Liberty and GUNS for All!
BY DANIEL FINDLAY
DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
Liberty and GUNS for All!
On April 12th, 2022 Governor Brian Kemp (Republican, Georgia) signed Senate Bill 319, which in short, removes the requirement of a carry permit for Georgia residents over 21 years of age.
Instead of filing for a gun license or conceal carry permit, “SB 319 makes sure that law abiding Georgians, including our daughters and your family too, can protect themselves without having permission from your state government. The Constitution of the United States gives us that right, not the government,” declared Governor Kemp.
The signing of SB 319 makes Georgia the 25th “Constitutional Carry” State.
The issue of constitutional carry is as old as, well,… the constitution!
Brief History Lesson:
Roll out the overhead projector and clear plastic transparency paper.
At America’s genesis, the founding fathers, wanted citizens to be able to defend their property against intruders, theft, and those “damned lobster backs”! Thus, the second amendment to the Bill of Rights was conceived. It states that no government entity will infringe upon the rights of any “well regulated militia or the rights of the people to keep and bare arms.”
While the right to carry a firearm in the name of self defense is widely accepted as requisite, there are many who oppose the notion.
A group of Georgia Democrats condemned the SB 319 legislation, arguing that it puts more lives in danger.
Consider this:
In the age of mass shootings, is it wise to legally arm more people without any stipulation?
Are police more likely to assume that every civilian they encounter is armed?
Will SB 319 add to the already rising crime rate in the state of GA?
Is there a correlation between the rise of violent crime and the increased number of constitutional carry states? (Four states have adopted constitutional carry laws this year (2022) alone!)
Those in favor of constitutional carry argue that law abiding citizens should have the right to protect themselves against criminals wielding firearms. However noble, it is a sentiment that has been under scrutiny for quite some time. The debate over stricter gun laws has been a political pendulum.
In 2013, President Obama unveiled an unprecedented proposal to increase gun-control. The former president introduced a plan that would address four major areas in a sweeping legislative effort:
Law Enforcement
Availability of dangerous firearms and ammunition
School safety
Mental Health
The proposal was ridiculed and seemingly led to naught. Gun violence was still high and mass shootings continued at horrifying rates.
The National Rifle Association, or NRA, released a statement refuting the validity of the President’s proposal, calling him an “elitist hypocrite” and stating that “the administration continues to push failed solutions to our nations most pressing problems.”
Regardless of your political affiliation one must acknowledge that it’s dangerous to give a non-governmental body based on an affinity the ability to deliberate on national matters.
Guns are big business in America, and any attempt to control a citizen’s ability to own and possess firearms has historically been met with hostility.
Amidst the rhetoric, here’s what we can surmise, states nationwide are becoming less stringent on gun ownership and possession.
A decision that will prove harmful to some, helpful to others, and cautious for all!