Armed citizens let city council know who they work for

[warlock56]

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/1002guns02.html

Well done Virginians! :thumbsup:

"Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law', because law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual." -Thomas Jefferson

[AmeritecTech]

As the aforementioned famous Virginian said, "What country can preserve its liberties if its rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance?"

[MNeedham73]

I'd love to see something like that happen in a town that has a handgun ban.

Like, ohhh...Chicago

[warlock56]

Anytime you ever read in the newspaper or whatnot about citizens using firearms or the threat of firearms to make their government respect the wishes of the people, this is ALWAYS good news.

[SixofNine]

This has now happened several times in northern Virginia:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A50416-2004Jul14.html

As of July 1st, state statute in Virginia permits you to carry openly and overrides any local statutes prohibiting the practice. Concealed carry permits can also be obtained. Open carry is still illegal in the District of Columbia and Maryland unless you're a federal or local police officer.

The first incident took place at a Starbucks in Tysons Corner in June. In that case Fairfax County police on the scene confiscated the citizens' weapons and charged them with a misdemeanor. They realized their mistake, returned the guns and tore up the charges the next day. Police commanders have since issued a reminder to officers that open carry is legal.

The wording of the Virginia statute can cause a little confusion because its first paragraph states that it is illegal to carry loaded firearms in public places. However, the second paragraph defines a fireman as any semiautomatic weapon that holds more than 20 rounds or a shotgun that holds more than seven rounds.

I'm a little conflicted about this for a reason unrelated to the 2nd Amendment. In the Falls Church situation a small, incorporated town within Fairfax County is seeing a local ordinance that it passeed overriden by state statute. Do you like to see state (or federal) laws override local ordinances?

On the other hand, I certainly recognize the absolute uselessness of anti-gun laws. I lived in D.C. in the mid-1970s when that government outlawed handguns. Boy, that has really helped. :rolleyes:

Brian

[Biker]

It seemed simple enough. Suburban Falls Church, Va., officials recently drafted a policy that would require city workers to call 911 immediately if anyone stepped onto city property carrying a gun. Police who responded would check to see whether the gun was properly licensed and report their findings to city officials.

The local ordinance was not in conflict with state law. What the ordinance did was allow the legal harrassment of gun owners who were in compliance with the state law. That, in my book, is far worse.

[SixofNine]

The local ordinance was not in conflict with state law. What the ordinance did was allow the legal harrassment of gun owners who were in compliance with the state law. That, in my book, is far worse.

Yeah, that's a good point - the Falls Church ordinance doesn't prohibit hand guns. For that matter, it looks like it's not even an ordinance - just a policy directive to city workers.

Still, although I favor open carry laws, I'm guessing that there's a lot of overlap between those of us who are not enamored with anti-gun laws and those of us who would prefer not to see a state or federal statute override an ordinance passed by our local government.

I'm not taking a position one way or the other. I could certainly see areas where it makes sense to keep things as uniform as possible at a state or even a federal level, but there are probably many other areas where local governments should have the final say.

Brian

[Biker]

Still, although I favor open carry laws, I'm guessing that there's a lot of overlap between those of us who are not enamored with anti-gun laws and those of us who would prefer not to see a state or federal statute override an ordinance passed by our local government.

State and local ordinances should compliment higher laws, not contradict them.

In the military, we have regulations and supplements to those regulations at the Division, Base and Unit levels. Those supplements cannot contradict the basic regulation, but can be used to go beyond or strengthen the regulation itself.

The same should apply to our legal system. When communities go against the flow and create ordinances and laws that go against our "basic" rules, who's the real government?

[Techie2000]

Anytime you ever read in the newspaper or whatnot about citizens using firearms or the threat of firearms to make their government respect the wishes of the people, this is ALWAYS good news.I disagree. It is rather a sad reflection of society that people do not excercise their will at the voting booth. When people start influencing laws and changing the country by threatening with firearms that is anarchy.

[AmeritecTech]

I disagree. It is rather a sad reflection of society that people do not excercise their will at the voting booth. When people start influencing laws and changing the country by threatening with firearms that is anarchy.
I did not see where anyone was threatened with a firearm in the story. At what point did that happen?

The majority has no legitimate authority to deprive the minority of their rights no matter how many people exercise such a will at the voting booth.

[Techie2000]

I did not see where anyone was threatened with a firearm in the story. At what point did that happen?It didn't. I was responding to Warlock's statement not to the specific event in the first post.

[warlock56]

It didn't. I was responding to Warlock's statement not to the specific event in the first post.
In this particular case, the citizens used firearms. How they used them is quite a feat in finesse if you ask me.