Displaced Cleveland Fan

Delonte West of the Cleveland Cavaliers was arrested last night in Maryland on a weapons charge. The initial reports state that he was pulled over for speeding and making an unsafe lane change while driving his motorcycle. During the traffic stop, police found West in possession of three firearms (two handguns and a shotgun).

Details are still coming out about this case. For that reason, I don’t want to comment on the specifics of Delonte’s arrest. But I did want to address some comments I’ve seen from others as they make their initial reactions to this news.

Many comments I’ve seen are something to this effect: The NBA is full of thugs and this is just another example.

First, I understand the NBA’s reputation. I used to see the league that way myself several years ago and, as a result, quit following professional basketball for a time. However, I think the league has cleaned up its image quite a bit. Are there still thugs? Sure. But I don’t think the culture is the same as it was a few years ago.

Second, I do not like the mentality of some that Delonte West is automatically to be labeled one of these thugs because he had guns with him. Owning a firearm does not make one a thug. Carrying a firearm does not make one a thug. Carrying multiple loaded firearms does not automatically make one a thug.

I don’t know what laws West may or may not have broken. This post is not about that. It’s about the ignorant notion that guns are evil. There are more responsible, law-abiding gun owners in this country than there are careless individuals and criminals with guns.

Under the Constitution, we have the right to keep and bear arms. Owning and/or carrying a firearm does not make one a thug. Again, in Delonte’s case, he may or may not have been violating certain laws (such as possibly having an unlicensed firearm). But it is a shame the negative view many have of the legitimate and necessary purpose of an armed citizenry in maintaining a peaceful and orderly society.

-dcf

Tags: Delonte West

This entry was posted on Friday, September 18th, 2009 at 4:52 pm and is filed under Cleveland Cavaliers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.