Violence Policy Center Statement on McDonald v. Chicago Decision

http://www.vpc.org/press/1006chi.htm

-Following today's U.S. Supreme Court decision in McDonald v. Chicago that the City of Chicago's handgun ban is unconstitutional under the Second Amendment, thus applying the Court's 2008 decision in District of Columbia v. Heller beyond Washington, DC, Violence Policy Center Legislative Director Kristen Rand issued the following statement:

"People will die because of this decision. It is a victory only for the gun lobby and America's fading firearms industry. The inevitable tide of frivolous pro-gun litigation destined to follow will force cities, counties, and states to expend scarce resources to defend longstanding, effective public safety laws. The gun lobby and gunmakers are seeking nothing less than the complete dismantling of our nation’s gun laws in a cynical effort to try and stem the long-term drop in gun ownership and save the dwindling gun industry. The 30,000 lives claimed annually by gun violence and the families destroyed in the wake of mass shootings and murder-suicides mean little to the gun lobby and the firearm manufacturers it protects.

"It is our hope that Chicago’s citizens will follow the lead of the residents of the District of Columbia--who were stripped of their handgun ban in the wake of the Supreme Court’s June 2008 decision in District of Columbia v. Heller. In the two years since that decision, only 900 firearms have been registered in the District that otherwise could not have been registered before the Heller ruling. The citizens of DC reject the wrong-headed notion that more guns make us safer. We know the facts prove the opposite and that areas of the country with the highest concentration of gun ownership also have the highest rates of gun death. We urge Chicago residents to consider these indisputable facts before considering bringing a handgun into their homes--an act that could well prove fatal to themselves or a loved one.”

Posted at Rawstory
http://rawstory.com/rs/2010/0628/supreme-court-rules-chicago-gun-ban-unconstitutional/

:nuke:

Thanks for posting it, it is freakin' Hilarious!!!!!

Quick, roll his head in more duct tape, before he explodes!!!

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who can't legally own guns. Laws that criminals ignore don't make us safer.

Ha.

Let me be so churlish as to remind you of something:

In the two years since Heller was decided, the murder rate in DC declined.

I leave it to the impartial reader to decide who's paranoid- the "gun nuts" or the Violence Policy Center

Sorry, but my right to life trumps the federal laws and I knew very well what the penalty would be if I were caught in DC with a firearm.

I refuse to follow laws that put restrictions on my life, liberty or pursuit of happiness, so long as those actions do not harm another. I answer to a higher power.

:scared:

I'm willing to pay the consequences for breaking the laws. I have a right to civil disobedience and my fundamental right to self-defense cannot be revoked by any human agency.

Look. I don't care if you're anti-gun or not. Too bad. You cannot selectively enforce parts of the constitutional rights we have. If you don't like guns, then get your state to ratify an amendment to strike the 2nd out. Until then, I'm going to exercise my right to bear arms.

This is such ridiculous hyperbole, I don't even know what to say.

Life is risk. People die. Deal with it. Everyone has a fundamental right to self defense, and brother, if my life is in immediate jeopardy, you can bet your lilly white ass I'll pull the trigger and empty the clip until the attacker is dead.

my right to living in a safer world is obliterated. So have fun with your "right". I guess I'll just have to keep my head down and my fingers crossed.

So in your world, your safety and rights are dependent on taking away the rights of others?

That's sad.

when in reality, you're never really safe. Life is inherent risk and you can very well die any time. I don't see any point in hiding, being afraid of the world. I'd rather exercise my right to bear arms and look death in the eye, if I must, when the time comes.

I'm only 27, so I'm still young and dumb. But I firmly believe that an armed society, is a polite society.

My right to own a gun does not interfere with your right to safety.

Exactly. Chances are you'll never even know I have a gun.

The gun stays concealed on your person at all times and must only be drawn when your life is in jeopardy, period. Unfortunately, there are idiots out there that brandish their weapons and use it as an extension of their dick, but I digress.

guns don't kill people...blah blah blah
Frankly, I do not trust the judgment of anyone who wants to own a gun.

:hi:

and it is because of the City's handgun laws.

-"Fading" firearms industry? (see 2008-2009 sales figures)
-"longstanding, effective public safety laws" -- if Chicago's ban were effective, crime would be down, right?
-"stem the long-term drop in gun ownership" -- see gallup polling & sales figures from this year

The VPC is too funny. They're kind of like the Parents Television Council in the sense that everything they put out is unintentional humor.

"In the two years since that decision, only 900 firearms have been registered in the District that otherwise could not have been registered before the Heller ruling. The citizens of DC reject the wrong-headed notion that more guns make us safer".

Of course "only 900 firearms have been registered in the District" and that's because of the underhanded scheme, obstacles and expense the city put in place after Heller was decided.

It also males a big difference when there are only a small handful of FFLs in the District (Sugarman of the VPC is one), and the only one who will deal with the general public charges an exuberant sum of cash.

Citizens aren't purchasing handguns because they "reject the wrong-headed notion that more guns make us safer".

They're not purchasing them because of frustration with the current system.

Right now, the best thing that can happen for DC residents is to pass the legislation stalled in Congress that would allow residents
to travel to VA and purchase their handgun there.