That stands to reason, though: All the better to control the great unwashed. Those who think of themselves as our betters naturally want to insure that no person who would dissent would also have the means to act. Therefore, they want only government officials to be armed. Not grass-roots civilians.

So, as John R. Lott reported last week in The Wall Street Journal: German citizens seeking a hunting rifle must undergo checks that can take a year. The French must obtain gun permits, which are granted only after a similar exhaustive check. Swiss federal law now grants gun permits only to those who can demonstrate the need for a weapon. And, after 1996, when Britain banned handguns, gun crimes have risen by 40 percent.

According to Lott, Australia also passed severe gun restrictions in 1996 and actually made it a crime to use a gun defensively. In the subsequent four years, armed robberies rose 51 percent, unarmed robberies by 37 percent, assaults by 24 percent and kidnappings by 43 percent.

Sure. When guns are forbidden to honest people, only the crooks will have guns. Well, crooks and overbearing government officials -- but then, I repeat myself.

As everyone knows, Israel is having a terrorist problem. Last March, we learned that sixty thousand additional gun permits were to be distributed to Israeli civilians as authorities loosen licensing restrictions to help fight a growing wave of terrorism. Consequently, many lives were saved. That was because at least one homicide bomber was sent to meet his maker by an armed Israeli citizen before the bomb was exploded.

Here, 33 states have right-to-carry laws in which, if a citizen jumps through the correct hoops, they will probably receive a permit. The results were excellent, too. As Lott reports: "In those states, deaths and injuries from multiple-victim public shootings fell on average by 78 percent."

But, hell, lets not let a series of proven "facts" get in the way of those public officials who want nothing more than to control our lives with an iron hand. It is understandable that some police want to be the only people on the streets who are armed. And, it is understandable that those so called "public officials" who command the police by passing laws, rules and regulations want to feel comfortably free to usurp whatever of our rights they think might be advantageous to them and their friends.

That’s what the term "plugging the loopholes" means in politics, by the way: Usurping a right. Control.

For instance, California’s Governor Gray Davis (D) recently called for additional penalties for violating the state’s gun storage law. Davis does not want a lowly citizen to have the ability to protect home and family against intruders. So, Davis called for a rule that effectively forces parents to lock up their guns. The lame excuse is (this time) that a child may get it.

The truth of the matter is, there are many thousands more violent home invasions in California than there are children mistakenly pointing guns at another.

Gun control, to these socialists, is simply a usurping of rights. It is no more than a severe type of people control.

California’s far-left Senator, Dianne Feinstein, is another longtime anti-gun (anti-Construction) advocate. A while ago, Feinstein announced she planned to introduce federal legislation similar to that of California’s ridiculous laws regarding gun sales and background checks. She carries a gun. But, she doesn’t want anyone else (except police) to have one.

After 9-11, gun and ammunition sales rose dramatically across the country. People are starting to realize that the police cannot protect us. They come after the fact. Police may find a violent killer and lock him up, but the victim is still quite dead.

Which means, of course, when violence comes to you or your family, the only instant response team around is you. Well . . . you, and whatever little "equalizer" you may have instantly available, that is.

People are starting to realize that. Even so, there are still openings at the gun ranges from time to time.

There shouldn’t be. Like driving a vehicle, we should all be proficient with our weapon of choice.