The great thing about blogs is that you can really get a good sense of what’s going on in the world by reading things from people who are closer to the action. This can be political happenings, military, or even hobbyists discussing the latest trends. Here on this blog, when I’m not just filling up the page with inane chatter, I of course discuss our right to keep an bear arms.
However, I have really had my eyes opened to the political sausage machine by being part of Florida Carry. While we pushed hard for Open Carry last session, our crown jewel has been HB45, the strengthening of preemption. You see, here in Florida, each municipality / city would craft gun laws in violation of the Florida Constitution knowing that they couldn’t enforce them, but that there was no penalty in doing so. The hope was that the cost and hassle to the citizen would be enough to have defacto gun bans in place. HB45 changed that by making those culpable for the ordinances personally responsible. When the politicians realized they were on the hook for a $5000 fine and could lose their jobs (with no ability to use public funds to defend themselves), they started dropping their illegal gun laws like hot potatoes.
There’s a lot of work still to be done as many counties are either unaware that they are still in violation or they’re waiting it out to see if they can still get by with it. Trust me, Florida Carry is aware of each of those violations and will be taking the appropriate actions.
However, there are other trickeries afoot. Several counties are actively trying to skirt the issue by attempting to get exceptions carved out for their ‘kingdoms’. They are trying to claim that public safety is degraded by requiring them to follow the law.
Those have not gone unnoticed either.
After seeing the circus of trying to get SB234 passed, this doesn’t surprise me. Bureaucrats and politicians, once given the ability to control others, will not willingly give up that power. When you challenge them on that power, they will find other ways to push their ‘authority’ around. We cannot allow them to do this.
Please help by joining Florida Carry, or if you’re not here in God’s Waiting Room, join your local gun rights organization. Your membership fees and donations help, but you can be even more effective if you also follow up with your congresscritters and politicians. Show up at their offices, make phone calls, talk to your neighbors – get involved.