Booman Tribune

Activist Judges, Bars & Guns

by Steven D
Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 10:03:03 AM EST

Ah, here's a story which is a perfect convergence of those crazy gun control advocates and activist judges infecting their sinister anti-founding fathers memes into the minds of ordinary Americans in order to defeat our precious 2nd Amendment Rights. And in Tennessee forgawdssakes! Is nothing sacred!

A Davidson County judge ruled Tennessee's controversial guns-in-bars law unconstitutional at a Friday hearing, prompting the state senator who sponsored the legislation to say he will push the issue again when lawmakers return in a few months. [...]

She ruled after an hour of arguments in a lawsuit brought by a group of plaintiffs, many of them restaurant owners. More than 257,000 people have handgun carry permits in Tennessee. [...]

"I think the judge's common-sense ruling on the vagueness of the law affirms the recent MTSU Poll that showed over 80 percent of Tennesseans were opposed to the concept of guns in bars and restaurants," Nashville restaurateur Randy Rayburn, a plaintiff in the case, said Friday afternoon.

Me personally? I don't live in Tennessee, so I don't have a dog in this hunt, so to speak. I don't go to bars or restaurants there, so I don't need to worry about one of the 275,000 people with concealed carry permits getting all "lickered up" and pulling out his or her handgun to "right a wrong" whether or not their judgment as to the matter might just be mildly impaired due to the effects of alcohol.

Sure, we don't let people drive drunk because cars are, after all, deadly weapons, but I'm sure drunks social drinkers would be much more responsible with the use of their handguns while out for an evening of the good old fashioned American pastime of public intoxication.

Still, for some reason, bar and restaurant owners seem to have come down with the liberal commie fascist disease in Tennessee, because they didn't like this law, which only expands our god given right to bear arms while pounding back a few shots of one's favorite bourbon (please no jokes -- let's keep this a serious discussion). For example, have you ever heard anything so Wimpy and Bedwettingly Unamerican as this statement?

"We will have vigilantes shooting up bars all over," said Randy Rayburn, the owner of three upscale cafes, who led opponents of the law.

Hey, aren't we a nation founded on vigilantes. Isn't that why Batman exists? Why lynch mobs were created? Why ... oh never mind. I can see this isn't going to end well. Damn liberals!



Display:
"We will have vigilantes shooting up bars all over," said Randy Rayburn, the owner of three upscale cafes, who led opponents of the law.

I am a gun owner in a state which allows concealed carry permits.  And I think that establishments should have the right to restrict what is brought onto their premises.  I don't believe, like many gun owners I know, that there should be an overarching allowance for concealed carry everywhere just because a state allows concealed carry permits to be issued.

That being said, this idea that those with concealed carry permits are just redneck goobers itching to pull out their Glock and spray a few rounds around the old watering hole is an illusion.  The "vigilantes" that Mr. Rayburn alludes to will most likely have a gun regardless of any allowances like concealed carry.  The vast majority of those I know with permits never carry a gun.  And those that do on occasion are not wild eyed vigilantes.

There are arguments to be made about responsible gun control, but this wild west scenario laid out at the feet of concealed carry permits is really just a fantasy.

by Richard Bachman on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 11:24:51 AM EST
I have no doubt many concealed carry permit holders are responsible people.  But letting anyone carry a dangerous weapon on their person while imbibing alcohol strikes me as sheer stupidity and a disaster waiting to happen.

Perhaps if they amended the law to prohibit gun owners who bring their weapons into bars and restaurants from drinking or purchasing alcohol I would have more sympathy for your position.  However, as the law is written, there are no limitations in that regard.

A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has never learned how to walk forward. Franklin D. Roosevelt

by Steven D on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 11:30:28 AM EST
[ Parent ]
The vast majority of those who drive their cars through red lights don't kill anybody. So having red lights is silly, I guess.

FDR's response to progressive demands: "I agree. Now go out and make me do it."
by DaveW on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 05:09:39 PM EST
[ Parent ]
This has nothing to do with reasonable gun owners.

This has everything to do with liquored up morons pulling guns to settle arguments, WHICH HAS ALREADY HAPPENED at least 2 different times in the last month. In one case, a gun fight broke out among 5-6 people, all of who were too drunk to hit anything.

Guns and alcohol are not a good mix.

by dataguy on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 06:29:52 PM EST
[ Parent ]
If it's Tennessee, it ain't bourbon, it's Sour Mash.  
by BooMan on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 10:11:16 AM EST
Ah well, I'm a Yankee, and not very knowledgeable about the finer nuances of Southern Heritage and Culture.

A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has never learned how to walk forward. Franklin D. Roosevelt
by Steven D on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 10:14:24 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Tennessee whiskey or Tennessee whisky is a sour mash of American whiskey that undergoes a filtering stage called the Lincoln County Process, in which the whiskey is filtered through a thick layer of maple charcoal before it is put into casks for aging. This step gives the whiskey a distinctive flavor. The process itself is named for Lincoln County, Tennessee, which is where the Jack Daniel's distillery was originally located. In 1871, the Jack Daniel's distillery and the surrounding area became part of the newly created Moore County.

Presently, there are only two brands of Tennessee whiskey on the market: Jack Daniel's and George Dickel.

link

by BooMan on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 10:23:03 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Show off!

A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has never learned how to walk forward. Franklin D. Roosevelt
by Steven D on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 10:24:38 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Even when 80% of us think allowing guns in bars is stupid, you guys still take this as an opportunity to have a South-bashing festival?

Funny, the law struck me -- as a Tennessean -- as another example of well-funded and connected NRA gun nut lobby running roughshod over common sense and the popular will the same way it does in the other 49 states.

by corvus on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 12:46:00 PM EST
I would happily bash any state for a law like this.  My favorite Aunt lives in Nashville so don't assume I'm bashing the South.  I am bashing the mindset that says the more guns in everyone's hands at all times the merrier.

And believe me, I'm grateful that 80% of Tennesseans think this law was a bad idea.  Too bad they elected a legislature that disagreed with them.

A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has never learned how to walk forward. Franklin D. Roosevelt

by Steven D on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 02:36:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]
Are there any states north of the Mason Dixon and east of the Mississippi where the NRA has run roughshod over the popular will to enable guns in bars? If they managed to flout the will of 80% of the populace, isn't there something deeply wrong enough about the state to warrant some bashing?

FDR's response to progressive demands: "I agree. Now go out and make me do it."
by DaveW on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 05:14:20 PM EST
[ Parent ]
in 1993, they had open-carry laws.  The camera-person filming the wedding was drinking straight shots of something, and had a large gun on his hip.  

Meanwhile, I had three small children.

What the fuck does some moronic redneck gunwack need to bring a gun to a wedding in suburban Phoenix in a community center?  Nothing NOTHING but sheer testosterone supplement here.  He had the gun and it gave him a big charge to wear it.  

It was moronic.

by dataguy on Sat Nov 21st, 2009 at 06:32:31 PM EST


Display:
Go to: [ Booman Tribune Homepage : Top of page : Top of comments ]
Menu
Login
. Make a new account
. Reset password





Find textbooks at Alibris!

NOTE: Overstock bests Amazon's prices and is "blue."

THE BOOKS WITH "BUZZ":
______________

Senator Edward M. Kennedy tells his extraordinary personal story:

True Compass: A Memoir
by Edward M. Kennedy.

Read Barack Obama's vision for America:

The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream
by Barack Obama

Boran2 and maryb2004 recommend:

The Big Over Easy: A Nursery Crime
by Jasper Fforde

Must-have information for all presidents-and citizens-of the twenty-first century?

Physics for Future Presidents: The Science behind the Headlines
Richard A. Muller

rae recommends:

Dark Ages America: The Final Phase of Empire
by Morris Berman.

On BooMan’s shelf:

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
by Doris Kearns Goodwin

This looks interesting:

Adventure Divas
by Holly Morris

Here’s a good one from
Elizabeth Gilbert:

Eat Pray Love
by Elizabeth Gilbert

"Crash" * Best Motion Picture, Academy Awards * Only $11.79 at Overstock * 2006 SAG Winner, Best Ensemble

Check out
Powell's new section:
NEW FAVORITES

Selected new arrivals at 30% off

Recommended by Indianadem and ejmw:
The Conscience of a Liberal
by Paul Wellstone

From northcountry’s bookshelf:

The New Golden Age:
The Coming Revolution Against
Political Corruption and Economic Chaos
by Ravi Batra

A novel about contractors in Iraq from the woman that runs The Spy That Billed Me:

Outsourced: A Novel
from RJ Hillhouse.


Great Deals
----- * ^ * -----

Find mystery novels by Nancy Pickard ("Kansas")



Challenging Empire: How People, Governments, and the UN Defy US Power by Phyllis Bennis (interviewed on DN!)


Featured by Keith Olbermann, New (Powell's Sale): Rogue State: A Guide to the World's Only Superpower by William Blum (whose other books merit serious consideration)


"Explosive" State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration
by James Risen


The book the CIA doesn't want you to read: Jawbreaker: The Attack on Bin Laden and Al Qaeda: A Personal Account by the CIA's Key Field Commander
Larry Johnson's review


BT's all-time best seller:

PERMACULTURE:
A Designers' Manual

$79.95 * Sale: $59.95


Unequal Sisters: A Multicultural Reader in U.S. Women's History (Third Edition)


The Undercover Economist: Exposing Why the Rich Are Rich, the Poor Are Poor And Why You Can Never Buy a Decent Used Car!


The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl
by Timothy Egan


Green Press Initiative
----- * ^ * -----


Journalistas: 100 Years of the Best Writing and Reporting by Women Journalists by Eleanor Mills * NYT review


Bury Me Standing: the Gypsies & Their Journey


1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus



Brokeback Mountain
by Annie Proulx
----- * ^ * -----
Check out Powell's
"At The Movies"


Imperial Ambitions: Conversations on the Post-9/11 World by Noam Chomsky (Power & Terror: Post 9-11 Talks)


The Price of Privilege:

How Parental Pressure and
Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of
Disconnected and Unhappy Kids

by Madeline Levine


Save 35-70% on
name brand clothing,
footwear, and outdoor gear
at SierraTradingPost.com

:





We listened to PEN American Center's "State of Emergency" and found 1940s books by Curzio Malaparte only at Alibris. (Selection (MP3) excerpted from "The Skin.")

Alibris - Books You Thought You'd Never Find
Banned Books * Are you a fan of Film Noir, Art House, Documentaries or Hong Kong Action? * Searching for a long-lost children's book or a first printing of Miles Davis' Kind of Blue on vinyl? Find it at Alibris!

:
:
www.Patagonia.com


Listed on BlogShares

© 2009 Booman Tribune