Readers Opposed To Open/Concealed Carry In Public — Including At The STL Zoo
Not only are readers not having guns at the St. Louis Zoo, they really don’t like guns, concealed or openly carried, in public. Period.
Because the Zoo obtained a temporary restraining order, Jeffrey Smith, of Ohio, held his protest outside the Zoo.
He says that since the zoo is taxpayer funded he should have the right to carry his firearm on zoo property. But, the zoo says its ban is within Missouri law because it qualifies as a child care facility and educational institution. The zoo has a child care facility on site and hosts educational camps and field trips throughout the year.
Saturday, the group ‘Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America’ showed up to support the zoo’s firearm ban.
“This is no place for firearms. There are other places where I can understand they would be necessary. But in the zoo, for such a family friendly part of our community, it’s just really not necessary,” said Becky Morgan of Moms Demand Action. (KSDK)
Here are the results from the Sunday Poll:
Q: Yesterday a Ohio man wanted to enter the St. Louis Zoo openly carrying his gun, thoughts?
- I’m opposed to open carry & concealed carry in public — including at the STL Zoo 27 [55.1%]
- I’m opposed to open carry, but support concealed carry — but not at the STL Zoo 9 [18.37%]
- I’m opposed to open carry, but support concealed carry — including at the STL Zoo 5 [10.2%]
- I support concealed & open carry — including at the STL Zoo 3 [6.12%]
- Other: 2 [4.08%]
- I’m opposed to the ownership of guns at all by loony right-wing fascists
- what is everyone so scared of?
- TIE 1 [2.04%]
- I’m opposed to concealed carry, but support open carry — but not at the STL Zoo
- I support concealed & open carry — but not at the STL Zoo
- Unsure/ no answer
- I’m opposed to concealed carry, but support open carry — including at the STL Zoo 0 [0%]
More than half those who support concealed &/or open carry do not support it at the zoo.
Not sure about the 2nd “other” Who is that reader thinking is scared? Could apply to those who think they need to carry a gun into a zoo patronized largely by families or could apply to those of us who fear the possibility of the presence of a gun(s) presenting a very real danger. The latter is very real considering the event on the day of the poll: Five injured after gun fires accidentally during wedding at Waldorf Astoria.
I suspect we’ve not heard the last of this.
— Steve Patterson
Jeffrey Smith is an idiot but he does point out that America has spoken (at the polling boths and in constitutional interpretation), and America wants more guns, in more places, at more times. Yes it’s stupid, a civil society has many benefits, among them is generally an expectation of safety…you shouldn’t need to carry a gun around. However the USA has no interest in this idea. As an immigrant, I’ve just chosen to embrace it. You’ll drive yourself mad otherwise.
Unfortunately, most people fail to realize that the NRA is nothing more than the MarketingPRopaganda wing of the arms manufacturers in this country (Remington, SW, etc.), and abroad (Beretta, Sig Sauer). The “ownership organization” schtick is only a cover story.
As for what America wants, sure you can believe that. But one must also believe that the average German wanted a Final Solution, prior to, and during WWII. PRopaganda is a powerful tool, especially in the hands of Fifth Column saboteurs and seditionists.
(Godwin can go suck it, BTW)
The American Republic is a democracy. Theoretically it has the laws it wants (such as legal ownership and carrying around of sidearms). Germany in WWII was completely different.
If most Americans really detested the violence associated with its gun policies it would change them, NRA or not.
To be clear, I deaply disagree with legal carry (open or concealed) but it’s what the people want.
I’m going to disagree. Yes, we are a democracy, but one that works in some strange ways. One big issue is that many Americans are politically disconnected – if an issue doesn’t (appear to) impact them (and their daily lives), directly, they just don’t care! Look at voter turnout (pathetically low), look at most political advertising (trying to push Pavlovian hot buttons). That leaves the political process wide open to single-issue agendas (like the NRA) that keep coming back, over and over, and incrementally changing laws in their favor. Yes, they’re “playing the system” (and they’re very good at it). It’s what a small, vocal, group of people “want”, but not what most people “want”. The challenge is getting mainstream America to just care about a process that they see as flawed and one where their voices aren’t “heard”, and if they are, they’re trivialized, marginalized and ignored!