Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Just say NO

By now you are more than use to seeing the signs that say "NO GUNS" or have the picture of a pistol with a circle and a slash through it. Though the picture only signs in my opinion could readily be misinterpreted. How you ask?

For instance the predominate sign on doors in St. Louis County Government buildings have a large semi-automatic pistol in black posted. Everytime I walk into those doors I think "hmmm no full size Beretta 92 or 96 pistols, or Taurus pt-99/100s". If you go into your neighbor hood Dobbs Tire & Auto center they don't want you carrying a Colt Detective Special snub nose revolver. Does this mean that my Smith & Wesson 442 snub nose is okay?

In Shrewsbury the local community center has a sign that reads "NO FIREARMS" though I can tell you in their heart of hearts they mean to say No Concealed Weapons. The difference, well according to Missouri Law if you hold a concealed weapon license you could very honestly carry a two bit axe with a sawed off handle under your coat inside and be legal. Why because the sign specifically prohibits firearms. When I see those signs there is a group of cheereleaders in my head going "beee specific...be be specific".

But I digress, the most jack-assinine thing about these signs is that they do nothing. Aside from the court house no one backs these signs up with metal detectors. Why because it is bad for commerce and public relations. If you notice sometime Commerce Banks have "No Guns" signs hanging up on their doors. This is to make the local anti-gun crowd feel good. If you walk into a US Bank you won't see one, nor will you in Blockbuster Video as opposed to some local owned video shops. Why? Nation wide companies have dealt with the CCW thing for the last ten + years and they have come to the conclustion that, 1- they alienate some consumers who protest their business and are law abiding gun toters. B-(yes I know I said 1) the guns are umm concealed and you don't know whose got them, so its rather pointless.

Never mind the fact there has yet to be a case in the United States of America where a person who had a carry concealed license walked out of the Sherriffs office with the newly printed card, got in the car and drove to the bank and held it up.

Its that whole good guy/bad guy thing.

Oh yeah so what exactly happens should you be sitting in that nice italian restaurant with the NO GUNS! sign at the door and you are packing your 200 round high capacity semi-auto revolver mega blaster and it slips down your pant leg and clatters onto the floor for the entire world to see.

According to MO law they can do nothing more than ask you to leave. Refusing leads to law enforcement to issue you a ticket. You still refuse well then you get a nice pair of matching nickel bracelets (and you should).

If only someone would have thought to put a NO PLANE IN BUILDING signs on the door of the World Trade Center. Maybe if there had been federal law requirements that the back of a boarding pass read "by entering this aircraft I agree not to hijack this plane" 9/11 never would have happened.

It's a bad world out there kids and if you look like food you will be eaten.

PAIN!

Our conversation had started with me asking “ So who shot you in the throat? ”, a basic conclusion on my part, b ecause on one sid...