http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/09/13/house-weighs-bill-to-make-gun-permits-valid-across-state-lines/
This is a gun bill which seeks to make it so that every state has to recognize the concealed carry permits of every other state.
GREAT! Sounds great! I have a permit from Oregon, now I can carry in DC, NY, SC, ND, MASS, CO and HI and everywhere else in between.
Only a couple things I'm concerned about though - I'm not saying this is gonna happen - but this is where I get a bit.....suspicious.
Federalism was set up to protect the individual rights of citizens to make it harder for a big government to take them away.
Now, once the federal government grants a sweeping right, it also makes it easier to take it away.
As it stands right now, my rights are granted by the Sherrif of Washington County, under the constitution of the State of Oregon.
Now, once I have a bill which equalizes all fifty states and injects itself into individual states' affairs, I am worried about a state like New York introducing legislation to curtail my rights out of Oregon on the national level - thereby nullifying the Oregon constitution as well as our rights on the individual citizen level. Beaverton, Tigard and a few other cities prohibit open carry, and I gotta pay attention to where I go, but then this is local citizens voting to determine their destiny. If we can introduce a law granting freedom on something so precarious and precious as the 2nd Amendment, then we can also take it away similarly. Or Obama will find a way to.
Just a thought. The only thing preventing me from carrying in some states is paying the fee and taking the test for their license. I don't really travel in all 50 states. Washington and Oregon is about it. And other states like Utah, you can get an out-of-state permit and then carry in the other 30+ states that recognize it.
It's a bit more work - but its also a bit more work for the feds to involve themselves in the affair.
As it stands, with the government like it is, I'm actually thinking that the current patchwork, while it makes it harder for gun owners to jump through some hoops, might also be a sort of protection to them by making it harder on the feds as well.
Just a thought....
