Posted on 08/02/2004 7:51:09 PM PDT by Dan from Michigan
FOP SHOULD NOW ENDORSE NATIONAL CCW FOR PRIVATE CITIZENS, SAYS CCRKBA
Based on the Fraternal Order of Police support for national concealed carry for working and retired police officers as "a deterrent to crime and terrorism," the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) today called on the FOP to support national concealed carry for armed private citizens.
CCRKBA Executive Director Joe Waldron noted, "We all know that even retired policemen can't always be there when they are needed to prevent or stop a crime, but the likelihood of legal intervention increases when you add several million law-abiding, licensed private citizens to the equation.
"These private citizens," Waldron observed, "lobbied vigorously on behalf of the police in their effort to pass the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act. It is only the right and proper thing to expect that active duty and retired police officers now benefiting from that law, along with police groups like the FOP, would immediately, and without reservation, step to the plate and support national concealed carry for all legally-armed private citizens."
Currently, dozens of states have enacted reciprocity agreements amongst themselves and a handful of states have passed "universal recognition" laws that simply honor concealed pistol licenses issued by all other states, Waldron noted. The problem is that these state reciprocity agreements do not cover all states.
"Private citizens have the same self-defense rights as working and retired cops," Waldron said. "After all, outside their jurisdictions, and after they've entered retirement, these officers are just plain citizens like everyone else. Citizens do not leave their self-defense rights at state borders, no matter what they do for a living.
"Contrary to what some would have us believe," Waldron added, "the vast majority of these citizens have received competent training in the use of firearms as a condition to obtaining their carry licenses. Many are competitive shooters who use their firearms far more frequently than working or retired police officers. They are remarkably competent, and would only further add to our level of community safety and homeland security.
"They have been staunch supporters of law enforcement," Waldron stated, "and they understand better than anyone else that instead of society continuing to place the burden of safety just on police officers, especially the retired cops, all citizens should share that responsibility. How better could they do that than to promote a national safety act for citizens, with the well-earned support of this nation's dedicated policemen and women?"
With more than 650,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms is one of the nation's premier gun rights organizations. As a non-profit organization, the Citizens Committee is dedicated to preserving firearms freedoms through active lobbying of elected officials and facilitating grass-roots organization of gun rights activists in local communities throughout the United States.
Same here.
The ironic thing will be that FOP may wind up hurting their own members by delaying shall-issue in a few states, in the event that HR218 gets overturned by the courts.
Then you'll have a situation where out-of-state cops can't carry outside their own state without risking arrest by a JBT.
I personally would be like to see the national reciprocity bill go hand in hand with the renewal of Clinton's semi-auto gun ban.
If the Demorats want the ban so bad, make them give us coast-to-coast Concealed Carry through a reciprocity bill.
Thoughts?
No way. Someone with a Florida or Tennessee CCW permit can already "legally" carry in about 30 other states. Throw in the ones where you can still open carry, and it's up to about 35. By the end of the decade, I predict that all but a half-dozen or so states will recognize CCW 'permits' from other states.
Giving up magazines in excess of 10 rounds simply isn't worth no longer having to be worried about being hassled in anti-RKBA states like Kalifornia and New Joisey. Anyway, what would probably happen is that the courts would throw out the reciprocity part of it, and we'd be stuck with a permanent AWB.
Furthermore, the tide is turning in our favor, at least at the state level. There are only about 4 states remaining that are capable of enacting anti-gun legislation. The Illinois legislature even recently passed a pro-gun bill, and the Maryland legislature couldn't even pass a state AWB (which would have been vetoed anyway). We are winning, and now is not the time to start cutting deals.
I will support OPEN CARRY and CCW under one very important caveat ... NO REGISTRATION!
That is the easiest way to have all the weapons confiscated very quickly and quietly...when you know exactly where the weapons are.
I can't go along with that. That's too much of a price to pay.
"Too much of a price to pay"
I admit - I've only held 2nd amendment interests and ownership since about March of 1999. So I never owned or was interested before the Clinton ban. But I haven't found myself unable to protect my family with the wide range of firearms available from 1999 until today. So I don't see what the ban prohibits, but I wouldn't say "TOO MUCH OF A PRICE TO PAY" since it been on the books for almost ten years now.
Just letting them keep the ban in exchange for a new national CCW would be a great gain - since I don't feel the current "loss" at all.
now Mudler makes the most sense of all on this thread.
Thanks.
George...the flaw I see in your theory of "great gain" is the gun-grabbers strategy of incrementalism. Their goal is to slowly and surely legislate, one law at a time, until we have no guns, and/or no ammunition. Once the sunset occurs on AWB in 42 days, look for the gun grabbers to begin focusing on a new, more restrictive law, and also to renew the debate on proposals outlawing certain types of ammo.
Don't ever doubt that underneath it all, the socialists inside the Democratic party do not want you to be able to defend your own life, family, liberty, or property. Instead, they want you to be dependent on them for everything, including your safety. Your guns and ammo, regardless of the type/make/model/quantities are standing in their way.
FOP is for leftwing cops. LEAA is for rightwing cops.
I'm in GA (a Shall Isuue State) I have been grappling with CC permit option--I would like to be able to CC, but am very reluctant to undergo the "presumption of guilt and future criminality" to do so (FBI/GBI Background check, fingerprinting etc--as if by mere ownership of a firearm and a desire to carry, I am a "Future Criminal of America") while the guy who plans to commit armed robbery scoffs it all off. I am a law abiding citizen, and resent having to submit to a process that is routinely employeed when processing a CRIMINAL. Its the data base that concerns me. Same with any firearm purchase..the database is supposed to be dumped but some states have been accused of not dumping the firearms purchase approval data base. I am a staunch advocate of: "Shall Not Be Infringed"---period.
Yeah;
that's not at all necessary.
Why should we give up a Constitutional right to get something we'll have in a couple years anyway?
(Renew the AWB? Sheesh!)
There's no need to mention other countries. It's established fact in NY with respect to the AR-15 and similar semi-autos that registration enabled confiscation. Unfortunately, unless driven by other events, the RKBA has to proceed with baby steps.
Yeah.... there is a tradeoff there. Maintaining privacy vs. the fact that you won't get harassed by a gun-grabbing JBT for carrying a gun. I can understand the arguments of folks on both sides of issue.
But things are slowly improving. Alaska just went to Vermont-style carry (no 'permit' for either open or concealed) last year. And one house of the New Hampshire legislature passed a bill to do so. And a bill was introduced in Utah to do so.
I think that since we now have shall-issue CCW in 35+ states, the next step will be pushing for Vermont style carry. I think it's possible that a dozen states will be there before the end of the decade.
Let's hope so...thanks for the post.
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