When the new law on gun control was passed almost two months ago making Florida the fourth state to allow guns at the workplace, I had mixed feelings about the new legislation. According to the new law, if my employer is not a hospital, prison, power plant or school, I can take my handgun to work as long as I have a concealed weapons permit and the gun is locked inside my vehicle. Is this good or bad news?
In the gun control article “showdown,” it states that Florida has more concealed weapons permits than any other state in the nation. The article also indicates the new law is good news for some Floridians and bad news for others.
What was the true intent of the United States Constitution with regards to the rights of citizens to bear arms?
What is the point in bringing a gun to work? Think a bout it, how often are people robbed or shot at during work hours? Speaking from the point of view of a person who works a normal forty-hour work week and considers himself to be a law-abiding citizen, I have never found myself in a threatening work situation where I felt the need to physically defend myself, let alone pull out a gun.
The people I work with who have dishonorable intentions or criminal minds probably already bring their guns to work, and up until now, I have never felt intimidated by them. I feel intimidated because I do not know who they are, but now that this law has been passed that legally allows guns to be brought to work, it makes me feel that I may be at a disadvantage.
I could be the only one at work unarmed which , in turn, makes me suspicious and fearful of everyone. I think that this new legislation would only put everyone on edge and create a more hostile work environment.
Everyone is already aware of the reputation of the United States Postal Service with regards to workplace violence. As a postal employee, now I know that everyone can legally bring their guns to work. This does not make me feel like I am working in a safer work environment.
In fact, taking into consideration some of the strange people that I work with, it makes me feel just the opposite I am sure that law makers that passed this law had good intentions, but I feel that they failed to make it clear to the public how this law is to be interpreted.
Saying that it is now legal to bring a gun to work is too broad of a statement. Where do you draw the line with the interpretation of this law? What are the limitations?
When I go to a place such as Disney World, am I to assume that it is a strong possibility that Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck could have access to a weapon?
When I take my six-year old son to school, or my two-year old daughter to daycare, it doesn’t give me an added since of assurance for their safety knowing that it is a possibility that their teachers may have a gun a work.
When I go to church, knowing that it is a possibility that the pastor, the deacons, ushers or even the secretary may have access to a gun does not make me feel safer either.
Everything has its place and unless you work at a job where you are required to carry a weapon, the work place is certainly no place for a gun. The gun laws are too lax and need to be stricter.
I do not think we as citizens will ever know the true intent of the United States Constitution with regards to who should bear arms. The Second Amendment states: A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms should not be infringed.
What was the original intent of the Second Amendment? Defining the intent of the Second Amendment has created a great deal of controversy. Many think that the word “people” does not mean individuals but a collective group.
However, there are others who think that the Second Amendment means the militia has the only right to bear arms, not individuals. “The original intent and purpose of the Second Amendment was to preserve and guarantee , not grant, the pre-existing right of individuals to bear arms” (GunCite).
What do the presidential nominees think about gun control? John McCain believes that the right of law abiding citizens to keep and bear arms is a fundamental, individual Constitutional right. We have a responsibility to ensure that criminals who violate the law are prosecuted to the fullest, rather than restricting the rights of law abiding citizens.
Gun control is a proven failure in fighting crime. Law abiding citizens should not be asked to give up their rights because of criminals--criminals who ignore gun control laws anyway.
Barack Obama thinks we have two conflicting traditions in this country. He stated, “I think it's important for us to recognize that we've got a tradition of handgun ownership and gun ownership generally. And a lot of law-abiding citizens use it for hunting, for sportsmanship, and for protecting their families.
We also have a violence on the streets that is the result of illegal handgun usage. And so I think there is nothing wrong with a community saying we are going to take those illegal handguns off the streets.
And cracking down on the various loopholes that exist in terms of background checks for children, the mentally ill. We can have reasonable, thoughtful gun control measure that I think respect the Second Amendment and people's traditions.” (On the Issues).
So, both McCain and Obama believe the Second Amendment was written to give individuals the fundamental right to bear arms. However, both also think that guns should not be easily be accessible to the hands of criminals.
References
Barack Obama on Gun Control. “On the Issues.” Barack Obama on Gun Control
15 July 2008. 16 August 2008. < http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Barack_
Obama_Gun_Control.htm >
Gun Control. “Original Intent and Purpose of the Second Amendment.”
9 September 2007. 16 August 2008. <>
“Gun Control Showdown.” Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association. 3 July 2008.
16 August 2008. < http://www.economist.com/world/United States
displaystory.cfm?story_id=11670740 >
John McCain on Gun Control. “On the Issues.” John McCain on Gun Control
15 July 2008. 16 August 2008. < http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/John_
McCain_Gun_Control.htm
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