Thanks to the Media!

[stevie_d_64]

I think I'm in the minority here, but I'll go and say this anyway:
I think EVERYONE has the right to keep and bear arms. That includes people that have been formerly convicted of a crime. As long as they are not using their weapons to intimidate people or break the law, they should be allowed to have and carry them.

Remember, people banned for life from keeping and bearing arms include such dangerous people as Martha Stewart, G Gordon Liddy, and Kenneth Lay.

Even someone that was convicted of a nastier crime, that did their time, and repaid their debt to society should be able to defend themselves and their family. If they are such a danger to society that we can't trust them with a cornerstone right, they need to stay locked up.

According to the constitution, EVERYONE has that right, even though our current federal, state, and local laws do not recognize that right.

Much in the same way everyone has the right to free speech and exercise of religion.
Sure, I might not like satanists, but they have the right to say and practice the way they want.

None of us would stand for any law that would force longtooth, or carlson1 to wait 60 days for the government to check them and make them pay $300 for the "right" to preach.

The fact that we have a CHL means we have the money and time to get the state to partially restore a right we should have anyway.

If you had to go through the same rigmarole to exercise your 1st amendment rights, nobody would stand for it.

It's a sad state of affairs that people stand for as much as we do in regards to our 2nd amendment rights.

OK, I'll get off my soapbox now.

Ok, your not in the minority by yourself...At least there are two of us...

[stevie_d_64]

Just a technical correction but Kenneth Lay is not barred from carrying a firearm or buying one. It may be a little hard for him to do so, being dead and all, but he legally can. His conviction was vacated when he died due to a quirk in federal law about deaths between conviction and sentencing making the conviction invalid.

Unless death somehow invalidates his citizenship or residency, I don't see anything on the 4473 that would keep a dead person from buying a gun.

Or voting...

[Mithras61]

Just a technical correction but Kenneth Lay is not barred from carrying a firearm or buying one. It may be a little hard for him to do so, being dead and all, but he legally can. His conviction was vacated when he died due to a quirk in federal law about deaths between conviction and sentencing making the conviction invalid.

Unless death somehow invalidates his citizenship or residency, I don't see anything on the 4473 that would keep a dead person from buying a gun.

Or voting...

Texas ain't Chicago...

[stevie_d_64]

Just a technical correction but Kenneth Lay is not barred from carrying a firearm or buying one. It may be a little hard for him to do so, being dead and all, but he legally can. His conviction was vacated when he died due to a quirk in federal law about deaths between conviction and sentencing making the conviction invalid.

Unless death somehow invalidates his citizenship or residency, I don't see anything on the 4473 that would keep a dead person from buying a gun.

Or voting...

Texas ain't Chicago...

Thank goodness!!! Geesh, you scared me for a second...

[rkhal]

Can he get a gun? Legally no,

I am not sure I follow you ---- if he cannot legally get a gun he can not legally have it in his car.

Having it in the car is legal if --

You are not barred from having a weapon

You are not a gang-banger

You are not committing a crime other than traffic offense

The car is under your control

the weapon is concealed

As a chl we can take a weapon a lot of places w/o having to leave it in the car. I think that the vast majority of people are every bit as honest and law abiding as we are and should be allowed to have the gun in their car.

[stevie_d_64]

As a chl we can take a weapon a lot of places w/o having to leave it in the car. I think that the vast majority of people are every bit as honest and law abiding as we are and should be allowed to have the gun in their car.

You are correct on those points...But like I've said before, and Charles could come in an confirm...

Once you step out of that vehicle, with the firearm...A lot of other things come into play when that happens...Even though it might be a "good shoot" (personally I don't believe any shoot is good, but that's beside the point) there might be some clever technical legal issues that could be used against you...

So the bottom line is that I guess I am hoping there is a spike in CHL applications and licences across the board after Monday rolls around...And for the most part there are people here that are going to carry in their vehicles after Monday, and at the same time they either are going to start the CHL process, or have one already in work...

I believe a "what you can and cannot do" discussion on this non-CHL vehicle carry here might be in order...

I leave it to y'all...

[Texican_gal]

Now you ask why dont I move, Its my dad, he has been diagnosed as mentally ill, and child like tendencies. Got arrested in a store recently for hitting a store manager.

Now would you want that person to have a gun? You know my opinion.

Your father has not been "adjudicated" mentally ill by a court, has he?

There's plenty of "mental illness" that doesn't make a person dangerous. Then again, there are quite sane people who are very, very dangerous. The word "evil" may actually apply.

If your father has gotten this far in life without killing anyone, the chances are low that he will do so now. Aren't most murders committed by 17-25 yr olds or something?

I don't care if he has a gun or not. If he were to "lose it" and attack someone, he will already have access to and possibly use:

1) his fists (apparently he just did this) or feet
2) a motor vehicle
3) a knife
4) a blunt instrument
5) anything he can reach

We are unable to control things to a great extent. There are people who "shouldn't" get married because they cheat constantly; people who shouldn't be around children, yet they are able to conceive and produce their own without state interference; people who shouldn't be in positions of power because they are lousy, demeaning bosses who actually cost their companies money, etc. etc. I could go on but I have to get back to work!

The answer is more guns, not fewer.

[stevie_d_64]

The answer is more guns, not fewer.

Well thats pretty good in my book...

But like scooter has been relating to us, reinforces my core belief that we as people generally police ourselves better than the government and others do...

If someone unfortunately flies off the handle...There are mechnisms in place that can handle that...

I trust people more than authority or the government, but I have to temper that with the reality that there is somewhat of a need for them to have certain parameters to operate under...Gives us a little order in society...

A quote I have used from time to time comes to mind...

"I do not fear my government, but I do dispise the tyranny of good intentions!"

I believe without a doubt that scooter would do their best to not let the issue become a hazard to any of us...I see that in the way he has presented this to us to discuss...

[Texican_gal]

By the way, there are many, many more people who should NOT be driving cars because of medical issues, degraded reflexes, reduced mental acuity, and so on.

But they are driving around causing wrecks and killing people every single day. Their families are happy to let them do this.

I had a 21-year-old neighbor who was killed by an old lady who ran two stop signs, hit a construction area and "became airborne" and T-boned this sweet kid's Honda Civic.

Her family donated the girl's organs.

The old lady who killed her would actually call the family of the girl she killed and complain that "my son won't get my car fixed."

She was too mentally degraded to even realize what fully had happened, yet she'd been driving herself all over north Texas.

Moral of story: worry about cars first, more than anything.

[stevie_d_64]

There will always be the "too lates", and "what ifs" till the end of time...Its sad, and it stinks, but I believe we'll always try to do the best we can...

I'm more of an optimist than a pessimist...