Pirate's Cove

Restoring citizens rights

(AP) Kansas legislators gave final approval Saturday to a bill that would nullify city and county gun restrictions and ensure that it’s legal across the state to openly carry firearms, a measure the National Rifle Association sees as a nationwide model for stripping local officials of their gun-regulating power.

The House approved the legislation, 102-19, a day after the Senate passed it, 37-2. The measure goes next to Republican Gov. Sam Brownback. He hasn’t said whether he’ll sign it, but he’s a strong supporter of gun rights and has signed other measures backed by the NRA and the Kansas State Rifle Association.

Kansas law doesn’t expressly forbid the open carrying of firearms, and the attorney general’s office has in the past told local officials that some restrictions are allowed. The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kan., has prohibited the practice, but the bill would sweep any such ban away, except to allow cities and counties to prevent openly carried weapons inside public buildings.

The measure also would prevent cities and counties from enacting restrictions on the sale of firearms and ammunition, or imposing rules on how guns must be stored and transported. Existing ordinances would be void, and local governments could not use tax dollars for gun buy-back programs.

What this certainly does is remove the “patchwork” of law that makes it difficult for law-abiding citizens to express their 2nd Amendment Right to carry. One the things the gun grabbers do is pass this tiny restriction, that tiny restriction, making it extremely difficult to carry a weapon legally. It gets to a point where law abiding citizens just say “to heck with it”, exactly what the gun grabbers want to happen (of course, criminals do not care, putting law abiding citizens in danger). Even with this new Kansas law, if Governor Brownback chooses to sign it, it can still be difficult. We have something similar in North Carolina, and it can still be difficult, because there are still restrictions. You have to know where you are in terms of government property and federal law.

Here’s where it gets humorous, with Dems/gun brabbers making funny statements

“We don’t want the feds imposing their will on us. We shouldn’t be doing that to the local jurisdictions,” said Rep. Carolyn Bridges, a Wichita Democrat and opponent of the bill.

Ms. Bridges is a big supporter of Obamacare, Medicare expansion, and a host of other federally driven laws. Like most Democrats.

But Jonathan Lowry, director of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence’s efforts to defend gun control policies in court and oppose the lessening of existing regulations, called the Kansas measure “undemocratic.”

“The gun lobby likes to prevent people who believe in sensible gun laws from having a say in protecting their own communities,” Lowry said. “It’s cynical, and it’s dangerous public policy.”

The Brady Center likes to push lots of top down gun restrictions. Common sense means “easy to understand”, not a raft of drips and drabs making it impossible to understand where it is and isn’t legal.

Perhaps these Dems should spend more time dealing with those who carry and use guns illegally, rather than restricting those of us who are law abiding citizens.

Crossed at Right Wing News.