The Arizona Rifleman

I’m a big fan of BJ’s Brewhouse, a restaurant chain with tasty food and delicious beer¹.

There’s now two in Tucson. The first one, which is on the north side of town, used to have a “gun busters” (warning: PDF) sign, but after some polite prodding by the citizenry, they took it down — permit-holders are not forbidden from carrying there, so long as they don’t drink. There’s been no incidents of violence, gun-related or not, at the restaurant that I’m aware of.

However, the newly-built BJ’s on Broadway has a “gun busters” sign. A polite letter asking the management to remove the sign, like the other restaurant, has been dispatched to the management. I urge others to do the same.

1. Try their red. It’s outstanding. [↩]

Just a reminder to fellow Arizonans: the new law that removes the permit requirement for concealed carry goes into effect on July 29th. Please wait until then before carrying concealed without a permit.

Also, please note that there are some perks to having a permit, such as discounts at the occasional pro-gun-rights eatery, as well as bypassing NICS checks on new gun purchases, and interstate reciprocity.

Today I acquired a shiny BLACKHAWK!¹ IWB holster for my Glock 19.

Holy crap, this holster makes the gun disappear. As I’m left-handed, I carry around 8:00pm on the clock-style of angular measure, and it’s essentially invisible. Comfy too. The holster is leather² and has enough flex to fit comfortably without any uncomfortable edges. Super comfy at the desk, in the car, and walking around.

I’m a bit skeptical of the velcro angle adjustment (though one needs to loosen a screw before adjusting the angle), but we’ll see how it holds up.

On a different note, there’s entirely too much Shiny! at the shop, and not enough money in my wallet. I’d like to see this reversed, at least for a short while.

Oh yeah, the FTC can bite my shiny, slightly radioactive ass³ if they think that companies actually want to give me shiny things and have me pimp them out. I wish I was that awesome.

1. That’s a rather silly name, honestly. [↩]
2. Made in Italy, too. Somewhat odd. [↩]
3. Probably not, but if I get ass cancer for sitting next to all that purportedly low-level radioactive stuff in the lab, I’ll get annoyed. [↩]

One nice thing about the recent Arizona immigration law is that it’s running remarkably good interference for the permitless carry law in Arizona.

Sure, the permitless carry law isn’t really a big deal in Arizona, but what little drama that could be stirred up against it has been replaced with ire for the immigration law and I haven’t heard a peep against the carry law in any media recently.

I’ve been following the comments on several local news websites regarding the passage of permitless carry in Arizona.

A common theme among opponents, other than the normal “blood in the streets” comments, is that they discuss various bad guys (either criminals, drunks, “rednecks”, and so on) now being able to arm themselves and committing various crimes of opportunity (road rage is commonly mentioned) against the innocent citizenry.

While no credence is given to the fact that such actions are already illegal, such a reaction (or lack thereof) is common.

I did, however, note that none of the people opposing the measure ever considered taking measures — whether carrying a firearm or not — to protect themselves. The law is designed to ease the ability of law-abiding people defend themselves, yet the thought of availing themselves of the new law didn’t occur to them.

I suppose it’s all a matter of perspective; if one believes that guns belong only in the hands of criminals and police, the thought of owning or carrying a gun for their own protection never occurs, yet if one believes that guns belongs in the hands of the law-abiding, good people that make up the majority of the population, such a thought is not difficult to envision at all.

According to an email I received from a state legislator, the permitless concealed carry law doesn’t apply to…get this, people who have a permit to carry a concealed firearm.

Basically, if you have a CCW permit in Arizona, you must continue to have the permit on you while carrying, as the new law does not affect or supersede the existing one regarding permits. If you don’t have a permit, you can — once the law comes into effect — carry concealed without a permit.

Go figure.

As always, open carry remains unaffected.

From the AzCDL:

YOU did it!  Today, April 16, 2010, Governor Brewer signed SB 1108, the AzCDL-requested Constitutional Carry bill, into law.  Arizona now becomes the third state to not require written permission from the government for law-abiding citizens to exercise their right to bear arms discretely.  Because Arizona is the first state in the U.S. with a large urban population to take this significant step, this is a watershed moment for the entire country.

[...]

If you don’t have a permit, don’t start carrying concealed just yet.  The law won’t become effective until 90 days after “Sine Die” when the Legislature officially adjourns.  Since they are still working through a slew of bills, we don’t expect Sine Die anytime soon.  In past years, the effective date of bills has been around September.

CCW permits still have a purpose.  You’ll need one to streamline gun purchases, to carry in states that honor Arizona permits and for carrying concealed in establishments that serve alcohol.  And, the training you receive to obtain a permit is an added bonus.  Along with restoring your right to bear arms, SB 1108 added additional training opportunities for obtaining a permit.  NRA classes and training from places like Front Sight and Gunsite will be able to qualify as permit training.

If you decide not to obtain a CCW permit, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t train.  The heaviest thing about wearing a firearm is the responsibility that comes with it.  Take that money that you save on permit and renewal fees and spend it on quality training as often as you can.  Lead by example – the world is watching.

Outstanding news.

The Arizona House of Representatives just voted to approve SB 1108, the “Constitutional Carry” measure that was up for voting.

Now, it goes to the governor. If she signs it (or it passes without her signature), Arizonans will be able to carry firearms concealed without a permit (e.g. Alaska/Vermont-style carry). I’m pretty sure the governor will sign the measure.

Big day indeed.

From AZCDL:

SB 1108, the Senate version of the AzCDL-requested Constitutional Carry bill, passed in the Senate Third Read, by a 20-10 vote, on Monday, March 29, 2010.

From here, SB 1108 will be sent over to the House.  Since the House has already voted for an identical bill, HB 2347, during their Committee of the Whole (COW) debate, we are expecting SB 1108 to be substituted for HB 2347 during the House Third Read.  We are also expecting the House Third Read vote to be as early as Tuesday, March 30, 2010.  This will be “the” final vote on Constitutional Carry to determine if it will be sent to the Governor!

Things are moving quick on this.

Of course, I think it’s rather silly that so much legislative time (even as fast as things are going) is spent to make it legal for people to untuck their shirts while carrying (permitless open carry is already legal here) while people could carry without a permit so long as their shirt is tucked in. Permitless concealed carry should be a no-brainer.

As many readers may know, Costco prohibits the carriage of firearms within its stores. As a private entity, they are perfectly within their rights to do so, and while I may disagree with their decision, I respect it.

Naturally, there are those who do not agree with their decision and will carry anyway. This is prohibited by Costco’s policy, and Costco can ask them to leave (and failing to do so is trespassing). Even so, I’m sure there’s not a few people who think “concealed means concealed” and don’t worry about it. I may disagree, but I understand.

Then, there’s the guy who walked in to the local Costco tonight: baseball hat on backwards, tag still attached to it, oversized t-shirt, with a Ruger semi-auto pistol (exact model unknown) openly carried in a cheap, nylon holster with no retention other than a small velcro strap. Oh, and he’s there with his wife and four kids. He totally took “classy” to a whole new level.

It’s one thing to carry discretely where it’s not permitted, but it’s another thing entirely to do so brazenly and openly.

Don’t be “that guy”.