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Lesson From Colorado: Don’t Trust Your Guns To Democrats
AmmoLand Gun News
Washington DC - -(Ammoland.com)- When Democrat Gov. John Hickenlooper signed expanded background checks and a “high capacity” magazine ban into law on March 20 2013, the lesson for other states was that this is what you get if you give Democrats the reins of power.
Colorado is a gun state, always has been. But Under Hickenlooper and the Democrat-controlled state legislature, Colorado’s immediate future is one of ever expanding gun control.
How pro-gun was Colorado before Democrats rolled into town? Think about it this way–in Colorado there are no special permits required to buy a handgun, a shotgun, or a rifle. They have concealed carry laws within their state which even recognize the right to carry firearms on college and university campuses for self-defense.
Moreover, Colorado used to have open carry within their state–which means anyone over 21, with no felonies, used to be able to strap their revolver or pistol on their hip and go about their day with their firearm in plan view. I lived in Colorado in the 1990′s, and not only remember carrying a gun in this manner but also seeing many others carry one this way as well.
However, by the late 1990′s the Democrat’s influence was beginning to take hold and people were being discouraged from carrying guns thus. Now, the laws regarding open carry are best described as “vague” and I would not risk carrying in the open if I were in the state.
Add to this Gov. Hickenlooper’s ban on “high capacity” magazines and the ban on private gun sales, which is part and parcel to the expanded background checks, and it’s easy to see how far Colorado gun laws have fallen.
Here’s the lesson for other states, Democrats cannot be trusted with your guns–period. And given time and power, they will turn any gun state into a gun control state.
About:
AWR Hawkins writes for all the BIG sites, for Pajamas Media, for RedCounty.com, for Townhall.com and now AmmoLand Shooting Sports News.
His southern drawl is frequently heard discussing his take on current events on radio shows like America’s Morning News, the G. Gordon Liddy Show, the Ken Pittman Show, and the NRA’s Cam & Company, among others. He was a Visiting Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal (summer 2010), and he holds a PhD in military history from Texas Tech University.
If you have questions or comments, email him at awr@awrhawkins.com. You can find him on facebook at www.facebook.com/awr.hawkins.
ALL politicians that voted to take Away your Rights ( 2nd amendment; The right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed)Should be arrested, tried for High Treason; if convicted, Executed. All of them!
It seems to me the the Democratic party is having a tough time being trustworthy with anything.
AWR –
Colorado is still an open carry state – due to “omission” because nowhere in the state statute does it say that you may NOT carry a firearm in the open. It does, however, say that you may not carry a firearm concealed unless you have the requisite permit.
The only jurisdiction where “open carry” is not allowed is the City/County of Denver. Go figure.
That being said, carrying openly in most cities along the Front Range will make people nervous, probably earn you a visit from an officer of the law and, as anywhere else, is an open invitation to “shoot me first” if spotted by any criminal with the intention of committing some offense in the vicinity. Therefore, it is not particularly recommended. However, if you happen to be somewhere that is truly rural and everyone knows everyone else in town, I am pretty sure that walking around with a gun on your hip would not raise too many eyebrows. I don’t recommend doing it in most of the tourist towns, though.
There is a volunteer group in Colorado that has been in existence since 1861, minus about 25 years in the 1930′s and ’40s. They wear uniforms and badges, are duly sworn to uphold the Constitution of the US and the Constitution of the State of Colorado and are now recognized in the Colorado Revised Statutes. They can legally carry a handgun openly due to the so-called “law of omission.” Their own regulations require training and proof of proficiency, but the only place they cannot work while carrying openly is Denver so they just don’t. Pretty simple.
It is truly a shame that the Colorado Legislature decided to totally ignore any and all comments, arguments and pleas by the sensible, pro-2A people of the state and that the Governor decided to follow suit. But – I am sure that, come the 2014 election season, a large number of citizens will be out campaigning for their removal from office. One of the funniest videos I saw was an interview with Hickenlooper where he said he didn’t think that signing the bills was going to affect his bid for re-election. He said everyone he spoke with supported them. My reaction – he must be speaking to a very select group of people.
Unfortunately, Amendment 64 – the legalization of recreational marijuana – brought even more liberals (mostly the low-information pot-heads) than usual to the polls – and while they were at it, they went ahead and voted the party line. Hopefully, the mid-terms will reverse that. Meanwhile, we are about to buy some land in Texas where we can store our toys. Molon Labe, indeed.