GG> National Firearms Act of 1934. Is that how it 
 GG> started, or were they already
 GG> at it before that? How on earth did Roosevelt get 
 GG> that one through Congress
 GG> I wonder?
 
Hi Gus,
 
It didn't start there. NFA '34 was just the first federal law that  
imposed draconian gun contrl laws on a law abiding public. Prior to that 
there were myriad laws passed on the state and local level that did 
everything from deny access to firearms by blacks to outright bans on 
firearms within city limits.
 
 GG> mean. Bad enough that you
 GG> are required to lock the unloaded weapons away 
 GG> someplace out of reach in an
 GG> emergency (there was even talk of having all firearms stored at police
 GG> stations), and bad enough that you have to jump through hoops to even
 GG> purchase a simple .22 for plinking, and that you 
 GG> can't have large magazines,
 GG> certain calibres like the .25 and .32 , but that 
 GG> this simple minded idiocy
 GG> is moving south as well. They were also seriously considering banning
 GG> crossbows and Super-Soakers, you know, those big 
 GG> water pistols. Just in case
 GG> someone loaded it with bleach or acid and did a 
 GG> driveby squirting. You think
 GG> I'm kidding? I wish I was.
 
Yeah, it's a real pisser ain't it. Fortunately for me, Tennessee has recently 
roled back some of the absolute restrictions on firearms possession and 
actually passed a handgun carry law. We have a "safe harbor" law that states 
that the use of deadly force to protect someone, including yourself, from 
"death or grievous bodily injury" is a defense against charges of illegal 
possession. The Tennessee Firearms Association mounts a campaign each year to 
try to push Tennessee closer to a Vermont style carry law. So, here and 
there, some progress is being made. You really need to get more people active 
in order to make progress. If you can convince the politicians that it is in 
their own best interests to support your position, then and only then will 
you be able to make some headway towards some serious improvements.
 
--- Maximus/2 3.01
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