Knives are banned at Tampa’s GOP convention, but guns are OK

Miami Herald ^ | May 2, 2012 | Fred Grimm

[bkopto]

Don’t come messing around the Republican National Convention with an “air rifle, air pistol, paintball rifle, explosive blasting cap, switchblade, hatchet, ax, slingshot, blackjack, metal knuckles, nunchakus, mace, iron buckle, ax handle, chain, crowbar, hammer, shovel or any club or bludgeon.”

All this along with “any other instrumentality used or intended to be used to cause physical or personal damage.”

Except, of course, for the most obvious instrument intended to cause physical or personal damage.

The city didn’t prohibit guns. It can’t.

Gov. Rick Scott, who could, won’t. He rejected a request from Mayor Bob Buckhorn asking for an “executive order prohibiting the transportation of firearms in Downtown Tampa.”

Scott’s answered arrived Wednesday. “Like you,” the governor stated, “I share the concern that ‘violent anti-government protests or other civil unrest’ can post ‘dangers’ and the ‘threat of substantial injury or harm to Florida residents and visitors to the state.’ But it is unclear how disarming law abiding citizens would better protect them from the dangers and threats posed by those who would flout the law.”

Of course, Buckhorn and the Tampa City Council weren’t worried so much about nice, local, law-abiding retirees packing heat when some 15,000 wild-eyed zealots with so many warring opinions invade Tampa. Buckhorn’s letter to Scott noted that the city has passed a temporary ordinance that “regulates certain items that are usually benign in nature, but have been historically used as dangerous weapons” at certain national events. “One noticeable item missing from the City’s temporary ordinance is firearms.”

The city can keep paint guns, switchblades, even sticks away from the convention site. But legislation passed in 2011 — at the behest of the NRA — forbids local governments from passing even temporary firearm regulations that exceed the state’s tepid gun laws. The statute includes hefty penalties for government officials who try. If the Tampa City Council were to attempt to include guns on its list of temporarily banned items, the city could be hit with a $500,000 penalty and the mayor and council members fined $5,000 fined each and removed from office.

The governor, however, has certain executive powers that, in special circumstances, allow him to “suspend or limit the sale, dispensing or transportation of alcoholic beverages, firearms, explosives and combustibles.” Scott would have none of it. And gun rights, in Florida, still trump local concerns. Cities and counties can’t ban firearms in parks, government buildings or airport terminals. Or in the protest zone outside the Tampa Bay Times Forum convention center.

“We look silly in the eyes of the world,” Mayor Buckhorn told reporters last week. “The absurdity of us being able to ban squirt guns but being prohibited from banning guns is just ridiculous.”

Buckhorn should be careful. The gun lobby is forever looking for new and novel ways to demonstrate its formidable political power. Imagine the new bumper sticker: “When they outlaw the Super Soaker Hydro Cannon, only outlaws will have Super Soakers.”

[Theoria]

Correct. You have a right to ‘arms’. The fact that Gov’t has implied it as merely a gun, is a tragedy.

[wildbill]

Sounds right to me. The guys with knives would be at a terrible disadvantage against the guys with guns in any likely mass kill-out at the GOP convention.

So banning the knives will discourage the knife fighters and likely lead to a more peaceable convention.

Of course I expect to see some campaign buttons reading:

Once knives are banned, only outlaw delegates will have knives

[W. W. SMITH]

The dem protesters don’t worry Tampa or the RNC it’s the conservatives and the Tea Party, we might ask hard questions.

[TigersEye]

I see no mention of cannon.

[longtermmemmory]

as usual the miami herald demonstrats why it it dumber than USA Today for idiots. The CCW permit includes knives so if the person is a permit holder the “holding” is legal.

This is just the pro castro commies of the old miami pushing a red neck meme in order to try and provoke a riot.

[cornfedcowboy]

Makes perfect sense. Hunting knives carried on a belt slice the heck out of upholstered seats. Restaurants in deer hunting regions know this. Guns........no problem. Knives......leave in the truck.