Posted on 06/04/2019 2:03:39 PM PDT by marktwain
On 29 May 2019, H.B. 1177 was sent to Governor Abbott. The bill will make Constitutional Carry legal in Texas, during evacuations when a “state of disaster” is declared and for 168 hours (one week) after the state of disaster declaration.
The law is another incremental step moving toward Constitutional Carry in Texas. It makes perfect sense when taken in the context of the Second Amendment:
A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed.
In the basic understanding of the reality of the writers and ratifiers of the United States Constitution, it would be local militias, made from local residents, that maintain order and provide for defense and security during emergencies.
The United States has a long history of spontaneous and organic organization of militias during emergencies. The Second Amendment is a guarantee the people will have arms available to form militias when necessary. The concept that the people should be disarmed during an emergency would be utterly foreign to the founders. It strikes at the foundational concept of the Second Amendment.
Texans have always had the right to bear long arms openly. It was arms worn on the person, such as handguns and belt knives, that were prohibited from being carried by the reconstruction government after the War Between the States, in 1869.
(Excerpt) Read more at ammoland.com ...
I guess it is better than nothing.
Most people do not realize how infested with RINOs the Texas Republican Party is.
They bow to the media, which is considerably left of center.
They listen to the big city police chiefs, who are simply mouth-pieces for the Democrat Party.
It is a shame.
I can imagine a possible next step. With or even without constitutional carry, a serious disaster can imply destruction and separation from one’s domicile. Yet this is where most privately owned guns are stored.
So, before constitutional carry, state law should permit Sheriffs to issue “provisional emergency gun licenses and loaner guns with ammo” to individuals who are not convicted criminals or are otherwise barred from having them, so that they may defend themselves and their families; or as necessary, to act as deputies for the Sheriff.
Much the same after constitutional carry but with some technical differences. The temp license with photo would be laminated, they would be issued a large, shiny badge or armband to identify them at a distance as *not* being a looter.
I’m sure other things could be added or removed from the bill.
Great idea. But Texas will turn it into a 72 page bill filled with all kinds of nonsense restrictions with impenetrable legalese rewriting a decade of litigation to decipher.
And those are exactly the kind of Byzantine regulations and questions the Texas legislature will think are deeply critical.
Legal constitutional carry within counties designated as a FEMA disaster zone is much too simple for the DPS, and legislators.
There will be exceptions carved out to forbid anyone behind on their child support or vehicle inspection sticker from participating. Just watch.
Texas better get things straight because it is creeping very blue in parts.
This should be nationwide. Any prevention of it by ANY government officials should result in $100,000 fines and ten years in prison minimum for violations.
Why would something called, Constitutional Carry, be conditional?
It often amazes me how many Freepers there are that can’t grasp the idea that incremental steps are better than no steps.
Because small steps are better than NO steps.
This is the rare opportunity to begin the reversal of Constitutional violations dating back to the War of Northern Aggression, using exactly the same tactic the left has used to violate that same Constitution elsewhere.
Some is better than none.
The trouble with disaster areas is that there is a general breakdown in what at least on the surface is common sense.
A great example was when the Cajun Navy, with lots of boats and relief supplies, were turned away and even threatened.
In the case of firearms, here you have people who should be armed, but have either lost or cannot get to their arms. So you just need a little legal streamlining to insure that their local Sheriff can arm them, for their own and the public good, and that they are not confused with looters or criminals.
You figure a disaster area might have randomly appearing federal, state and local LEOs, rescue workers, National Guardsmen, and ordinary civilians who *are* armed but quite paranoid. And yes, looters and other criminals. You’ll also have a lot of unarmed civilians, along with the injured and incapacitated, etc.
And a good chance of their being no power, clean water or food.
So creating at least the appearance of some order can be a godsend. Even if they are an unorganized militia and armed civilians. But it really helps if they have at least some token of authority.
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