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One way or another, this event could well become a pivotal point in American history. I hope we will all be mature enough to stick to the topic and not allow ourselves to get drug down to the point of name calling and petty bickering.
The story to this point: in 1975, Washington DC passed a law that banned handguns except those registered before 1975. They also required all rifles and shotguns to be stored at home either disassembled or with a trigger lock installed. The US Supreme Court struck down these laws (see District of Columbia v. Heller) as violating the 2nd Amendment, thus declaring the laws to be unconstitutional
Adam Kokesh, an activist and USMC veteran of the war in Iraq, called for an armed but peaceful march on DC, which drew far more support from gun owners than anyone could have imagined.
D.C. Metro Police Chief Cathy Lanier has publicly said, "... when you cross into the District of Columbia with a firearm and you're not in compliance with the law, now you're talking about a criminal offense and there's going to be some action by police."
The problem is that, according to DC law, it is illegal to open carry, but the US Supreme Court struck down that law. As I see it, this puts DC in the position of having laws that it can't ultimately enforce. The stage seemed to be set for a major confrontation.
On May 19th, Kokesh was taken into federal custody at a Philadelphia marijuana rally, even though he wasn't using or in possession of any marijuana. He was to be the keynote speaker, and they just grabbed him and hauled him away. This sparked a wave of protest, and he was released on the 25th, with 2 citations for "disorderly conduct," which he refused to sign.
On May 29th, he cancelled the march on Washington, and is now calling for marches on all 50 state capitals for the "Orderly Dissolution Of The Federal Government." His is calling for "A new American revolution", and promises that, "the American Revolutionary Army will march on each state capital to demand that the governors of these 50 states immediately initiate the process of an orderly dissolution of the federal government through secession and reclamation of federally held property."
And that's about where it stands now.
The story to this point: in 1975, Washington DC passed a law that banned handguns except those registered before 1975. They also required all rifles and shotguns to be stored at home either disassembled or with a trigger lock installed. The US Supreme Court struck down these laws (see District of Columbia v. Heller) as violating the 2nd Amendment, thus declaring the laws to be unconstitutional
Adam Kokesh, an activist and USMC veteran of the war in Iraq, called for an armed but peaceful march on DC, which drew far more support from gun owners than anyone could have imagined.
D.C. Metro Police Chief Cathy Lanier has publicly said, "... when you cross into the District of Columbia with a firearm and you're not in compliance with the law, now you're talking about a criminal offense and there's going to be some action by police."
The problem is that, according to DC law, it is illegal to open carry, but the US Supreme Court struck down that law. As I see it, this puts DC in the position of having laws that it can't ultimately enforce. The stage seemed to be set for a major confrontation.
On May 19th, Kokesh was taken into federal custody at a Philadelphia marijuana rally, even though he wasn't using or in possession of any marijuana. He was to be the keynote speaker, and they just grabbed him and hauled him away. This sparked a wave of protest, and he was released on the 25th, with 2 citations for "disorderly conduct," which he refused to sign.
On May 29th, he cancelled the march on Washington, and is now calling for marches on all 50 state capitals for the "Orderly Dissolution Of The Federal Government." His is calling for "A new American revolution", and promises that, "the American Revolutionary Army will march on each state capital to demand that the governors of these 50 states immediately initiate the process of an orderly dissolution of the federal government through secession and reclamation of federally held property."
And that's about where it stands now.