck a spear into the hearts of the people I love most…America’s gun owners. And, even though this huge cadre of dedicated people have succeeded in stripping me of my career, I hold no grudges. I will continue to stand as firm on pro hunting as I’ve ever done. But what’s different now is that I’ll do all I can to educate others who are, or were, as ignorant as I was about “black” rifles and the controversy that surrounds them. My promise to you is that I’ll learn all I can about these firearms, and by the time this week is out, I’ll order one. The NUGE has invited me to hunt with him using AR-15’s, and I’m eager to go, and learn. I’ll do all I can to spread the word.


HE STILL THINKS THIS IS ABOUT HUNTING!

Mr. Zumbo, listen carefully. This controversy did not begin because you "insulted" military look rifles by saying that they had no utility for hunting. We are not mad at you because we know that AR and AK type rifles really are good hunting arms.

WE ARE ANGRY AT YOU BECAUSE WHAT YOU SAID REVEALS THAT YOU BUY INTO THE "SPORTING PURPOSE" CANARD. WE ARE ANGRY AT YOU BECAUSE YOUR COMMENTS BETRAY THE FACT THAT YOU THINK THAT THE RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS RECOGNIZED BY THE SECOND AMENDMENT TO THE US CONSTITUTION HAS ANYTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH HUNTING!

The Second Amendment recognizes an individual's right to own and carry weapons so that he might act in defense of his nation in the event of a foreign invasion or to resist a domestic government which has become oppressive.

That is what the Second Amendment is all about.

Under the strictest reading of the Amendment military assault rifles are protected while civilian hunting arms are not since the purpose of the Amendment was to create a civilian population which would be as well or better armed than the regular army.

Do you understand now what you did wrong?

Instead of spending the rest of your life educating others on how AR and AK type rifles can be used on the hunting field why not spend the next couple of months education yourself on what the Framers actually meant by ". . . the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed".