Posted on 04/19/2007 7:13:47 AM PDT by bamahead
NASHVILLE - In a surprise move, a House panel voted Wednesday to repeal a state law that forbids the carrying of handguns on property and buildings owned by state, county and city governments - including parks and playgrounds. "I think the recent Virginia disaster - or catastrophe or nightmare or whatever you want to call it - has woken up a lot of people to the need for having guns available to law-abiding citizens," said Rep. Frank Niceley, R-Strawberry Plains. "I hope that is what this vote reflects."
As amended, the legislation still wouldn't allow guns on school property, however.
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"We've been piecemealing this thing year after year," Briley said. "Why don't we just let you take your gun anywhere you want to?"
Tennessee's handgun carry law includes a listing of places where permit holders are forbidden to take their weapons. Briley has proposed an amendment that repeals a provision prohibiting guns "in or on the grounds of any public park, playground, civic center or other building facility, area or property owned, used or operated by any municipal, county or state government, or instrumentality thereof."
With very little debate, the amendment was quickly approved on a voice vote with only Rep. Janis Sontany, D-Nashville, chairman of the subcommittee, audibly shouting, "No!"
(Excerpt) Read more at knoxnews.com ...
Steps on the Right direction for a change...
Safer in the East than in the West.
That's obsolete information, from the days of FBI-inspired revolver training, which also imparted the factoid that most such incidents took place at a range of 21 feet/7 yards or less.
All that old news is now much less the case now with incidents involving multiple shooters, longguns and semiauto handguns, often in the hands of those with a surprising amount of former military training or exposure to others with it, and with enough serious practice to be pretty good at what they do. Body armor is also becoming commonplace in street shootings, and so too are drive-by shootings from vehicles in which the distances involved are greater than previously was usually the case, sometimes from moving vehicles but also sometimes from the *stop and bang* technique of having the driver come to a halt while the passenger/s let fly, increasing the liklihood of a well-aimed hit, after which the driver floors it and gets out of the area before effective return fire can be delivered.
Fifty college students shot, more than thirty dead? Yeah, I've come to the conclusion that it's time for more serious gun laws.
From now on, it's time for a really steep fine for anyone who fails to carry an effective defensive weapon, with jail time for repeat offenders.
It's a duty and responsibility of citizenship to not only take care of yourself, but to be able to assist another. I don't think that those with religious or other deeply held philosophical scruples against doing should be forced to do something against their beliefs, but there needs to be a way to tell them from the stupid or lazy who've just forgotten or misplaced their shooter. So a reasonably available exemption license should be available for those people once they demonstrate their sincerity, and something temporary for those medically or otherwise temporarily incapable of effectively defending themselves; they can get a license to not carry a weapon in public, as required by law.
The fee for such permits can be used to offset the public cost of protecting those who can't help protect themselves or others, with fee waivers for those experiencing simple temporary interruptions in their ability.
Indeed I read that a long time ago...and all that you say makes sense.
Teachers, staff, and students with a valid carry permit should be allowed to carry on campus too.
I personally think 9/11 caused a (hopefully) permanent shift in public attitudes toward guns and self defense in general. When Rosie O'Donnell comes out the day after the Virginia Tech Massacre and sadly proclaims that she is not even going to talk about gun control, because it is pointless and not enough people will fight for it. Then Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi go out of their way to release a statement saying that they do not intend to push for any gun control legislation. It really seems gun rights is one issue conservatives are winning.
In the not to distant future, I would love to see the supreme court uphold the fact that the 2nd amendment is an individual right. That should be the final nail in the coffin of gun control for a VERY long time...
BATF - the Armed Forces of Gun Control !!!
“Have the lights just come on in a few legislators brains or is common sense finally being recognized for what it is?”
Better late than never : )
Common sense bump!
Dang it archy. Have you been hanging round with them bureacrats or something?
That sounds like something a lawyer would write up. Too many ifs and ands and too many fingers stoking up for that wonderful, “You may reapply in 90 days or submit two copies of this report to the Appeals Board for further examination within 10 days.
I like the way you think!
That's it, right there. Gun control makes the criminal defense lawyers rich and gives the State something to do, while at the same time we the people are made defenseless.
It's a win-win situation for them.
Here is your typical Liberal legislator.
Liberals are believers in Utopia. They believe that you can create the perfect world. They believe that government is the perfect instrument with which to create the perfect world.
This legislator is displaying the natural anger of the Liberal Zealot who has been stymied in her efforts to create the perfect world by unbelievers who are (to Her) obviously ignorant of what is the correct course to Utopia.
Conservatives see the world as it is and understand that the world can not be substantially different than it now is because of the natural limits of the world and the people that inhabit the world.
Conservatives know that human nature is a natural part of humans that nature and natures God has made us as we are. No amount of laws made by men will change human nature. Conservatives know that in a free society if the it is not in an individual’s nature to adhere to the law that person will not comply with the law.
The literal translation of Utopia is “Nowhere” conservatives understand that the perfect society is unattainable and to attempt to create the perfect society is foolish and counter productive.
Liberals do not understand this and it is an article of their Faith that we must strive for that Utopia, we must work for that perfect society were everyone is treated fairly and no one has more than anyone else, where everyone is happy. In their efforts the Liberals are creating a more and more illiberal society, placing more and more draconian constraints on the once free people of the United States.
Gun Control is a perfect example of this Liberal inability to live in the real world. Liberals desire to live in a world were everyone is kind and gentle, where no one ever harms anyone else, where everyone is reasonable, where no one ever wants for anything, and no one ever takes what they want from another by force.
Conservatives realize from human history that for a small percentage of the human race that it is in their nature to take by force from others what they want if they can. This is true today and has always been true. No amount of government regulation will ever change this fact. Taking the away the ability of the law abiding to effectively defend them selves simply makes it more likely that the misfits of society will commit crimes of violence on those who are rendered defenseless by the law. The violent scofflaws being aware that the vast majority of the populace will comply with the prohibitions against carrying effective means of self defense realize that their either greater strength or their willingness to ignore the law and illegally carry concealed weapons make the law-abiding populace easy prey.
Liberals in their nave attempts to create a perfect society make the world much less safe and much more dangerous for all of us living in this society that was before Liberalism much more perfect.
Yeah I know. But there needs to be both a way to seperate those looking for an excuse too evade or shirk their responsibilities from those with a real disability or limitation that keeps them from fulfilling a duty of citizenship, and from those who are legitimate conscientious objectors. Rather than any sort of governmental bureaucrats, the procedures used by doctors certifying those deserving of handicapped parking stickers and the like would probably be a better mechanism, though one with the potential for abuses from bribery or favouritism....as is any governmental licensure process.
I'm no lawyer, but I was thinking of the wording of Madison's original draft of the Second Amendment:
A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, being the best security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed, but no person religiously scrupulous shall be compelled to bear arms.
Yeah I know. But there needs to be both a way to seperate those looking for an excuse too evade or shirk their responsibilities from those with a real disability or limitation that keeps them from fulfilling a duty of citizenship, and from those who are legitimate conscientious objectors. Rather than any sort of governmental bureaucrats, the procedures used by doctors certifying those deserving of handicapped parking stickers and the like would probably be a better mechanism, though one with the potential for abuses from bribery or favouritism....as is any governmental licensure process.
I'm no lawyer, but I was thinking of the wording of Madison's original draft of the Second Amendment:
A well regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, being the best security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed, but no person religiously scrupulous shall be compelled to bear arms.
Anyone who is looking for an excuse too evade or shirk their responsibilities needs to lose the right to vote, own real property or hold a civil service position.
I know quite a few ‘handicapped’, 60 and 70% disabled vets who, IMHO would be able to assert more of a threat to criminals than many able bodied citizens.
I think most of the problems in our young people are the result of public education and television. How we correct that is another subject entirely.
Pretty close. They'd be subject to fingerprinting and psychiatric evaluation, of course, and unable to receive any public monies or funds, nor to hold any position of public trust.
I know quite a few ‘handicapped’, 60 and 70% disabled vets who, IMHO would be able to assert more of a threat to criminals than many able bodied citizens.
Oh, absolutely! They're more aware than most of both their limitations in being able to defend themselves and of the consequences if they trust that duty to others who have less of a personal stake in the matter.
I think most of the problems in our young people are the result of public education and television. How we correct that is another subject entirely.
Simple. #1: Everybody carries a gun in public settings, with very few licensed exceptions, as per above.
Part #2: Don't repeal the present *gun-free school zone* laws. No guns in public schools equals no teachers, administrators or even janitors in the buildings, much less students who've reached their 17th birthday.
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