http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_dougherty/20000830_xnjdo_heatpackin.shtml
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Heat-packing lawmaker
pushes gun bill
California bill requires firearm
licensing, fingerprinting, shooting test
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Jon E. Dougherty
© 2000 WorldNetDaily.com
The California state senator who guided a handgun registration measure to a 22-15 victory in the state Senate has a permit to carry a concealed handgun, the Los Angeles Times said.
Sen. Don Perata, D-Alameda, was the Senate floor manager for the bill, which passed on Monday and must now go to the state Assembly, where its chances for passage are admittedly dicey.
Perata made no bones about his support for the measure, which he said balances the rights of individuals with the "interests of society." In making his case, he compared the bill with the state's requirement to license drivers.
"If we do it for operation of a motor vehicle, we should do the same for operation of an equally dangerous piece of equipment," Perata said during debate.
He said more California young people die from bullets than in traffic accidents each year, a statistic not immediately available for confirmation.
Republican opponents in the state Senate disagreed, however, especially with Perata's automobile licensure comparison.
"I can tell you that a car in the hands of a 16-year-old is a heck of a lot more dangerous than a gun in the hands of a 16-year-old," said Sen. Ray Haynes, R-Riverside, according to the paper. "Lawnmowers are more dangerous than guns. Heck, in some cases, if you misuse your microwave, it is more dangerous than a gun."
The Times said the bill -- if it passes the Assembly -- would likely be vetoed by Democratic Gov. Gray Davis, who has said other gun-control measures already enacted by the state earlier this year needed time to work and come under scrutiny before more were needed.
The California measure is stricter than similar handgun-registration laws already on the books in New York, Illinois, New Jersey, Hawaii, Maryland and Connecticut, the paper said.
The gun registration bill would not require current handgun owners to pay a $25 registration fee, but would require any new owner of the same gun to register it if it changed hands.
Also, applicants would be required to apply at local police departments, be fingerprinted and pass written and shooting proficiency tests before a license would be issued. The licenses would be issued through the state's Department of Justice.
Last year in California, about 245,000 new and used handguns were sold through licensed dealers, according to the Times report.
Opponents of the measure say that while Perata's having a concealed-carry permit in the face of promoting handgun licensure may be hypocritical, he has the right idea when it comes to how best to practice self-defense.
Annually, Americans use guns about 2.5 million times to protect themselves, according to recent studies, and only have to actually fire their weapon about 8 percent of the time. About a half million people use a handgun -- the preferred weapon of self-defense -- to protect themselves away from home each year.
A comprehensive 1996 study by noted gun-law researcher John R. Lott of Yale University revealed that states which passed concealed-carry laws reduced their murder rate by 8.5 percent, rapes by 5 percent, aggravated assaults by 7 percent and robbery by 3 percent.
[/quote]
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John/az
"When freedom is at stake, your silence is not golden, it's yellow..." RKBA!
See The Legacy of Gun Control film at: www.cphv.com
Do it for the children...
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Heat-packing lawmaker
pushes gun bill
California bill requires firearm
licensing, fingerprinting, shooting test
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Jon E. Dougherty
© 2000 WorldNetDaily.com
The California state senator who guided a handgun registration measure to a 22-15 victory in the state Senate has a permit to carry a concealed handgun, the Los Angeles Times said.
Sen. Don Perata, D-Alameda, was the Senate floor manager for the bill, which passed on Monday and must now go to the state Assembly, where its chances for passage are admittedly dicey.
Perata made no bones about his support for the measure, which he said balances the rights of individuals with the "interests of society." In making his case, he compared the bill with the state's requirement to license drivers.
"If we do it for operation of a motor vehicle, we should do the same for operation of an equally dangerous piece of equipment," Perata said during debate.
He said more California young people die from bullets than in traffic accidents each year, a statistic not immediately available for confirmation.
Republican opponents in the state Senate disagreed, however, especially with Perata's automobile licensure comparison.
"I can tell you that a car in the hands of a 16-year-old is a heck of a lot more dangerous than a gun in the hands of a 16-year-old," said Sen. Ray Haynes, R-Riverside, according to the paper. "Lawnmowers are more dangerous than guns. Heck, in some cases, if you misuse your microwave, it is more dangerous than a gun."
The Times said the bill -- if it passes the Assembly -- would likely be vetoed by Democratic Gov. Gray Davis, who has said other gun-control measures already enacted by the state earlier this year needed time to work and come under scrutiny before more were needed.
The California measure is stricter than similar handgun-registration laws already on the books in New York, Illinois, New Jersey, Hawaii, Maryland and Connecticut, the paper said.
The gun registration bill would not require current handgun owners to pay a $25 registration fee, but would require any new owner of the same gun to register it if it changed hands.
Also, applicants would be required to apply at local police departments, be fingerprinted and pass written and shooting proficiency tests before a license would be issued. The licenses would be issued through the state's Department of Justice.
Last year in California, about 245,000 new and used handguns were sold through licensed dealers, according to the Times report.
Opponents of the measure say that while Perata's having a concealed-carry permit in the face of promoting handgun licensure may be hypocritical, he has the right idea when it comes to how best to practice self-defense.
Annually, Americans use guns about 2.5 million times to protect themselves, according to recent studies, and only have to actually fire their weapon about 8 percent of the time. About a half million people use a handgun -- the preferred weapon of self-defense -- to protect themselves away from home each year.
A comprehensive 1996 study by noted gun-law researcher John R. Lott of Yale University revealed that states which passed concealed-carry laws reduced their murder rate by 8.5 percent, rapes by 5 percent, aggravated assaults by 7 percent and robbery by 3 percent.
[/quote]
------------------
John/az
"When freedom is at stake, your silence is not golden, it's yellow..." RKBA!
See The Legacy of Gun Control film at: www.cphv.com
Do it for the children...