I know I'm talking a lot about this (first here, then here, then a brief word here), but I'm starting to think this might be the beginning of something big.
The Free Republic carries this article about the resolution. According to the article, the meeting in which the resolution was adopted was the most heavily attended in county history, with too many people to fit in the courtroom in which the meeting was held. One Pike County resident in attendance, Pike-Adams Sportsmen's Alliance President Richard Metcalf, spoke eloquently of the meaning and purpose of the action the county took.
That drew an emotional response from one resident:I still have not located the full text of the resolution, but what I have seen is strongly worded stuff:
"This proposed legislation would greatly harm the citizens of this county, and we believe the members of our County Board are bound by the oaths of office to speak for us on this issue.
"The issue here is not politics, the issue is freedom. Freedom began in this nation more than 200 years ago, when small groups of people like us, in towns even smaller than ours, gathered together to tell the King who tried to rule them from a huge city an ocean away, 'Enough is enough!' Freedom will only survive today if we have the courage to do the same."
In closing, he offered: "In this room tonight we are not conservatives; we are not liberals. In this room tonight we are not Democrats; we are not Republicans. In this room tonight we are Americans."
The standing ovation he received was apparently enough to convince the Commission to overwhelmingly pass the measure.
Now, Therefore, It Be And Is Hereby Resolved, that the people of Pike County, Illinois, do oppose the enactment of any legislation that would infringe upon the Right of the People to Keep and Bear Arms, and deem such laws to be Unconstitutional and beyond lawful Legislative Authority.It remains to be seen just how far the county is willing to take this--will they stop enforcing any gun laws (since all are unconstitutional)?
I suspect we will be hearing more. In the meantime, it is clear that the citizens of Pike County are well served, by elected officials who are keenly aware of their Constitutional duties. Let us hope that this is contagious.
Stumble it!
6 comments:
If counties pass laws against gun control measures would that force all gun control laws to be "home rule" violations that would then require a supermajority for passage?
DW, that would be great, but whether or not that is the case is beyond me.
I kind of doubt that it will work out that way, though.
The quick answer to that query is no. Not even home rule units can control the actions of the General Assemly. It is only where the Gen. Assem. expressly states that an act is in preemption of home rule powers that there must be a supermajority vote. Perhaps the more interesting question would be whether a home rule unit (which Pike County is not, by the way) can require its citizens to possess a weapon in fulfillment of their role as the militia. I doubt the courts would affirm it, but it sure would be an interesting case!
What they can do is arrest any state agent who dares to enforce state law against the resolution just passed.
Let them sit in jail while the court sorts it out, while dragging it out as far as possible. each and every time. Then protest their law enforcement credentials for having been incarcerated and thus "poisoned" by the experience.
I referenced these articles in my blog article about the Dan Simpson article on the Disarming of America. It's nice to see active resistance to the gun grabbers, at least at the county level.
These resolutions are purely symbolic, much like when cities declared themselves to be "nuclear freeze zones" during the 1980s. It's just a political statement. But at least they're being heard.
Thanks for the linkage, Boondoggie. I had initially thought as you do, that resolutions like these are merely symbolic, but if they mean that these counties refuse to prosecute violations of the laws in question, I would think that there is some concrete significance to what they are doing.
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