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Is this the start of a Cold Civil War
#5
While there is a constitutional right to own arms, it's pretty clear that the founders didn't want guns in the hands of everyone (slaves, for instance) because local ordinances at the time weren't challenged, and even more than a century later, laws banning guns in town weren't challenged either (in many Western towns you had to surrender your guns to the sheriff if you were in town.)

State laws determine who gets to own what and what the process is for carrying firearms.  Every single one of the states has different laws.

So Hawaii hasn't broken the Constitution, nor is this an excuse to start a(n) (un)civil war, though you might decide to not ever travel to that state.

You might (or might not) enjoy this article about early gun laws: https://theconversation.com/five-types-o...oved-85364


For the purpose of conversation, let me highlight a few sentences:
  • (gun registration) The colonies and then the newly independent states kept track of these privately owned weapons  required for militia service.
  • (ban on traveling with weapons - dates to before the founding of the US and was kept in place and legal after the Constitution) In fact, most colonies adopted common law as it had been interpreted in the colonies prior to independence, including the ban on traveling armed in populated areas. (snip) Nonetheless, by the end of the century, prohibiting public carry was the legal norm, not the exception.
  • (safe storage of registered arms) In 1786, Boston acted on this legal principle, prohibiting the storage of a loaded firearm in any domestic dwelling in the city.

And there were some ridiculously (to our modern minds) restrictive laws.  To wit: 
  • The earliest gun regulations targeted specific individuals, aiming to restrict dangerous persons from owning firearms. These regulations also involved discrimination based on religious, racial and political reasons.
  • In 1756, Maryland introduced a law that restricted Catholics from owning guns. The law ordered the confiscation of “all Arms Gunpowder and Ammunition of what kind soever any Papist or reputed Papist within this Providence hath or shall have in his House or Houses.” (https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/blog/hi...centuries/)

And...
  • in 1838, Virginia passed legislation explicitly prohibiting the carrying of certain concealed weapons such as pistols, dirks, Bowie knives and other similar arms that could be “hidden or concealed from common observations.” The law imposed penalties on offenders, including fines ranging from $50 to $500 or imprisonment for up to six months.

(from part 2 of that article)

So, you see, a bit of research does back up Hawaii's law.
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RE: Is this the start of a Cold Civil War - by Byrd - 02-08-2024, 09:33 PM

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