This is a follow up to the restaurant carry bill being passed in the Tennessee House yesterday. The first video is from 20/20 on the myth of gun control. I have to say, it would be very hard for me to agree with Rosie O’Donnell or Al Sharpton on just about anything, but hey, to each his own. The second video is a testimony before Congress by Dr. Suzanna Gratia-Hupp, a woman who survived a shooting while eating lunch with her parents. Both of her parents were killed by the crazy guy who decided to start killing people in a restaurant. The thing about these crazy guys, is you never know when or where they are going to snap.

Why don’t gun laws work? “Bad guys tend to ignore gun laws.” Imagine that.

“Guns are used 700,000 times a year in defensive situations.”

Dr. Suzanna Gratia-Hupp testifying.

“I would much rather be sitting in jail with a felony offense on my head and have my parents alive.”

“The second amendment is not about duck hunting.”

Violent crimes occur every day in many many places. It could be at a restaurant, nursing home, gas station, or church, or it could happen in your home. Places you go every day. I pray that I am never in a situation where I need to defend myself or my family. I hope that if I am, I am prepared and able to protect the people I love.

If you enjoyed this post you might want to check out the 101 best gun quotes ever or our post on the assault weapons ban.

From Matthew Hurtt who got it from Colby Sledge.

5:32 p.m. FINAL UPDATE: The House passes HB0962, the guns-in-restaurants bill that would allow handgun carry permit holders to carry their weapons into restaurants that serve alcohol. The bill, as amended, would ban those weapons from restaurants from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.

The bill now moves to the Senate, where it currently sits in committee. The House vote, 70-26, would be enough to override a potential veto by Gov. Phil Bredesen, who has said he’ll make his decision when/if a bill comes to his desk.

I have to say, I am very pleased that our representatives stood up for our second amendment rights this afternoon. The Senate gets the next crack at it followed by Governor Bredesen. The Senate has had enough support the last few years, the House has been the problem. Hopefully they pass it soon and Bredesen can sign it into law. If passed, it is supposed to go into effect July 1st.

There are a few other bills concerning parks coming up soon that will interest those with their carry permit as well.

11. *HB0716 - Handgun Permits - As introduced, allows any resident who has a valid handgun carry permit to possess a handgun while within the boundaries of any state park. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 13 and Title 70.

12. *HB0960 - Firearms and Ammunition - As introduced, authorizes person with handgun carry permit to possess firearm in local, state, or federal parks. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 13 and Title 70.

If you have the time, contact your representatives and let them know how you feel about these bills.

I really can’t seem to wrap my head around the way some people think. There have been some incredibly despicable acts of violence in the last few days. There was a terrible shooting in New York and also one in Pennsylvania. My thoughts and prayers are with the friends and families of the victims. What I am not doing is looking for someone or something to blame.

Michelle Malkin pointed out what some people are blaming this on, and it is really pathetic.

IBM and corporate greed.

The Second Amendment.

The NRA.

Fox News.

Me. FreeRepublic.com RedState.com

Lou Dobbs.

“Your 2nd Amendment rights at work. The NRA is answerable for this.”

Michele Bachmann.

Conservative talk radio.

All right-wingers.

Ok people, can we think these things through for a minute. The gun isn’t the problem here. Talk radio hosts are not the problem. The second amendment and the NRA are not the problem. THE FREAKING CRAZY GUY IS THE PROBLEM! This is really not that difficult to figure out.

The thing that I hate about this is that politicians will use these shootings as reasons for tougher gun control. Somehow, they think that making guns illegal will stop criminals from committing murder. Guess what, that guy who doesn’t care about your laws against murder, really doesn’t care about your laws against guns. He is going to have a gun. His life will be much easier though without having to worry about any law abiding citizens having a gun.

Stop making excuses for the guy. Stop trying to pin the blame on inanimate objects or people you just don’t like. Stop using crazy people as a reason to take away guns. The crazy guy is the reason we need guns. I want to have the opportunity to protect myself and my loved ones if I am ever unfortunate enough to be in that type of situation.

Stop looking for someone to blame or for a way to gain something politically when a tragedy like this happens. No amount of gun control would have stopped this, and the blame is really easy, it falls on the crazy guy.

Here in the great state of Tennessee we recently had a news organization publish a list  of / link to the information publicly available on the Internet containing the details of individuals who possess a handgun carry permit. This has caused quite a bit of outrage from permit holders who either didn’t believe this information was openly available or who believe that most people would not be able to find the information so easily if not for this news agency making it easier. Permit holders are especially concerned about what the effects of this public data may be.

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I got a few responses from folks in regards to my Assault Weapons Ban post pointing out that the ban expired and is no longer in effect. While that is true, the point of that article was that a new ban is coming, the new White House website even says as much. The folks over at SayUncle point out that Capitol Hill is talking:

Despite the new administration’s insistence that jobs and the economy will be the top priority beginning January 20, insiders say payback to the NRA and other pro-Second Amendment groups is high on the agenda. Democratic advisors say the Republican party is “disorganized, disheartened, and dissolving” and it’s a good time for the incoming administration to take them on in a core issue - the assault weapons ban is one of three topics they’re evaluating.

The other two issues? Child proofing guns and the ‘Gun Show Loop Hole”. These things are coming folks, start talking to your representitives now!

I’ve already talked about the problems with the Obama administration’s goal to require that all firearms be child-proofed as well as the misinformation about the “Gun Show Loophole” (That isn’t a loop hole at all). I wanted to finish this series with a discussion on the Federal Assault Weapons Ban. The sad truth of this legislation that Obama administration would like to make permanent is that it doesn’t do anything. This legislation does nothing at all, it did nothing the last time it was enacted except serve as a way for politicians to look tough on guns.
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