A Montage from Arizona (part 2)

Scene 2: Monday’s shopping list = apples, banana, cereal, and an M16

I went into a supercentre Walmart where I was encouraged to shop when I saw their tagline: "Save money. Live better." I would like to live better and having a Dutch heritage it is a given that I would like to save money. After I had picked up a few groceries there was one thing left on my list: an M16 machine gun. 

I walked over to the outdoor sports counter and casually asked if i could buy a machine gun. The clerk did not hesitate and asked me which type I would like. "An M16 please with a banana clip." Unfortunately they were out of stock. It must be a popular accessory on the big trucks plying the roads of Arizona. 

I could not keep up the charade. I told the guy I was from Canada and just wanted to see if it really was this easy to get a gun in the US. From the conversation that followed I learned that I only needed to be 18 to buy a handgun and 20 to buy a machine gun. A quick background check and I could walk out with a camouflage-painted machine gun. When I asked - why would a hunter use a fully automatic weapon he suggested that some hunters might not be a good shot. 

The thing that disturbed me from my conversation with the ease of access to firearms in Arizona is the right to bear a concealed weapon. Not only can you drive down the road with a gun, but you can conceal it. I must be sure not to cut off people here while driving.

I had to go to a different walmart in Flagstaff because they did not carry the phone I needed, so I took the opportunity to ask the guys helping me at the electronics department about the gun law. 

Marcel: What's the point of the concealed gun law? How did it get started? 

Clerk:  It started off with truck drivers running into problems on the highway and they needed protection. The people of Arizona liked the idea and wanted everyone to have that right. 

Marcel: Do you see any problem with concealed weapons. 

Clerk:  Nope, I think it's a good thing. People need to be able to protect themselves. 

Other clerk: Yeah and people aren't allowed to carry weapons on university campuses. 

As a quasi-pacifist, I do not see the need for the second amendment to the US Constitution. Was it merely for a citizen's ability to defend oneself or was it to keep the government in check, reluctant to go too far from the peoples' wishes for fear of a militia overrunning the White House?   

In the end I did not get the weapon. I suppose I did save money and I can live better, as long as I do not cut off the guy with a Glock in the glove box.