TexasCHLforum.com

baldeagle wrote:

anygunanywhere wrote:I too am weary of relying on the ballot box. It ain't working.

Anygunanywhere

Two words: Ted Cruz

The Annoyed Man wrote:

anygunanywhere wrote:

Purplehood wrote:

Last week, Missouri Democrats introduced a bill that would ban semi-automatic rifles and give law-abiding gun owners 90 days to turn in their firearms to law enforcement or become felons. This week, a GOP state representative has turned the tables to make a point.

Rep. Mike Leara (R-St. Louis) introduced legislation Monday that would make “any member of the general assembly who proposes legislation that further restricts an individual’s right to bear arms” guilty of a class D felony.

So a legislator wants to make it a felony to propose legislation that he may oppose? That sounds like the opposite of Democracy to me.

I hear you, but to me, passing legislation, directive, or action and acting in a manner in direct, visible, and intentional violation of the Constitution should be a criminal offense.

Anygunanywhere

I like the sentiment, but if that were the case, 3/4 of the laws on the books would have ended up with a legislator/congressman in jail.......not to mention most of the SCOTUS justices who upheld things which violate original intent.

Frankly, I don't see ANY way to keep the original intent of the Constitution intact AND to preserve the rights it enshrines, using the ballot box. The reason I say this is NOT that there is anything wrong with the Constitution OR with the rights it protects OR with the ballot box. Rather, I say it because of nothing more than the natural fecklessness of human nature. Even the founders were not convinced that this "experiment" would last more than a couple of hundred years. Human nature is feckless. The rights so enshrined require a moral people, a people who will not succumb to fecklessness. The more moral the people, the fewer laws are required to guide their behavior. The less feckless and apathetic the people, the less likely they are to petition their representatives for new laws. We are no longer a moral people, and we are a feckless people. It's that simple. People largely get the government they deserve. That doesn't mean that there are no righteous citizens, but the fact is that the righteous are vastly outnumbered by the feckless and immoral, and the reason for that is simply that fecklessness and immorality are the path of least resistance. Righteous citizenship requires vigilance and advocacy. It requires critical thinking skills. It requires a refusal to be buffaloed into rash action. It requires an insistence on consequences for political malfeasance. AND, it requires self-discipline, self-administration, self-regulation, self-control, self-motivation, and self-denial—ALL the hallmarks of personal responsibility and statesmanship.

So it really doesn't matter if these proposed laws are constitutional or not; the American people are no longer amenable to the requirements of constitutional government. That's why I no longer have any faith in the ballot box. 'Nuff said.

Purplehood wrote:

Last week, Missouri Democrats introduced a bill that would ban semi-automatic rifles and give law-abiding gun owners 90 days to turn in their firearms to law enforcement or become felons. This week, a GOP state representative has turned the tables to make a point.

Rep. Mike Leara (R-St. Louis) introduced legislation Monday that would make “any member of the general assembly who proposes legislation that further restricts an individual’s right to bear arms” guilty of a class D felony.

So a legislator wants to make it a felony to propose legislation that he may oppose? That sounds like the opposite of Democracy to me.