There's a current ruling allowing guns at Michigan polling places. I'm curious about how THR members think about the issue. Speaking for myself, I think it's a terrible idea. Polling places should be hallowed ground with everyone welcomed.
One has only to look at the violent factions burning down cities to see the fallacy of 'hallowed ground' ANYWHERE today. Polling places are going to be places of risk in my areas, and being prepared to defend oneself at one is only logical and responsible.There's a current ruling allowing guns at Michigan polling places. I'm curious about how THR members think about the issue. Speaking for myself, I think it's a terrible idea. Polling places should be hallowed ground with everyone welcomed.
There's a current ruling allowing guns at Michigan polling places. ....
not only that, for a crowd of 20k+ they left the streets cleaner than when they arrived.To respond to the OP, I suggest as an example the pro-2A protest marches in Virginia in pre-pandemic days. With a crowd of thousands of armed marchers nobody was harmed and there was no violence. As a matter of fact, the people who had been planning violence elected to just stay away. I wonder why.
Another response (you got me going, bro!!): they are and how does allowing carry making the polling place not welcome everyone? The other way around might be true because that would be a policy of exclusion, but a policy allowing carry is a policy of inclusion.Polling places should be hallowed ground with everyone welcomed.
Not a troll post. I honestly cannot see where having open carry groups hanging around a polling place is not threatening to some. Surely would not make me all that comfortable and I'm an old white guy. And you can see from my signature, I'm certainly no stranger to carrying weapons. That doesn't mean I think they should be allowed everywhere. Courthouse and schools come to mind. I just think polling places should be accorded the same.I wonder if this is a troll post. So we are supposed to not practice one right, while engaging in another right?
In PA there is a specific exception to "no carry on school grounds" if your polling place is on school grounds. I presume the exception is based on the "other lawful purpose".
Reading that ruling made my hair hurt.I believe this is the legal document describing overturning the ban on open carry in Michigan polling places.
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7276840-Ruling-on-Benson-Gun-Directive.html
Judge overturns ban on open carry of guns at Michigan polling places
https://www.axios.com/michigan-open...ace-7575510b-572c-44fb-8582-57869b5c588f.html
I believe this is the legal document describing overturning the ban on open carry in Michigan polling places.
https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7276840-Ruling-on-Benson-Gun-Directive.html
Judge overturns ban on open carry of guns at Michigan polling places
https://www.axios.com/michigan-open...ace-7575510b-572c-44fb-8582-57869b5c588f.html
In other words: it was about abuse of power, not about guns.Murray wrote that the edict violated the state law that governs how new rules are enacted by going beyond existing legislation about where open carry is banned
I have zero cares in either direction on this one. Is it a guy with a pistol on his hip just hanging around? Is it an “operator” in all his tacticool goodness hanging around minding his own business? Is it somebody making a scene of harassing folks? Two of these are people minding their own business and doing what they choose to do within the law. One of these is “menacing” and should be removed by whatever means necessary.
And realistically for there to be an actual issue then the guy would have to be perceived as pushing an agenda of sorts so that any group would be more or less offended by his presence beyond just an uneasiness about someone doing what they are legally allowed. To be perceived as having or pushing an agenda, there are already statutes about that which essentially ban people from acts or displays of partisanship within a certain distance of the polling place.