Some of you may have noticed this editorial over at The Philadelphia Inquirer declaring the imminent passage of “One-gun-a-month” rationing scheme in The Garden State, and admonishing Harrisburg to follow Trenton’s lead. There are two problems with this editorial.
One, it assumes that this law to ration gun ownership is effective at its stated purpose, which is to reduce illegal gun trafficking. We know from other states that have passed it, that it has now been shown to do any such thing. South Carolina had a long standing gun rationing scheme, which is repealed because there was no evidence that it was effective. Multiple sales are already reported to the BATF and local law enforcement, so if these types of purchases are really a problem, more laws aren’t the solution.
The other mistake is to assume that passage of gun rationing in New Jersey is inevitable. It is not. You get a hint of that here:
That effort deserves the full support of lawmakers from South Jersey, including Senate Majority Leader Stephen Sweeney (D., Gloucester). But Sweeney is not yet on board with the proposal, and seems to be quoting from the NRA’s bullet points about the need to enforce existing gun regulations more fully.
This reveals the Inquirer’s true intention in publishing this editorial, which is to publicly shame Senator Sweeney into signing on to Bryan Miller’s gun rationing scheme. The reason they have to do this is because they are coming up short on votes in the New Jersey State Senate to get this latest restriction on Second Amendment rights passed. I would encourage everyone to send a note to Senator Sweeney to thank him for standing up for your rights. If you’re a New Jersey resident, the critical time is now for contacting your Senators and State Assemblymen.
There is a very real chance of stopping a gun control bill in New Jersey. Only a few years ago, Bryan Miller could ask the New Jersey legislature to jump, and they would ask “How High?” Now they are starting to ask questions. This is critical for both Pennsylvania and New Jersey residents. For New Jersey residents, it’s the first step in reversing a long decline in gun rights that’s happened since 1968. For Pennsylvanians, it’s a chance to ensure that Bryan Miller, and the full resources of the New Jersey Gun Control movement are tied up fighting in Trenton, rather than in Harrisburg. We will both benefit from this win, but we must keep the pressure on.
