Pilot Carry vs. Police-Only National Concealed Carry
Pilot Carry vs. Cops-Only
National Concealed Carry
by Angel
Shamaya
April 26, 2002
American pilots are working to get
themselves armed in their cockpits. This is a good idea.
American law enforcement officers
are seeking special status exemptions from the concealed carry laws of all 50
states while those same laws continue to be enforced against the people. This is
a bad idea.
After reading my report
opposing Cops-Only National Concealed Carry legislation, a couple of people
wrote to me to ask why I'd oppose the
special exemptions for police but support arming pilots
in their cockpits. That is a fair question -- one that deserves a public answer.
The chart below addresses the difference between the two.
If this subject is new to you, the
following two links will bring you up to speed at your leisure:
Airplanes
& Guns Archives
Special
Exemptions for Cops?
Public Servants Seek Immunity from Gun Laws they
Enforce;
Gun Rights Leaders Say “No
Thanks!”
| Question/Concern |
Pilots |
Police |
| As a
group, do many among them throw
people in jail every day for exercising a basic constitutional right? |
NO |
YES |
| As a
group, do they often adamantly and publicly oppose the right of the
people to keep and bear arms? |
NO |
YES |
| If their
request is granted, can they go into a restaurant carrying a firearm
where you'd go to jail for doing so? |
NO |
YES |
| Is support
for citizen concealed carry decriminalization needed from them as a
group? |
NO |
YES |
| Would
granting their request significantly reduce the amount of support coming
from their group for citizen concealed carry decriminalization? |
NO |
YES |
| Would
granting their request harm efforts to decriminalize citizen concealed
carry? |
NO |
YES |
| Would
granting their request help the efforts of gun prohibitionists? |
NO |
YES |
| Would
granting their request significantly increase resentment against civil
authority? |
NO |
YES |
| Are they
employees of civil authority (and, therefore, subservient -- not
superior -- to the people)? |
NO |
YES |
| Do some
among their group ever use the authority and power their jobs afford
them to terrorize citizens -- on or off the job? |
NO |
YES |
| Are rabid
anti-Second-Amendment unions backing their proposal? |
NO |
YES |
| Is
approving their request a violation of the United States Constitution? |
NO |
YES |
| Is their
request born of a general elitism within their group? |
NO |
YES |
| Would they
be operating in an official capacity when carrying in the domain covered
by their request? (pilots' domain: cockpit / police domain: everywhere) |
YES |
NO |
| Will they
always have hundreds or even thousands of lives in their hands while
carrying in the domain covered by their request? |
YES |
NO |
| Do they
have an official duty to do everything within their power to protect the
lives of the people within their reach while carrying in the domain
covered by their request? |
YES |
NO |
Furthermore, KeepAndBearArms.com is not endorsing permits for arming
the pilots to the exclusion of citizens. Our position has been consistent; we
work to see every peaceable citizen who so chooses armed -- without needing
permission. We have not advocated the pilots' getting permission to exercise
their Second Amendment rights -- we have advocated and urged them to demand
their rights and not fly unless their rights are honored. And we also urge
passengers to do the same. We would like to see the pilots ground the planes
because they are being denied their rights -- that would force the government
and airlines to cave in. We would also like to see passengers demand their right
and refuse to fly -- if they did, that would also ground the flights and quickly
resolve the issue.
Again: in neither case are we advocating special permits for any special
group; we support the right of all Americans, including pilots and cops, to
exercise their Second Amendment rights, as people, nationwide -- without
permits, and without any additional laws. All but a handful
of gun laws need to be repealed.
