Andy Sharp/Staff This weathered bumper sticker referring to the Kennesaw ordinance requiring gun ownership is on the door of Wildman's Civil War Surplus store.
Posted on 02/19/2007 2:41:25 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
On a per capita basis, the city's serious crime rate has plunged since the law was passed. The actual number of the most serious crimes has barely increased, even as the city's population has exploded from about 5,000 in 1980 to more than 30,000 in 2005.
A visitor could drive the length of Kennesaw and think it a lot like other fast-growing metro Atlanta communities.
Except for the Confederate flags that fly atop Wildman's Civil War Surplus Shop downtown and the presence of a certain famous train, not much sticks out among the modern housing developments and retail plazas.
But in one way, Kennesaw is different: Its residents are required to pack heat.
Next month, Kennesaw marks the 25th anniversary of what a local historian called the ordinance "that rocked the world."
Every head of household, the 1982 law states, must own a firearm and appropriate ammunition. It was passed, at least in part, in response to the actions of Morton Grove, Ill., which had just adopted an anti-gun ordinance.
If only people in the north Cobb County city took the law seriously.
"They'll say, 'Oh, yeah, I've got a gun — a water pistol!' " resident Richard Bracken explains.
Some locals aren't even aware of the ordinance.
"I hadn't heard of it," said Mary Kopins, a seven-year resident.
"I am the head of the household — I mean, it's just me and my cat," Kopins said. "I hope that doesn't mean I have to go out and get a gun."
Legally, yes. But practically speaking, no.
"We don't have officers who go out and check your house to see if you have a gun," said police Lt. Craig Graydon, who has fielded calls about the ordinance from reporters in France, Australia and Japan. "The law gives you enough loopholes that you can get out of owning a gun."
Conscientious objectors to firearms, felons and persons with physical or mental disabilities are exempt. No one has ever been arrested for not having a gun, Graydon said, and there is no penalty for violating the ordinance.
He said there have been few accidental shootings in Kennesaw in his 20 years with the department, and none involving children.
Still, as Kennesaw continues to grow and cultivate a progressive, business-minded image, will there still be room for the "Wild West" image often associated with the ordinance?
Elected officials say they have no intention of getting rid of the gun law.
"We've come a long ways," said Mayor Leonard Church, himself a gun owner. "We have a lot more to offer than when that law was put on the books."
When the law was passed, Kennesaw was still a tiny outpost between U.S. 41 and I-75. It had come out of some hard economic times in the 1950s and was growing, boosted by the development of nearby Town Center Mall and, later, Kennesaw State University.
A local newspaper, recently writing about Kennesaw's efforts to update its image and attract more businesses and residents, referred to the city as "an educational, cultural and business hub."
Contrast that with a Penthouse magazine article from a couple decades back that showed five armed men standing in front of a Kennesaw city limits sign. The headline: "Gun Town."
Church, the mayor, points to the city's other assets.
He points to the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History, home of the General, the Confederate locomotive stolen by Yankee spies in 1862 and the subject of the motion picture "The Great Locomotive Chase."
Church also mentions the Smith-Gilbert Arboretum and the potential of a downtown now made up of a few antique shops, cafes and Wildman's.
The latter is packed with authentic and replica Civil War memorabilia and is owned by local eccentric Dent Myers.
Long-haired and bearded, Myers wears a pair of .45s openly on his belt. A sign on the front of his shop advises, "Guns Allowed."
Church said neither the ordinance, nor some gun-totin' image, conflicts with the city's plans.
"We're not looking to change [the law]," he said. "It's not going anywhere. I think it helps deter crime."
Police agree. "We look at it as part of our crime prevention program," Graydon said.
Police cite Kennesaw's crime statistics, which show a community largely untouched by the worst offenses like murder, rape, robbery and assault.
On a per capita basis, the city's serious crime rate has plunged since the law was passed. The actual number of the most serious crimes has barely increased, even as the city's population has exploded from about 5,000 in 1980 to more than 30,000 in 2005.
"We can't say it works, but the population has [grown]," Graydon said, "and we've maintained a very low crime rate."
That sits well with residents, whether they own a gun or not.
Bob Kotcher, 76, moved with his wife to Kennesaw from Hawaii in 2003 partly because of the crime rate.
"I'm not a gun kind of person, but we feel very secure here. I would guess that if the bad guys know there are guns and ammunition in the house, they would rather go someplace else."
Kotcher read about Kennesaw on the Internet while seeking a mainland location where his wife could study nursing and he could be close to relatives. He didn't hear about the ordinance until a local real estate agent mentioned it.
Kennesaw resident Lance Hamilton, himself a real estate agent, said he doesn't mention the law unless home shoppers ask. "If I were to bring up that law, I'd have to bring up every law."
That doesn't mean he's not in favor of the ordinance, though.
"Personally, I think it's a good law," Hamilton said. "I think it makes Kennesaw unique."
Good for them! It should be the law all over the U.S.
I live in Kennesaw, have gun, but I have no idea where it is. In the pantry, behind the peanut butter, I think. But I love the law, and so does every pistol packing mama (and grandmama) I know.
...will there still be room for the "Wild West" image often associated with the ordinance?
Strange. In nearly every old “Wild West” movie and TV series the towns had “No Guns Allowed” ordinances.
I wonder if the good women of this town greet men with the "is that a six shooter in your pocket or your just glad to see me?"
Most of those old Wild West movies where some gang rides into town and terrorizes it's citizens are complete Hollywood fiction. 99% of the citizens in those towns had guns, could shoot very well, all the way down to the children. Bad guys riding into town would have faced a barrage of lead from all sides.
Lady definitely needs a belt to stabillize/retain that IWB clip-on holster...
The caption on the photo states that the lady with a gun has a permit for it, but you don't need a permit to pack a gun at work, only the permission of the owner.
Calling the AJC a "newspaper" is false advertising. All the news that's fit to slant!
Ping.
Then there's the fact that the "Wild Wild West" was pretty tame by the standards of, say, modern U.S. urban ghettos.
Look at the demography. The West was largely settled by men who had fought the Civil War, and their direct progeny. These weren't lily-livered wimps likely to put up with much bad behavior, before taking care of business with firearms.
Dang, I should have read the thread first. See my previous post just above.
The Urinal/Constipation's circulation continues to drop, but they just don't catch on that the with the exception of the welfare recipients, McKinney Democrats, and Decatur liberals to whom they pander, the rest of the citizens aren't interested in hearing their leftwing anti-freedom pro-government propaganda. Pravda South just had a big reorg and cut in circulation area, and yet they keep it up.
And in real life too. Most Old West cow-towns had ordinances against carrying firearms within city limits. In Texas in the 1870s you had to prove that you were a "traveler" to legally carry a firearm on your person.
They really have some pretty strong competition in the Washington Compost and the Baltimore Scum, but, as I told one of my friends who subscribes to the rag for the coupons, Those people are your enemies and the enemies of everything you believe in, and supporting them will cost you far more in the long run than you will ever save in a few coupons for things that you probably won't buy anyway.
Most of those old Wild West movies where some gang rides into town and terrorizes it's citizens are complete Hollywood fiction. 99% of the citizens in those towns had guns, could shoot very well, all the way down to the children. Bad guys riding into town would have faced a barrage of lead from all sides.
That was the reality - but the Hollywood version was far from reality. I spent some time Out West, and checking out old newspapers and historical markers, I found very few mentions of Hollywood style gunfights.
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