Unless you live there, you have probably never heard of Lower Merion Township in Pennsylvania. It's a Philadelphia suburb not unlike thousands of suburban areas in the country. Nice homes, friendly shopping, parks for families and especially children. It's a great place to live with wonderful schools (just ask Kobe Bryant). It's a place where you feel safe. Or are you? Would you feel safe knowing that there are people walking around the parks your kids play in carrying a gun? Well the NRA thinks that is a good idea but then again, they harken back still to the days of gunslingers and cowboys and seem to not recognize the need for change. But this is not your usual call for the NRA to hang up their holsters. No, this is about the little guy, a commissioner of the township, who has the trigger finger to put the finger on these gun-totin' lunatics. A guy named Daniel Bernheim is standing up to the NRA and their threat of a lawsuit as he challenges a code, which would regulate gun activities in the parks. The current code states, "No person, except members of the Police Department, shall carry or discharge firearms of any kind in a park without a special permit, unless exempted." The NRA believes it is "exempted." The Firearms Consulting Group had an attorney send threatening letters warning of potential challenges to this ordinance stating it would make municipalities liable for all legal costs if a challenge is successful." As a result, many potential lawsuits have been rescinded for fear of financial retaliation.
Let's put this in plain English. Guns are coming to your neighborhood and are you just going to sit on your butt and let this happen? Haven't we, as a country, gone through enough unauthorized gun use to allow the continued existence of firearms? I don't care if you are some responsible NRA person. How did kids get guns to shoot up schools, or men to shoot up movie theaters or shopping centers? Have we lost our collective minds? Is the right to bear arms not pathetically outdated?
Are we going to be bullied by the NRA forever because a giant list of celebrities supports them? Do they carry weapons to protect and defend their mega-mansions?
What about we regular folk who just want to protect our children and choose not to have guns in our neighborhood parks? As Commissioner Bernheim said, "This is not about gun ownership, it is about the safety of our children." Well Commissioner, I wish you had said it was about gun ownership also because I don't want a bullet in my back because I hit a tennis ball out of the court and some NRA dude or dudette got angry and decided to exercise the 2nd amendment right.
But I do praise the Commissioner by not backing down. The NRA stated they would sue him. Not a good move for a guy who may be Commissioner but who kept his day job as an attorney - just the kind of attorney you do not want to mess with in court. As he stated to the NRA - "go on. Give it your best shot."
Danny - you rock! I love having a little brother who will sock it to Goliath.