Last month in the Kansas Senate, legislation was introduced that would allow anyone with right to own a gun the right to concealed carry, that is the right to conceal the weapon during the course of day to day activities.
Here is what you need to know about the legislation and those that are currently working to pass the legislation.
[column size=one_half position=first ]
[divider]Who[/divider]
The legislation was introduced by a group of 25 republican senators and one democrat of the total 40 Kansas Senators. The group is led by Senate Majority leader Terry Bruce, republican senator for the 34th district, including all of Reno and the upper half of Kingman counties. Bruce is a lifelong resident of that district, graduated from Fort Hays State University, with a degree in Political Science, and received a law degree from the University of Kansas.
Bruce is one of three Kansas state senators to be given a 100 percent rating by the National Rifle Association during the 2012 campaign cycle.
Bruce voted for concealed carry when it originally passed the state senate in 2007 and voted for the stopping of local governments from restricting state gun laws.
[divider]History[/divider]
Early Kansas history is full of descriptions of gun violence, shootouts and executions seemed to be commonplace. The wild history of old west towns like Dodge City, still echo through the national psyche. What most people may not know is that gun control were far more stringent, with most towns setting up check stations for weapons at the edge of town.
In fact, the first law in Dodge City prohibited the carrying of guns in town. So it can now be said if this new law passes gun control was far more stringent in the old west than it is today.
[/column]
[column size=one_half position=last ]
[divider]Changes[/divider]
Kansas, under Governor Brownback, has expanded gun ownership rights and signed one of the most liberal pieces of gun ownership rights into law in 2013, which made it illegal for local governments to put any restrictions on gun ownership rights, and gave direction to local officials not to follow federal gun laws, if the weapon is made and sold within the state.
The good news is private business owners can still create a “gun free” zone in their business.
[divider]Law[/divider]
Currently in Kansas anyone with the right to gun ownership is allowed to carry a weapon openly, with the right to concealed carry being limited to permit holders that have completed a training course and have been issued a license through the Kansas Attorney General. There are some exceptions to the places where a gun can legally be carried, for example schools or courthouses, but generally Kansas is one of the most progressive states in terms of gun owner rights.
[/column]
[divider]Another point of view[/divider]
– Nick Kleiber, is a FHSU student. This piece was submitted to TMN through the current political issues class.
Imagine government controlling your every move. Taking advantage of you to better
themselves, caring only about how they can get what they want from you. This may
sound like a tyrannical way of thinking, paranoia, or crazy, but this is how the United
States of America got started, and why we are the way we are now.
The main reason the U.S. escaped British control is that we could fight back. The U.S. had an equal amount of firepower as
the British. This is why the second amendment is in the constitution and why we need to be very careful
when it comes to gun control.
Let me first start off by saying this has absolutely nothing to do with
hunting. It is not mentioned in the Constitution, so it has no place in this argument. While I feel it is
important to have some laws on gun control, we do not need to be so strict on them.
The more gun control laws we have, the more likely a country can be taken control of by
force. Joseph Stalin, former premier of the Soviet Union; Pol Pot, Cambodian Communist revolutionary;
Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi party; Mao Zedong, former Chairman of the Communist Party of China;
these should all be familiar names to all of us. They were all bad people. They did not start out that way
though. They all started by strengthening their government, and they were saviors to the people until
they took over. They knew the only way to take over was to first gain the people’s trust and disarm
them. They applied strict gun control in their countries and then took control of the country by force. I
am not saying this is going to happen in the United States, but if we have gun control it makes it a lot
more likely. The theory behind gun control of taking away the guns or making them illegal so people
cannot commit gun crimes is outrageous. It will not work since there will always be an illegal market for
criminals, and you can also make guns and ammunition fairly easy on your own. It is just like making
drugs illegal. The people who really want them do not care if they break the law to get them. They are
criminals and criminals break the rules.
I agree that a little gun control is not an entirely bad idea. We should not make it easy or legal for
people who have committed violent crimes in the past to acquire them because if you have done it once
you are likely to do it again. I am also not saying we should just let anyone go out and buy a tank or
rocket launcher. There is not much reason to need one of those, although with the right paper work you
can acquire them. However, most of the time they will not fire because they have been demilled. I
think that as legal and law abiding citizens we should be allowed to own more than just your typical
hunting guns, which includes bolt action rifles and shotguns, because these do not do a whole lot of good
in case we are someday forced to defend ourselves from a tyrannical government, or invading troops. We
need a step under what the military has with a right to own semi-automated
rifles as long as there is no personal reason to prevent ownership. At the end of the day most countries have jets,
bombers, drones, tanks, armored vehicles, machine guns, rockets, satellites, nukes, and a multitude of
other weapons and fighting apparatuses;way more than any civilian will ever be close to owning.
People who want to hurt other people will always find a way to do it. They do not need a gun. It is just one option that is out there, and according to statistics not one of the first choices for most criminals with bad intentions. You can make a bomb with just a few household items mixed into
proper proportions. There are knives, bats, and basically anything can be turned into a weapon to harm
people. It is just the mindset of the user. No object is a weapon on its own, but with bad intentions
behind it anything can be turned into a weapon, and that is why gun control is bound to fail.
Want even more? See a full length video with Sarah Bailey here.
Like this:
Like Loading...
Related
