Wild Child
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I found this on the opinion section of USATodays web page.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/comment/debate.htm
Suits threaten our freedoms
By Valde Garcia
The separation of powers has stood as the cornerstone of our democracy. It is the concept that keeps this country strong and free from the dregs of tyranny. Yet, as we enter a new millennium, powerful special interests seek to overturn this idea, and, with it, our nation's Constitution and the freedom it guarantees.
More than the Second Amendment is at stake when cities and states file lawsuits against gun manufacturers. The entire Constitution and the principles underlying it are, too.
In this country, the power to make laws and regulate business rests with Congress and state legislatures. These harassment lawsuits are nothing more than backhanded attempts to circumvent this process and use the courts to regulate businesses.
That's why a Cincinnati judge recently threw out that city's lawsuit against gun manufacturers, ruling that it is the responsibility of Ohio's legislature to regulate gun makers.
If these special interests want to change gun laws, they should make their case before the elected representatives of the people.
To do otherwise would set a terrible precedent: holding manufacturers of a product responsible for how others misuse it.
Guns are meant for self-defense, sporting and hunting - not for committing crimes.
Rather than waste taxpayers' money going after law-abiding businesses, government would be better served enforcing the 40,000 gun laws on the books and arresting criminals who commit gun crimes. They are the ones responsible for the costs of gun violence, and we make them pay by locking them up.
Suing gun manufacturers only drives up the cost of guns and makes it harder for the average citizen to own them for recreation or protection. Because lawsuits do not reduce the availability of guns to criminals, the only winners will be criminals, as they are the only ones who will have guns.
Filing lawsuits is a haphazard way to make policy and often succeeds only in enriching lawyers at the expense of the Constitution, our nation's history and the personal freedoms we all enjoy.
Valde Garcia is a Michigan state representative and chief sponsor of a bill to prohibit cities from suing the gun industry.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/comment/debate.htm
Suits threaten our freedoms
By Valde Garcia
The separation of powers has stood as the cornerstone of our democracy. It is the concept that keeps this country strong and free from the dregs of tyranny. Yet, as we enter a new millennium, powerful special interests seek to overturn this idea, and, with it, our nation's Constitution and the freedom it guarantees.
More than the Second Amendment is at stake when cities and states file lawsuits against gun manufacturers. The entire Constitution and the principles underlying it are, too.
In this country, the power to make laws and regulate business rests with Congress and state legislatures. These harassment lawsuits are nothing more than backhanded attempts to circumvent this process and use the courts to regulate businesses.
That's why a Cincinnati judge recently threw out that city's lawsuit against gun manufacturers, ruling that it is the responsibility of Ohio's legislature to regulate gun makers.
If these special interests want to change gun laws, they should make their case before the elected representatives of the people.
To do otherwise would set a terrible precedent: holding manufacturers of a product responsible for how others misuse it.
Guns are meant for self-defense, sporting and hunting - not for committing crimes.
Rather than waste taxpayers' money going after law-abiding businesses, government would be better served enforcing the 40,000 gun laws on the books and arresting criminals who commit gun crimes. They are the ones responsible for the costs of gun violence, and we make them pay by locking them up.
Suing gun manufacturers only drives up the cost of guns and makes it harder for the average citizen to own them for recreation or protection. Because lawsuits do not reduce the availability of guns to criminals, the only winners will be criminals, as they are the only ones who will have guns.
Filing lawsuits is a haphazard way to make policy and often succeeds only in enriching lawyers at the expense of the Constitution, our nation's history and the personal freedoms we all enjoy.
Valde Garcia is a Michigan state representative and chief sponsor of a bill to prohibit cities from suing the gun industry.