Minnesota CCW: More guns, more trouble

Manitou Messenger (St. Olaf College) ^ | May 9, 2003 | Annie Rzepecki

[jdege]

Last Monday, Minnesota committed itself to more innocent killings when Governor Pawlenty signed the House- and Senate-approved conceal and carry law, which allows any adult without a criminal record or a mental disability to tote a handgun in public places, excluding school properties. More specifically, the new law forbids local governments from banning handguns in places where the state government allows them. After this law takes effect in 30 days, you could be sitting in a park or researching at a public library, not knowing if the person next to you is packing heat. Comforting, isn't it? This conceal and carry law is outrageous. Hasn't anyone heard of the phrase, "violence begets violence?" How is the presence of more handguns going to help the already high rate of handgun-related deaths and injuries? Because of this new law, the number of people legally allowed to conceal and carry handguns could jump from around 12,000 to as many as 90,000 people, according to a legislative estimate. What was Pawlenty thinking? I have walked the streets of Minneapolis at night, and I have never wished that I had a gun in my purse for safety. A can of mace on my key-chain will suffice, thank you. The state legislature is very confident that a simple background check can determine whether or not the applicant will misuse his or her handgun privileges. Violent behavior can start at any time, folks - even after the all-powerful state background check. [Excerpted]

[jimkress]

Opinions Editor Annie Rzepecki is a sophomore from Edina, Minn.

And has a very sophomoric view of reality.

[goldstategop]

I don't understand why young liberal women would trust the night to creeps and weirdoes. Campus police can't be around to escort every young woman after dark to her car in this age of budget cutbacks. Besides one would think this writer would be comforted by the knowledge someone nearby was packing which has beneficial but oft overlooked "multiplier" effect: criminals will give even unarmed civilians a pass since they don't know who is carry a concealed gun. The result is society is safer and women are free from fear. Maybe she can explain for us what exactly is wrong with this line of thinking.

[jimkress]

Aren't we all in favor of getting the dead bodies off the street?

[DeFault User]

You provide a very logical argument which has been borne out by statistics and experience. I often wonder whether people such as the author are incapable of such reasoning or so blinded by their beliefs that they can't admit their fallacy. Unfortunately, I suspect it's not "either or", but "both".

[Dan from Michigan]

I can go on all day here. I'll simply say this. How many CCW holders are convicted for felonies in the other states?

Out of 53,000 issued under the new law in Michigan, we had 55 revokations.

2 - Not truthful on Application
2 - Lost/Stolen Permit
6 - Misdemenor conviction
5 - Unknown conviction
4 - Felony conviction
1 - Gun Board error
1 - Death
3 - Unknown
11 - Surrendered permit voluntarily
3 - Mental health condition
5 - PPO
1 - Board decision
8 - Charges pending
1 - Carried under influence
1 - Failure to disclose to officer when stopped(required)
1 - Carried in Criminal Empowerment zone

52945 out of 53000 CPL holders were upstanding citizents. That accounts for 99.9% of all CPL holders.

[Richard-SIA]

What is a "Criminal Empowerment zone"?

And why does carrying in one cost you your CCW?

The phrase sounds more like an area where your CCW would be MORE necessary than in other area's.

[xm177e2]

This conceal and carry law is outrageous. Hasn't anyone heard of the phrase, "violence begets violence?" How is the presence of more handguns going to help the already high rate of handgun-related deaths and injuries?

Gasp! The existence of that phrase logically proves wrong all of the arguments of the pro-CCW crowd. I've seen the light, I was wrong about gun rights! We should throw away all of our guns because "violence begets violence."

[Dan from Michigan]

"Gun Free Zones" are known to gun owner rights advocates as Criminal Empowerment zones or CEZ's.

If I am not allowed to carry there, it's a CEZ, since criminals carry anyway.

[punster]

Some more comments on the lame brain's coments.

"What was Pawlenty thinking? I have walked the streets of Minneapolis at night, and I have never wished that I had a gun in my purse for safety. A can of mace on my key-chain will suffice, thank you."

To call Ms.Rzepecki an idiot is giving her too much credit. What she completely ignores is: There are some individuals who are immune to mace. Especially those who are loaded on drugs or alcohol.

Furthermore, she is totally stupid about one of the unfortunate truths about self defense. If you use sufficient force to make an assailant cease his attack, you will have a high probability of killing him. It may well be the termination of his miserable existence will have a positive effect on society. Why? If he is dead, he will not rape, murder or rob anyone ever again.

[Gritty]

This woman appears to not be aware the same law has taken effect in 35 other states and the Apocylpse hasn't occured in any of them. In fact, just the opposite has happened.

But, expecting some situational awareness and fact-checking before writing emotional screeds is not expected from whining and hysterical Liberals. They get to write and publish whatever garbage pops up in their stream-of-consciousness little minds and the Media never calls them on the fact they are invariable wrong!

[Puppage]

I just realized that this "English major" doesn't have a clue about sentence structure.

Among other things. Higher learning my eye!

[monkeyshine]

"violence begets violence?"

Isn't that better than "violence gets the innocent?" Yes, violence begets violence, I think that is the point of the CCW law, moron.

You want a can of mace for protection? (mace is illegal, isn't it? You mean pepper spray - go make some spicey gumbo soup). Go for it. Someone else might want something that is proven to work.

[ozzymandus]

A college sophomore?? I'm supposed to care what some 19-yr old girl thinks?

[sauropod]

Opinions Editor Annie Rzepecki is a sophomore from Edina, Minn. She majors in English.

Sophmoric is what this article is. GAWD!

[vetvetdoug]

Comrade Reservepecker needs to take a walk in D.C. at night or New Orleans (Central Park in NY for that matter)before she makes a blanket statement about just needing pepper spray for personal protection. There are folks living in those places that use pepper spray for a spice in their gumbo.

[hairpiggie]

I live in Oregon, and am a carring consealed gun toten grandmother! Annie is another bleeding heart liberal that needs to police her own back yard and leave the rest of us to our own. It will only take one time for her to be assulted while unprotected, which is my 4th amendment right to keep and bear arms by the way, for her to change her mind. I am sure she believes in sharing the wealth too........Loma

[wcbtinman]

Just like a liberal to bring a can of mace to a gunfight.

[donmeaker]

My ex wife and I had lunch, and she showed me her new pepper spray. I sprayed it on my food (Kung Pao something) and munched away. It ticked her off.

As for Little Annie Fannie, she is, of course rabidly against use, possession, or training in firearms. I am amused by her certainty about things she does not understand. Oh, to be 19 again.

[RogueIsland]

I just realized that this "English major" doesn't have a clue about sentence structure.

What, don't you want to get handgun deaths off the street? :-)

[from occupied ga]

Annie Rzepecki

Two things about this moron

1. Will she retract her fatuous drivel when Minnesota does not have more violent crime? No of course not liberals never admit when they're wrong. That's part of liberalism - never having to admit when you're wrong (and it's a good thing too, otherwise all they'd be doing is admintting that they're worng)
2. And a much more serious matter which was addressed by Thomas Sowell in his classic editorial "A childish letter" a couple of years ago. Sowell pointed out that all sorts of people have strongly held opinions on things without the slightest knowledge or understanding to back up those opinions, yet expect their opinions to be taken seriously.

   This is not limited to liberals. I've seen numerous threads even on this forum where some drivelhead yammers on about the economic benefits of space exploration (at the taxpayers expense of course - The taxpayers just don't know what's good for them) How the gas companes are supressing all sorts of radical new engines that get marvelous fuel economy - the list is endless.

   However, I digress. To get back to the point. gun haters don't have a shred of fact or logic on their side; nevertheless, they are extremely successful at stripping the rest of us of our rights because morons like this one don't engage in critical thinking, and the liberal/statist press hates and envies freedom so much that it gives them a forum. Cynthia Tucker who is one of the highest paid editors of the Atlanta Urinal/Constipation Spews out pro tax, pro government, anti individual venom on a daily basis, and expects her opinion to be believed. The sad part is that a lot of people do.

I'd like to mark this idiot's name and send her a follow up every month asking "Well is the violent crime up yet? No? But you said it would be. Does this mean that you're a complete airhead or does it just mean that you're an idiot?