From: PA146008@utkvm1.utk.edu (David Veal)
Subject: A Gun in Hand is Worth Two in the Bush (something like that)
Organization: The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1993 05:08:56 GMT

In article <9301091923.58@rmkhome.UUCP> rmk@rmkhome.UUCP (Rick Kelly) writes:

>In article <PA146008.603.726338593@utkvm1.utk.edu> PA146008@utkvm1.utk.edu (Davd Veal) writes:
>>In article <9301052244.31@rmkhome.UUCP> rmk@rmkhome.UUCP (Rick Kelly) writes:

[Comments about just who is required to own a gun in Kennesaw deleted.]

>>>>        We're doing OK here in East Tennessee.  I understand some of the
>>>>Western states are doing real well.  Looks like we have evidence on both
>>>>sides of the spectrum, and the only thing they would seem to agree on would
>>>>be that gun ownership alone is not the problem, but at bare minimum
>>>>operating along with something else.
>>>
>>>Hmm.  Someone else said that it was against the law for civilians to
>>>carry guns in Tennessee.
>>
>>        You jump subjects pretty quick.  Above you were talking about home
>>defense, now you're talking about carry.
>
>I thoought the Kennesaw, Georgia law allowed carry.

       That particular law was geared to home ownership.  A different
law may very well allow carry.  (I know there's some method in Georgia.)

>Getting a home defense weapon in Massachusetts is relatively easy.

       Relatively easy compared to what?  What exactly are the rules these
days?

>>        Try and pay attention:
>>
>>        Gun ownership in East Tennessee is quite high.  Very high in many
>>places.
>>
>>        It is illegal, according to state law, for a civilian to carry a
>>firearm either open or concealed.  (It's a misdemeanor.)
>>
>>        People do it anyway.
>>
>>        Clear enough?
>
>Ah, but if you are carrying an illegal weapon, then you are a criminal.

       Here's a another one:

       Big fat hairy deal.

       But I'll go on...

       If the Second Amendment to the Constitution does guarantee the
right to keep and BEAR arms, then, according to Article VI and the
14th amendment, the law prohibiting carry carries no legal force
and is not legitimate.

>And if you kill someone with an illegal weapon, self defense or not,
>then you are a murderer.

      I think you've got your terms and your laws confused.  If I
kill someone in self-defense with a weapon I'm carrying illegally,
I have still killed someone in self-defense, and in any trial I'll
probably get off.  (Bankrupt and my life ruined probably, since the
prosecuters enjoy that sort of thing.)  I may get nailed for illegal
carry, but that's a different matter.  (See Bernie Geotz (sp?))
      But I'm curious if there are *any* laws that you have broken
because it seemed like the right thing to do at the time?

>>>>       Come visit Knoxville.  You won't actually see people carrying
>>>>guns here, either.  :-)
>>>
>>>So you're saying that a lot of people just carry concealed weapons,
>>>no matter what the laws say?
>>
>>       Bingo.  Give the man a cigar.  That's exactly what I said.  But then,
>>Tennesseeans seem to take their state government even less seriously than
>>most people.
>
>Which will surely convince the Tennessee state government to change the
>laws?

       This is very important, so please pay attention:

       The Tennessee State government doesn't give one good god damn
about East Tenneesse.  It only cares about Middle and West Tennessee,
which has a greater population and are Democrats.  Republican East
Tennessee doesn't have the voting base to do anything.  We are
held hostage to the whims of the Metro West who live in a completely
different world than we do, and don't pay any attention to us except to
swipe our tax revenues.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
David Veal     Division of Continuing Education Information Services Group
               University of Tennessee, Knoxville
               PA146008@utkvm1.utk.edu
Newsgroups: talk.politics.guns