Monthly Gun Debate Update - September 2024
A Gun Insurance Industry? + Thoughts On Interview For Wall Street Journal Article
Kindred Comics and Political Substacker
I recently read an insightful Substack post by
a fellow comics creator and political writer who seems to be a kindred spirit.He has had a Substack
for his poetry comics, but he also just started , exploring the social, economic, and political systems that create American democracy and the ways to make them more just, equitable, and accountable.His first post was about guns in America.
A Gun Insurance Industry?
And in it, he mentions a number of policy ideas, the most new to me, at least, is something called a Gun Insurance Industry.
Create a Gun Insurance Industry
Democrats need to be more committed to the comparisons between cars and guns. Cars are incredibly dangerous in the wrong hands and are subject to a lot of reasonable regulations, including mandatory insurance.
If gun owners were required to insure their weapons through a high-regulated, private insurance industry, owning weapons like the AR-15 or other high-capacity, automatic and semi-automatic would be financially untenable for many and greatly reduce the numbers of these weapons on the street.
This idea does face many legal and political obstacles. However, it may be a more straightforward temporary fix than other solutions.
To piggyback on Jason McBride’s idea, I think what could make this potentially politically palatable to “Republicans” is that this is inherently a capitalistic concept.
A Gun Insurance Industry could make a lot of people a lot of money from insuring weapons.
Which in America is something we should never discount as a central motivating factor.
It would allow us to continue to protect the freedom but also balance it with responsibility, which is something a lot of people agree on.
Does Anywhere In America Currently Require Gun Insurance?
I decided to dig deeper into the current legal landscape and see if anywhere in America adopted gun insurance mandates.
Until recently, no requirements had been enacted.
But in 2022, San Jose, California, and then the state of New Jersey passed laws requiring gun owners to carry liability insurance.
After the Supreme Court’s Bruen decision in June 2022, which established an Originalism precedent for gun laws, there was a legal challenge to San Jose’s mandate.
The gun rights side argued an appeal based on the framer’s perspective.
But a federal judge ruled the insurance requirement constitutional with historic roots.
Now state lawmakers are working toward enacting similar legislation across California.
This and New Jersey could set a new precedent for other states to follow.
If you have opinions on this issue, whether you support or oppose it, I encourage you to contact your representatives and make your voice heard.
You can use this tool to find their contact information.
Wall Street Journal Article
I mentioned in Serio Comics 43 that Cameron McWhirter, co-author of AMERICAN GUN: The True Story Of The AR-15 and a journalist for the Wall Street Journal, offered to interview me after reading the current manuscript of SHOULD WE BUY A GUN? for an article with his co-writer Zusha Elinson.
That article was published on September 20th.
It was a bit surreal to see Tom Nguyen, my LA Progressive Shooters teacher, featured.
I had referred Cameron to him.
And I’m glad his story was highlighted.
Although I wasn’t quoted, it was a valuable experience that gave me a lot to reflect on.
The article, which you can find here (paywalled), is about the rise of liberals/progressives buying guns.
Which is something my graphic novel is ostensibly about.
But in the story those characters change their minds.
A number of times.
And many other characters change their minds.
This is something I believe in.
How do we remain open to changing our minds?
At another point, there was a notion brought up that the guns are here to stay.
I mentioned what I learned from Ibram X. Kendi and Joel Christian Gill’s Stamped From The Beginning: A Graphic History of Racist Ideas In America, which I enthused about in Serio Comics 42, how the history of racist ideas shows how ridiculous we might eventually look for our lack of imagination about how much things can change.
I said something, like, “Anything is possible in America, and I don’t ever want to limit my belief in our ability to reduce gun violence here.”
I said a number of other things.
Probably some I’m glad weren’t quoted.
Like “I don’t want to be the Henry Clay of guns.”
LOL.
It was a reminder to trust my gut and perhaps insist on email interviews next time.
But overall I’m grateful for the experience.
I’ll continue to build upon it to more expertise…
