Ushered in by New York's Governor Kathy Hochul, changes in gun laws are giving government officials in the state license to weaponize gun ownership against law-abiding citizens. The Constitution be damned. Hochul is now calling for credit card companies to track "suspicious" firearm purchases. Elizabeth Warren came in right behind her, writing a letter dated Sept. 1 urging credit card companies "to support the creation of a new merchant category code [as an] important step towards ending financial system support for gun trafficking, gun violence, and domestic terrorism." Mayor Eric Adams wants to use his already depleted and resource-challenged police force to go door-to-door to conduct background checks on gun owners. Adams says he will not add officers to the force for the checks.
Earlier this year, a Supreme Court decision overturned a 1913 New York gun law, ruling it violated the Constitution. The ruling failed to deter Hochul and her comrades. Let's just go around these ruffians, said Hochul and the New York State legislature. Hochul soon signed a new set of legislated requirements for gun owners that went into effect on Sept. 1. Please explain to me how these are not police state tactics.
One of the new laws (S.687/A.3998) may be a reasonable one. The law makes it easier for police officers to identify "imitation [or toy] weapons" by requiring them to be brightly colored or translucent. However, another law in the package, 265.01-e, makes it impossible for citizens to protect themselves in "sensitive" locations.
A "sensitive location" is a euphemistic term that now applies to places like New York's Times Square, places of worship, government buildings, schools, childcare facilities, mental health facilities, summer camps, homeless shelters, domestic violence shelters, parks, libraries, public transportation, entertainment venues, stadiums, polling places, to name only a few. Given that lengthy list of locations that prohibit guns, I wonder whether there are any remaining locations in the state where permitted weapons are still allowed. The New York State Jewish Gun Club is suing the state for banning guns in places of worship.
Additionally, "property owners who decide to allow concealed carry will have to disclose with signage saying concealed carry is allowed on the premises." Another law, S.9407-B/A.10497 prohibits the purchase of body armor with the exception of those in specified professions (police officers and security guards). A summary of the legislative package that "strengthens" gun laws in the state can be found here.
Emboldened by these new restrictions, Mayor Adams is now proposing door-to-door surveying of neighbors by the police force. The search will require an in-person interview, four character references, and a list of current and former social media accounts. Permit renewals will also be required every three years instead of the five years previously required. No doubt Big Tech is already coordinating with government officials behind the scenes to identify their favorite suspects. At this point in time, there is plenty of evidence to believe that absolutely nothing prevents them from doing so.
Here's the thing. Last I checked, criminals don't do stuff by the books.
Bail reform laws, gun-free zones, lenient District Attorneys, progressive policies and judges, and restrictive laws on law-abiding permit-holding gun owners make cities like Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco among the most dangerous in the U.S. But those are not the feel-good answers these Progressive politicians want to hear.
In many cases, lives have been saved because a responsible gun owner was serendipitously on the scene. In fact, gun free-zones often get people killed. A 2018 Crime Research article found overwhelmingly that most mass shootings were committed in gun-free zones, about 94% of the time. Legal permit-holding gun owners use guns for legal activities like self-defense and hunting. Criminals use guns to do bad stuff. It's not that hard, people.
Gun Free Zones/Fun fact: I didn't grow up with guns. No one in my immediate family owns a gun. I only recently acquired a gun. I am about the least biased-toward-owning-a-gun-person that you can find. However, I have come to better understand the rationale behind the Second Amendment. I am also blessed with abundant common sense. Why is it that people like Hochul and Adams enjoy the luxury of these restrictive gun laws? Maybe it is because they enjoy armed security protection and live in neighborhoods where criminals aren't beating at their doors. Criminals aren't buying guns legally. They don't care whether the signs in Times Square say "No Guns Here." Criminals gonna criminal. No gun law has ever stopped a bad guy from obtaining and/or wielding a gun. It is mind-boggling these politicians continue to get away with this stuff. They do it because nothing meaningful changes for them.
