So what do we do with guys in political events carrying guns? nt

[ShockediSay]

[ZombieHorde]

1. Laugh and keep our eyes open. nt

[kestrel91316]

2. Tell them to stay the hell out.

[Zoeisright]

3. Kick them out and watch them as they leave.

Or arrest them.

[Mark Maker]

6. Who should arrest them and for what?

Offending your sensibilities?

[EFerrari]

18. Escort them out for being a public hazard.

Remember when Cindy was arrested for wearing a t-shirt?

Surely an unsecured gun at a political event is as dangerous as her shirt.

[Ikonoklast]

4. Society will make them pariahs.

It will happen all by itself.


Most people in this country do not like to be bullied by the implied violence.


Nor do they like the idea of armed political parties.

[ShockediSay]

10. Well said. 'Armed political parties' reminds me of the Nazis nt

[gateley]

5. If someone showed up tonight at the memorial service, would they have been

able to turn them away? Does a metal detector even serve a purpose if it's legal to carry concealed weapons?

My sister-in-law and I were discussing this tonight. She said no way would they let an armed person in there, I said that seemed right, but armed people were allowed to attend other events where the President was present.

Does anybody know?

[guruoo]

7. The armed civilans were never allowed close enough to become a danger

to the President. And I'm sure even the ones outside the perimeter were
assigned their own special Presidential host to watch over them, and assure that their visit
was a peaceful one.

[gateley]

12. I'm sure you're right. Like those men and women don't have enough to do! Thanks. nt

[Abq_Sarah]

9. The Secret Service isn't going to allow anyone

Who is armed within close proximity to the President. They can prohibit firearms within a venue where the President is speaking. They can't, however, prohibit people within a geographical region like a city block.

[gateley]

11. That's what my sister-in-law guessed -- it's different when it's an inside venue. Thanks.

[EFerrari]

19. Didn't they do exactly that at Bush's inaugurals?

DC looked like an armed camp with people in cages.

[Abq_Sarah]

21. For his second

Inauguration, they had protesters behind wire fences because of the problems they encountered with people throwing bottles and stuff at his limousine during the first one.

[One_Life_To_Give]

40. Potus surrounded by "Special" security zone

All these events where the president speaks are designated to come under special security zone law. Entering that temporary security zone is like walking into the Whitehouse lawn. Federal law supersedes and the carrying of firearms is only allowed by officials designated by the SS. (e.g. They can choose to allow local PD to keep their guns but are not required to do so.)

Those nuts carrying their guns outside campaign stops were actually quite a ways away. Try volunteering for an event like the DNC and see just how big that security zone is.

[Common Sense Party]

8. Stand next to them with large signs with an arrow pointing to the gun

toter and in large letters, "This man has a tiny wiener"

[lonestarnot]

36. Excellent! And for women?

[Cerridwen]

39. A sign that says, "Her gun makes her butt look big."

Sorry. If we're playing with stereotypes I thought we should be "fair and balanced." :D

[Contrary1]

13. Keep an eye out, but nothing else.

They want a confrontation; so why give it to them?

[EFerrari]

20. Because not confronting these people is not working. n/t

[Contrary1]

22. There's no point in confronting them unless the law prohibits it,

I agree with you. Guns should not be allowed anywhere near elected officials. Our best recourse is trying to change the law.

[EFerrari]

23. Bush kicked people out of his events for the bumperstickers on their parked cars.

Not that I'd want Obama to do that but there has to be a reasonable middle ground. Guns have no place at political gatherings, whether there are elected officials there or not.

[cherokeeprogressive]

14. We obey the local laws, just as they might be doing. n/t

[JVS]

15. Bring more guns of our own.

[HEyHEY]

27. That's the spirit!

[Jamastiene]

16. It's a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation.

I'm all for 2nd Amendment rights, and 1st Amendment rights, but I was always taught that with 1st Amendment rights, you still cannot threaten people that you'll hurt them, because that is called communicating threats. I was also taught that you don't go brandishing a gun unless you mean to use it, and you don't use it on people unless it is in self defense and you know you have no other choice.

These thugs doing all this at political events are bullies, nothing more, nothing less. They are abusing the 2nd Amendment and the 1st Amendment at the same time. Those amendments are not there to give them the right to threaten and bully people, but our government does nothing to stop them. When it comes to bullying and threatening, that should be "the line." Period. Everything else is negotiable (target shooting, CC, hunting, etc.)

What they are doing at these political events, at one time, was against the law. I don't think that law changed, but something made our government quit enforcing that law. I don't know why. It's terrorism. Plain and simple. I have a gut feeling our government is allowing it because they want to keep the atmosphere fearful and, well, terrorized, to make sure the mass lemmings that go along to get along will keep supporting the wars for profit. I really do think that is why they are allowing this crap to go on. They want to make sure, by any means necessary, they can keep the populace afraid and fearful, so they can keep on with the wars and keep on with the Big Brother crap they are doing (slowly eroding all our other rights.)

Personally, I'm sick of it. I don't think it's too much to ask that people with CC permits not have a gun within 1000 feet of schools, churches, political events, and other events that have large crowds of people. Arizona had some of the most lenient gun control laws out there, but look what happened anyhow. Lot of good their lenient gun control laws did that day.

That is why, even though I know President Obama is in a tough situation and has to say that we should work for a child like view/world of politics, where everyone believes wholeheartedly in the American dream, etc., it is just not a reasonable request. The reality is, there are thugs controlling everything no matter who is in our government and most of what our government has been doing for the last 10 years or so is pure out and out fascism making itself comfy in America.

If it keeps up at this rate, America will either become the next Nazi Germany type country or fold and collapse. Neither one of those prospects looks appealing at all to me.

It's too late to request that we go back to that whole American pride/nationalism frame of mind. There's nothing left to be proud of. Post 9/11 America is the fucked up alter ego ghost of the America that once was. Our innocence is gone. Our rights are gone. Our hope is gone.

Unless the "childlike" view of politics means looking at it from inside our bedrooms due to being grounded all the time, that idea of making American politics like a little girl would like for it to be, is impossible. It is absolutely impossible. Reality makes it impossible. With our new political reality as of right now, the bottom line is that the first rule of being a Democrat in America is to expect to possibly be assassinated, whether by bombs or bullets by either unstable people influenced by right wingers, hate groups, or right wingers too hopped up on conspiracy theories. Either way, the Democratic Party has been given marching orders to either belly up and wet ourselves like the beta dogs we have been made to be, or assist in our own demise, and in turn assist in America's demise.

In other words, we are hosed now matter how you look at it.

That's just my $0.02 worth.

[kwolf68]

17. The fact one would feel the need

To carry a gun into a political event tells me they think of politics as violent war.

Haven't we progressed passed that?

Yea I get it, "my 2nd amendment rights", but I don't grab my P-38 when I drive down to Subway to eat, so why would I need it to go to a political rally?

[Raine]

24. I don't understand how this is even legal

When I was protesting outside a dinner Raygun was at the police made us discard the sticks that we were using to hold our signs. Why can you have a gun and not a sign with a stick??? :wtf:

[chollybocker]

25. As long as the liberal hippy-types are well fenced off, there's no prob.

:eyes:

[Ilsa]

26. They get a thrill from the attention. I think if you ignore them,

they'll go away from the political events. They aren't there to hear Democratic candidates anyway.

[eShirl]

28. airport-level security

[MineralMan]

29. Publicly ridicule them at the time.

That's my suggestion. Call them out for their paranoia on the spot.

[blondeatlast]

34. Agreed. I've no problem at all with shaming silly adults. nt

[MineralMan]

38. I've done it. The funny thing is that the gun-toters in such situations

are in a very precarious position. They don't dare let their anger get the best of them, so it's possible to point out the ridiculousness of their little demonstration without worrying about the firearm on their belt. They may get angry, but they can't act on that anger in any way, for fear of arrest. Someone is always keeping an eye on these morons at political events.

[Statistical]

30. Nothing? How many people did they harm? Oh yeah 0.

If someone intends harm they likely aren't going to a rally with a gun in plain sight they will attack suddenly and without warning with concealed weapons.

[Buns_of_Fire]

31. I like a modified Chris Rock approach: Let them bring as many firearms as they can carry...

...but confiscate every magazine and round of ammunition they have with them (which can be returned after the event, of course). It would be interesting to see how many of them would be willing to stuff a live cartridge up their butt just to smuggle it in.

[Iggo]

32. Really bright spotlights.

Somebody wants to be seen, well by gawd let's accomodate him.

[Bragi]

33. Surround them with people wearing "I'm With Stupid" teeshirts /nt

[lonestarnot]

37. Excellent!

[lonestarnot]

35. Call them out, and point out the spectacle they are making of themselves. Public humiliation used

to be a punishment.