Mike Denny's letter on Tony Hall's misguided plan to charge
protesters for the costs of police security was published in the current
(April 23) SF Bay Guardian (page 8). He is identified as the "Libertarian
candidate for mayor."
Way to go Mike, and once again a terrific letter!
FWIW, here's another letter I just sent to Assemblyman Mark Leno,
who apparently chairs a committee that will be considering a ban on 50 bmg.
rifles and ammunition in California. As always, feel free to copy.
Yours in liberty,
<<< Starchild >>>
FAX - ATTENTION Assemblyman Mark Leno
(916) 319-3745
Dear Mark,
I am writing to ask that you oppose AB 50, a bill I'm told your
committee will be looking at this Tuesday that would ban peaceful civilians
from owning certain types of rifles and ammunition in California.
Even here in liberal San Francisco, many people I speak with are
interested in having the right to defend themselves. The queer self-defense
group Pink Pistols now has 41 chapters across the country and is growing
and gaining support.
Legal opinion is more and more weighing in on the side of the view
that the Second Amendment guarantees an *individual* right to keep and bear
arms. This postion has been endorsed by scholars of many different
ideologies, including left-leaning Harvard law expert Lawrence Tribe.
Like the death penalty and other laws you oppose, gun permit laws
have fallen unevenly on our population. People in the law enforcement
industry and well-connected politicians (even anti-gun pols like Sen.
Dianne Feinstein) are granted gun permits, but ordinary people (who are
more likely to be minorities) are denied the opportunity for self-defense.
Gun laws are also disenfranchising people, because you can be
charged with a felony and if convicted denied the right to vote for merely
possessing a gun during the commission of some offense, even if the gun was
not used and played no role in the crime. The more restrictions and
regulations we pass, the more ordinary people who lack law enforcement
connections or legal expertise will run afoul of these laws, in many cases
unknowingly. Drug dealers and others with ready cash and less compunction
about breaking the law will always be able to get guns illegally, but as
restrictions increase and the cost of buying a gun legally increases, it
will become harder and harder for poor people who live in dangerous
neighborhoods and have the most need of a firearm for self-defense to
acquire the means to protect themselves.
This will certainly result in higher crime rates, which will in
turn help the Republican agenda by making people more afraid of crime and
more willing to vote for law-and-order politicians. It will also produce
budgetary pressures to spend more money on incarcerating criminals, at the
expense of education, health care, and other state priorities. If you
don't believe me that more gun control results in more crime, I invite you
to take a look at recent data from England and Australia, where violent
crime rates have gone way up after governments in those countries have
worked to criminalize gun owners.
Please do the right thing and vote "NO" on AB 50.
Sincerely,
Starchild
3531 16th Street,
San Francisco, CA 94114
(415) 621-7932