Gun Free Victim Zone Guide

Courtesy of Miguel at Gun Free Zone comes a handy guide to Gun Free Victim Zones, from the Facebook page of the anti-gun group Moms Demand Action.

Mass-Murder-BingoOf course, I don’t see these businesses as anything to admire, but to be avoided, since criminals now know they can ply their trade unopposed. I already avoid most of these locations when an acceptable alternative is available.

It’s worth noting that my local CVS is not posted, which means it isn’t a Gun Free Victim Zone under Georgia law.

It’s also worth noting that, under Georgia law, weapons prohibitions are a property violation, not a criminal one, meaning that if someone is carrying a gun in one of these businesses, the owner is allowed to ask them to leave. The only time the police are involved is if the carrier refuses to leave. At that point they could be charged with criminal trespass.

It’s also worth noting that where I live, Kennesaw, it is very likely that people carry concealed into these locations all the time, without the owners ever knowing. Very likely.

Why It’s A Good Idea For The Senate To Vote On The Gun Control Bill

Okay, this is as political as I am ever going to get in this blog.

I think it’s a good idea to let the new gun control bill come to the floor of the Senate, to be debated and voted on. Here are my reasons.

  • In the debates all the senators who speak will be on the record about where they stand, and all the senators’ votes will be on record. Then we can vote accordingly the next election.
  • People like Diane Feinstein and Chuck Schumer will get a spotlight to say something really ignorant and stupid, which can be replayed at our leisure for the rest of time.
  • The anti-gun faction will finally get a chance to say things that, if enacted, would violate the Second Amendment, and probably other parts of the Constitution as well.
  • Eventually, the bill will be voted down. In this I have no doubt.
  • The anti-gun faction will not be able to claim that they never got their chance to make their point or be heard. In fact, their illogical and unconstitutional points will be part of the public record.
  • The anti-gun faction will blame the NRA, (which will be true, especially when you consider all the NRA members who are swamping their senators right now) and the NRA’s membership will grow even more.

My two senators, Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss, are both on record saying they think this bill violates the Second Amendment, and will vote against it on the floor, but they voted for cloture to let that happen.

If we don’t give this bad bill it’s day, the anti-gun faction will just whine and complain, and it will be televised and marketed by their media friends, and we will be back in this situation again.

I’m willing to let the system do what it is designed to do.

Magpul Sets The Bar

Magpul noBy now it’s no news to the shooting community that Magpul Industries is leaving Colorado because of the onerous gun control legislation being passed there, chiefly the ban on standard capacity magazines.

It is one thing to say, as a company, that you will not sell to police or government in states that prohibit the sales of your product to their general citizens, as 136 companies have said the the state of New York. But Magpul is setting the standard even higher. It will certainly cost Magpul a lot of money to move its operations, but they are willing to do that, so they can operate somewhere that their own employees can buy their products.

Now the onus is on us, as gun owners and citizens, to make sure Magpul’s efforts are not in vain. I’m not saying to buy Magpul because of that they do, although I think buying one magazine would be a great symbol. I am saying that we can’t let them be the only company to take a stand. Other manufacturers in Colorado and elsewhere need to take the same action as Magpul.

What all this comes down to is respect. The Colorado legislature doesn’t respect its citizens, and they are showing that. After all, there is no logical reason, much less evidence, why lower magazine capacity makes anyone safer. Yet, the legislature and the governor are telling the citizens of Colorado that they know best. Further, they don’t respect the companies who pay the taxes and provide the jobs in their state.

Now, I know companies like Smith & Wesson and Colt have been in their locations in Massachusetts for a long, long time. They have a connection to the area. But the government of Massachusetts doesn’t respect them either, and it’s time for them to take a stand, and take their business to a state where they are respected.

As for the rest of us, we need to continue to take a stand. Speak out. Never let disrespect go unchallenged. A government of the people only works if the people are involved.

Welcome To The South

I wanted to relate something that happened at the gun show last weekend. Sorry I didn’t included it in the earlier post but I was reminded of it this morning.

This will be a shock to Diane Feinstein and Chuck Schumer, but it’s a familiar sight at a gun show – someone has purchased a gun, and they are standing there while the dealer waits on the phone to get the results of the background check. In Georgia, if you have a Georgia Weapons License this doesn’t last too long, because the GBI can check your GWL record quickly, bypassing the NICS.

But if not, you wait for the NICS check.

I was walking in an aisle at the gun show, and a fellow was waiting for the dealer who was on the phone, holding a clipboard with a form 4473 on it. On the table between them was a pistol case with a bill of sale on it. As I got closer, he asked the dealer “Oh, does this  take care of registration, too?”

The dealer didn’t understand him, partially because it was fairly loud in the Cobb County Civic Center, and partially because the question didn’t make sense.

As I moved past, he asked it again, and the dealer just looked at him sideways. And it dawned on me what he was saying.

“Do you mean registering the gun?” I asked him. He said yes.

It was then I noticed, he was fairly well built, with a military haircut. And his accent was . . . well . . . not from around here. Yankee-ish. I guessed he had just moved here either with the Air Force or Army.

“Oh, there’s no gun registration in Georgia,” I told him. He seemed taken aback. I repeated it.

“Oh. Really?”

“Really. Georgia doesn’t care how many guns you have. Welcome to the South.”

“Thank you, sir!”

Welcome, indeed.