Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Legislature / Woods Johnny Get Your Gun: Lawmakers May Open Playgrounds to Weapons
Posted by Jeff Woods on Wed, May 6, 2009 at 7:39 AM
"No longer will a criminal or murderer know that their potential prey will be unarmed," Beavers says.Of course, as the state parks people have repeatedly told gun nuts, crimes are virtually nonexistent. Over the last four years about 100 million people have visited state parks. In that time, there have been fewer than two dozen violent crimes against people. The committee is supposed to vote on Beavers' bill today.
Comments (7)
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You know, I've stayed completely silent during all the "discussions" on this blog related to the Tennessee Legislature's current hard-on for expanding the carry laws, but I've got to mention something.
I own guns. I own a substantial number of them. I also have my carry permit. I've been through all the requisite training, am a member of a gun club and the NRA, and visit the range with regularity. I am proud of Tennessee for having a carry permit program, and for recognizing the permits of other states. The carry program and the reciprocity laws help me know that I'm on the right side of the law when I choose to carry, wherever I happen to be (jurisdiction-wise). But I'm awestruck by the idiocy of some of these new laws.
I've been around gun clubs and ranges enough to know that not every gun owner is as responsible as I think I am around my weapons. I've seen numerous cases where guys I know full well have been through training and have their carry license act like complete fools _on the range_. I've seen people look into breeches to clear weapons, not consistently keep their guns pointed downrange, kick unexpended rounds across a concrete floor, fail to properly safety... you name it. Now, I'm not saying that they're idiots all the time, but it can and does occur.
This latest measure extends carry laws to allow them to be legally carried at playgrounds. We've seen extensions of the law to restaurants that serve alcohol, and various other establishments that were formerly restricted. My big worry about this whole thing is that it only takes one bad call -- one simple mistake -- to ruin someone's life. Given that I've seen tons of mistakes and outright idiocy on the range, why in the hell would I want that extended to places where idiocy is pretty much the order of the day (I've got a three-year old; I know what playgrounds are
like)?
I use the following standard to decide whether or not I am going to carry a weapon: 1) I am on my own, 2) I am carrying items or cash in a way that would easily identify me as a target for a criminal, and 3) I am fully comfortable with the state of the weapon I am carrying. When I'm handling the company till and taking it to the bank, I sometimes go armed... When I'm out for a night on the town, I don't. I consider that a perfectly acceptable compromise and it keeps me on the correct side of Murphy's Law. Anyone who believes that they need to carry a weapon around constantly and in every situation either has a severe case of paranoia, an overexaggerated sense of self-worth, or a small penis.
I now submit myself for a tongue-lashing from my NRA brethren. I hope none of them are packing.
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Again, I say: What could possibly go wrong?
I have to wonder if all this plague of gun legislation is any comfort at all to the thousands of people unemployed or lacking healthcare in the state of Tennessee.
The Republicans took charge of the state legislature and all they are worried about is making sure no one has sex and everyone has a gun. Brilliant.
OMFG! Have I moved into the Twilight Zone? And I thought South Florida was wacky.
I'll support guns on playgrounds when the legislators vote to let us pack heat at the State Capitol! Come on cowards, if you think people get heated at the State Capitol, you should see what happens on the playground when some mother hen feels her little chickadee is being mistreated.
So no one needs to carry in parks because a statiscally insignificant number of crimes occur there, but we should all be afraid of people with Handgun Carry Permits because a statistically insignificant number of them have been charged with crimes.
Have I got that right?
don t ask: Is there a problem with looking into the breech to check whether a weapon is clear? Just how do you check the status of, say, a break-action shotgun? Peer into the muzzle?
"I am carrying items or cash in a way that would easily identify me as a target for a criminal". How about identifying oneself as a target by being 5'3", slim, and female, as is my girlfriend (who carries a .357 and would be a most surprising target for a crook)? Wait a minute, no woman has ever been attacked in a park, so she doesn't need to be armed. I suppose.
Personally, as a woman, I feel more comfortable carrying a gun when I am hiking in a secluded area or when I am leaving a restaurant/club late at night after listening to some great music (I am a non-drinker). The bad guys will always get and carry guns, laws or no laws. As a citizen, it is my fundamental right to protect myself and my family.
Constitutional rights are just that...rights. What the legislature is doing right now is reversing a trend to take away our rights...this time it is second amendment ones. You have to start somewhere. Thank you!!
BTW, is not govt's job to babysit everybody. It is called personal responsibility. I will help my neighbor if he needs help and I will harm anyone who tries to harm me or mine. It is really that simple.
