, we received several questions from NHFC members which led us to believe that perhaps our alert needed further clarification so we redrafted it and hopefully made it easy to understand and act on.
Under the guise of strengthening democracy, misguided legislators seek to turn New Hampshire into a crazy-quilt of city- and town-based ordinances. These legislators support your civil rights, the same way that a rope supports a hanged man.
Under the guise of “home rule”, these legislators urge adoption of a constitutional amendment, that will allow each town and city to enact ordinances governing almost all aspects of daily life. The result: what is perfectly lawful in one place will be illegal a few miles down the road.
In the realm of firearms, this amendment would turn New Hampshire’s beautiful cities and towns into legal minefields for firearm-owners. Driving a short distance might require you to remove your holstered pistol and put it in a locked box, before entering the next town on your route, because that town had barred the carrying of firearms, concealed or unconcealed.
The next town on your route might force you to throw away your ammunition before crossing the town’s boundaries, because hollow-point bullets were not lawful there. Yet another town would be a “gun-free zone”, completely off-limits to those, who wish to be able to defend themselves.
The many, vague terms used in this proposed amendment will lead to the entrapment of thousands, saddling them with criminal records and forcing them to spend thousands to clear their good names. Anyone, who would propose an Amendment such as this must harbor a deep, fierce hatred of New Hampshire’s law-abiding residents.
There is no reason – other than stupidity or hatred – to seek to undermine New Hampshire’s status as an excellent place to raise a family. New Hampshire is among the three safest states in the U.S.A. Only Maine and Vermont have a lower incidence of violent crime than does New Hampshire (F.B.I., “Crime in the United States – 2016”, Table 2).
Those, who back this cockamamie amendment, plainly do not appreciate New Hampshire. We – and they – would be happier if they moved to Baltimore (Maryland) or Chicago (Illinois), both places with off-the-charts murder rates. We’d be rid of those, who are destructive and they’d find out what it is like to live in hell holes. A few might survive and – possibly wiser – return to New Hampshire.
Contact your legislators and urge them to vote AGAINST Constitutional Amendment Concurrent Resolution No. 19. This proposal is worst than useless. It is entirely destructive. There is no part of it that has any value, except as a destructive device.
You will soon consider CACR 19 which will allow virtually unlimited authority to cities and towns to enact all sorts of regulations. The New Hampshire Firearms Coalition told me that CACR 19 will allow local gun bans and other restrictions on firearms possession, sales and carry. It was bad enough that a majority of the House of Representatives voted to send HB 1749, statewide preemption to interim study and kill the bill, but to allow CACR 19 to proceed will turn long standing New Hampshire freedoms on end by allowing local gun bans.
Please vote CACR 19 “inexpedient to legislate”.
