Regarding the travesty of justice known as ACA, it seems we'll never be able to get out of this hole. It might have been possible when the Republicans first took back the congress, but it seems they were Republicans only...not conservatives at all. Like every other entitlement program, this one is a cancer that will never go away.
Regarding the other decision, (and trying to tie this back to a firearms topic since that's what the TexasCHLForum is supposed to be about) I refer to a posting I made back in 2013 when we were discussing the antics of the 'in your face' open carry crowd and Starbucks' completely understandable reaction to it:
viewtopic.php?f=94&t=69068&start=15#p853858
So...I may be required by the force of law to acknowledge that gay marriage exists, but don't ever expect me to embrace it. The 'in your face' tactics that have been employed by that VERY SMALL vocal minority has been successful in changing the law, but not in forcing me to openly embrace or support anything they stand for.VolTexan wrote:A unique parallel exists here with the gay community. I don't care a person's orientation any more than I care their religion or whether they prefer Peter Pan vs. Jif peanut butter. Do what you want in your own room, and I don't care. In the business world I have hired and promoted both straight vs. gay people, and their orientation did not matter one bit, as long as they were the right person for the job.
But acceptance is not the same as embracing - and I'm not interested in embracing or celebrating alternative lifestyle choices. My wife and I have a much more conservative belief structure, and we're encouraging that in our daughter as well. So, if you force my hand on the subject, then you might not like my answer. Just be happy that I accept it, and will not use your personal choices against you in my business decisions.
Funny...they didn't change the law. The people and the states have voted over and over against it. It took a bit of judicial activism to get their way forced down our throats. Like I said, disgusting.
So, how do we tie this back to a firearms discussion? Simple. I think that in the future, my ability (or my daughter's ability) to keep and bear arms will likely be restricted. My wife holds citizenship in two countries, and my daughter does as well. I'm an American citizen only, but I'm pretty sure that I can get an Italian passport as well, due to jure sanguinis.
I see this society in a flat spin right now, with nothing slowing us down. I can imagine that within a few years, the good old USA won't be the best place to live anymore. We won't be a the world's superpower, so our safety from foreign threats won't be as secure as we had hoped. We'll be so crippled in debt due to (name your favorite social program or handout) that the land of opportunity that we knew while growing up will be no longer. When these things finally reach a boiling point, I'm going to do precisely what my wife did and what my ancestors did...immigrate to somewhere that's not as bad as here. I'm sure that wherever that is, I'll not have the RKBA that I currently have here (but then again, by the time I leave, perhaps we won't have it here either).
And to close this out on a cheerful note...I think that my thread above in 2013 was the only time that TAM and I disagreed fully on one subject:
VolTexan wrote:And by the way...Peter Pan is clearly better than Jif.
TheAnnoyedMan wrote:First of all, you're wrong. Planter's extra crunchy is the best, and I'll fight you for it if I have to.