Blogger Tim Tyrrell Sr. stirred up a City Council meeting this week by packing a loaded handgun in plain sight. His point? A concealed carry ban is pointless, since citizens are still able to carry unconcealed weapons. Whether or not you agree with him, his message is certainly valid. He also wants to spread the bigger message that criminals are unlikely to give a hoot about a concealed carry ban at all, since they are, after all, criminals. But we've all heard that debate before; there's no need to rehash it here.
Mr. Tyrrell's actions raise an issue that strikes closer to home. Namely, that it is not currently illegal to carry a loaded gun into the Council's chambers. In fact, there are a whole bunch of public facilities and offices at which carrying a loaded gun is perfectly legal. The question Lincolnites need to ask themselves is: are we OK with that? I am OK with it, for practical reasons as much as anything. A law won't stop the people who would use a gun illegally anyway, and I refuse to submit to a TSA-style fondling every time I want to enter the Pioneers Park Nature Center, or any other public building. Certain government facilities are more likely to stir up harsh emotions, of course, and I am not inherently opposed to taking preventative measures to protect people within those facilities. But in the end, I'm just not all that worried about a nut with a gun. He's going to be a nut with a gun whether it's illegal or not. I choose to worry about other things.
But let's face it, what I choose to worry about has little correlation to what the City Council and other government agents choose to worry about. Don't be surprised if we start seeing bans pop up here and there.
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Well Done Mr. Wilson, Thank you. I am truely suprised that I am the first to comment though.
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