“Hell Yes, We’re Gonna Take Your AR-15…”

Those words grabbed your attention, didn’t they? Well, you are in good company because you weren’t the only one who had a reaction and response. That phrase was uttered by long-shot presidential hopeful and Democratic candidate Beto O’Rourke. It isn’t uncommon to see mudslinging from across the aisle, from either side. It also isn’t uncommon to see pointed banter and trash-talking between opposing sides or parties. This, however, was a different kind of verbiage altogether and even bordered on threatening.

These comments, remarks, retorts and fiery responses all took place via Twitter, which has also become a commonplace forum for political matters, discussions, and politicians. Rarely though has Twitter felt the need to remove comments, especially from those within the political arena, for violations of their policies. In this case, they did.

In their defense, this was quite the heated exchange between the opposing parties, some have even deemed it threatening as one story reported. It wasn’t long after O’Rourke’s comment, “hell yes, we’re gonna take your AR-15” that a “social media firestorm,” as the aforementioned story called it, broke out. How ugly was it? Let’s put it this way, if words were bullets then we might be making some funeral arrangements. One of the most intense, direct, and angry responses came from Texas state Rep. Briscoe Cain, who tweeted, “my AR is ready for you.” Yes, he said that!

Cain’s response was almost violent enough to make us forget what prompted it, almost. Then we remember that his response came, not as retaliation but as a counter strike to what our story said, “many would consider a threat in and of itself… .” The story isn’t wrong either. How is that not a threat on some level?

What happened next is a classic case of blowing the whistle on the guy who swung back but missing the guy who swung first. In this case, the Twitter referees called the, “my AR is ready for you” a personal foul but there was no flag for O’Rourke’s comment. Not even out of bounds, nothing? Nope, just one comment deleted by the Twitter police and play on. That isn’t to say that there wasn’t some noise made and support for Cain in addition to some backlash aimed at Twitter. According to our story, there was noted support from 2nd Amendment supporters who argued that Briscoe Cain’s comments fall well within the realm of protection afforded by the 1st Amendment.

Thankfully, regardless of who is sitting in the oval office, Republican or Democrat or who controls the House, a door-to-door search isn’t going to happen. At least not without some unforeseen and seismic shift in how our government operates. Can’t you picture it, as Gun Collection agents go from house to house kicking in doors in swat enforcement gear, searching high and low for guns? Yeah, we can’t see it either because that won’t happen. Our story and even O’Rourke himself said as much.

So we can chalk this up to another event where politicians and those on both sides of the gun control issue are attacking each other, right? For the most part, that sounds about right. There is something to be realized outside of the passionate and heated bickering between these groups though, like where one particular presidential hopeful stands on the gun control issue. At least for now.

These exchanges could also offer some insight into how far the left is willing to go to take guns and gun ownership rights away. They are serious and this story suggested that a serious and even game-changing transition in gun laws could happen more easily than we might imagine. As the story pointed out this would, “…depend on a Democrat being elected president, Democrats taking over the Senate, and draconian gun ban laws being passed. All of which could happen, easily.”

That is a sobering thought and one that may keep pro-gun rights activists up at night. It is also a reason for all of us to be a little concerned because behind this heated bickering and those veiled threats, are people passionate about their agendas. About gun laws and as they said themselves, “hell yes, we’re gonna take your…” firearms too.