Monday, March 23, 2009

Why guns shouldn't be permitted in restaurants

As I've reported here and in my Fohboh blog, gun advocates contend that it's ridiculous to prohibit restaurant patrons from toting concealed weapons into a place that serves alcohol. In jurisdictions stretching from Virginia to Arizona, they're hell bent on changing the laws.

Here are a few recent news developments that they may want to consider before resuming their crusade:
A man displaying a gun in a restaurant accidentally fired it early Saturday morning, killing an acquaintance who was there with him, according to Phoenix police.--AZCentral.com

A man who had a concealed-weapons permit accidentally fired his gun inside a Provo restaurant, hitting his chair. Police say they cited Ernest Fichler for discharging the weapon in city limits. They seized his 9 mm automatic pistol and turned in his license to carry a concealed weapon for state review.--Salt Lake City Tribune

Last year, eight people were slain at bars or clubs in Orlando and unincorporated Orange County, often in disputes with people they barely knew. In one case from east Orange, the deadly brawl literally started over spilled beer and ended with gunfire.--OrlandoSentinel.com

7 comments:

ConfederateSon said...

And for every one of your platitudes there are hundreds of thousands of unreported "non" events in which a lawfully armed citizen did not injure himself or others.

Statistics don't qualify your opinion, nor that of any other self-righteous moral theorist who tries to debase a sovereign right by pointing out the exceptions to the rule and lauding them as benchmarks rather than the statistical anomalies that they really are.

Spanner said...

And lets not forget the drunk criminal that was not allowed by LAW to possess a firearm, in Winnemucca, Nevada last spring that killed several people with his ILLEGALLY POSSESSED gun, before being taken out by a concealed carry permit holder whom was carrying in a BAR LEGALLY. When the criminal was reloading, the legally carrying person killed the criminal before he killed anyone else!

Spanner said...

And lets not forget the criminal that was not allowed by LAW to possess a firearm, in Winnemucca, Nevada last spring that killed several people with his ILLEGALLY POSSESSED gun, before being taken out by a concealed carry permit holder whom was carrying in a BAR LEGALLY. When the criminal was reloading, the legally carrying person killed the criminal before he killed anyone else! ENFORCE THE LAWS ON CRIMINALS, NOT LAW ABIDING CITIZENS!

paramedic70002 said...

Congratulations. You've managed to find one, I repeat, one, documented case of a concealed handgun accidentally discharging in a restaurant. With this kind of investigative journalism, perhaps you should tackle a new topic, like say people who drink alcohol in restaurants and then drive while intoxicated? I heard a rumor that some of these people have car crashes with innocent drivers, causing infinitely more carnage than legal guns in restaurants.

Peter Romeo said...

One accidental gun discharge? I count two. In any case, consider these stories. If a gun accidently discharges elsewhere, why would it be wrong to assume it could happen in a restaurant?

CHARLOTTE, N.C.-- A gun carried by a US Airways pilot accidentally discharged during a flight from Denver to Charlotte Saturday, according to a statement released by the airline.--March 25, 2009

MELBOURNE, Fla. -- A child was hit by a bullet that was accidentally discharged from a gun inside of a Melbourne home.--Jan. 27, 2008

BENTON, Ark. -- For the time being, officials with the Saline County Sheriff's Department are not discussing an incident Monday which a deputy's firearm apparently discharged accidentally at the International House of Pancakes (IHOP) restaurant in Benton.

DALLAS — Three people were injured when a gun accidentally discharged during Rosh Hashanah services at Temple Emanu-El on Wednesday evening.--Sept. 2007

Just Jim said...

You sound more like you're making a case to outlaw guns altogether than just in restaurants.
Law abiding citezens should be able to carry where and when they like.
No amount of further laws will impede the efforts of criminals to obtain firearms.

Just Jim said...

You sound more like you are advocating outlawing guns everywhere rather than just restaurants.
Because of an accident, you want to abolish basic rights.
So, first restaurants, then anywhere in public, then guns altogether.
Law abiding citizens should be allowed to carry where and when they want.
No amount of additional law will impede a criminals efforts to illegally obtain firearms.

You keep chipping away at these rights and there will be no one left to protect you from your ignorance.