We like the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution. Since review never hurts, said Amendment reads:
Amendment II
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
The whole Bill of Rights (including our favorite Amendment, the IIId) lives here.
Although it’s not explicitly stated, Americans have the right to go downtown and behave like idiots, but only up to a point. That point was reached yesterday by two members of Generation We. From today’s edition of the Topeka Capital Journal:
Phony gun spurs real arrests
The "No Guns" sign is used to prevent gun violence in Kansas
By Kevin Elliott
Created February 16, 2010 at 8:51pm
Updated February 17, 2010 at 12:06am
Two teens were taken to Shawnee County’s juvenile detention center Tuesday after shooting an air gun at buildings in downtown Topeka, police said.
Topeka police received a report about 4:20 p.m. of three juveniles shooting an Airsoft pistol in the area of S. Kansas Avenue and 9th Street. Police said the teens fled the area on foot before they were located near S.W. 10th and Harrison, just west of the Kansas Statehouse.
Juvenile cases are generally closed to the public in Kansas, which is why the names of the two alleged shooters don’t appear in the report. Likewise, unless Mr. Elliot is more enterprising than the usual run of local journalists, we won’t hear much about the outcome of this case. Our guess is that their defense will be along the lines of nobody was hurt, they didn’t realize what they were doing, possibly because of shortcomings in the public education system or because they’re morons, but they’re really sorry, yada yada.
On the other hand, we have concealed carry in Kansas. Had someone been in a position to return fire, as the police spokesman observed, ”If someone doesn’t recognize it as an Airsoft gun, it could be bad.”
At some point, yes. Generation We will end up running the country. In the meantime, they have to demonstrate that they should be allowed outside the house without a grownup.
W
