(West Memphis, AR 01/01/2010) The New Year brings a new law that cracks down on toy guns being sold in the state of Arkansas.
The law stems from the 2007 shooting death of a 12 year old West Memphis boy, DeAunta Farrow.
DeAunta Farrow was gunned down after police say he waved a pistol at them. Police later revealed the pistol was actually a toy gun. State legislators say the new law is aimed at protecting other children and officers from similar violence.
The shooting death of 12 year old DeAunta Farrow changed a lot of things in West Memphis and now its changed law. Toy guns that look real are banned in Arkansas.
What's your opinion? Do you think a law like this might save a few lives? Is the inconvenience of depriving children from playing with realistic-looking toy guns worth it? Is there some other "rights" issue involved in such a law? Why do I expect gun enthusiasts to oppose such legislation? Do they?
Please leave a comment.
No one has been able to successfully ban real guns, let alone "toy" guns.
ReplyDeleteI've got the mind to load up the car with airsoft guns, drive over the border, and bring freedom back to Arkansas one trunk-load at a time.
"Why do I expect gun enthusiasts to oppose such legislation?"
Because its useless feel-good legislation.
How are they going to enforce this ban? Register toy guns? Door-to-door confiscations? Toy gun buy backs?
"News Channel 3's Stephanie Scurlock put the new law to the test and went shopping at the West Memphis Freds. She found the store in compliance. Guns that resembled semi-automatic pistols had the required orange tips on them. Others were painted different colors like the law states so they didn't look like real firearms."
ReplyDeleteSo it's just like the assault weapons ban. It's based purely on cosmetics and doesn't actually ban any guns at all. Anyone who wants a toy gun will simply have to put up with one made in a fruity color or made with an orange tip. Something easily remedied with a can of black spray paint. And what about those who will paint real guns to look like toys?
"Even then, the gun police say they found had an orange tip. It is one that under the new law can still be sold in Arkansas stores. Still, some believe the restrictions will protect children the future"
So the law wouldn't even apply to the gun found on the dead kid. Perfect
Toy gun bans are as badly written as real gun bans. But i guess anything is acceptable when it's for The Children©.
AztecRed,
ReplyDeleteToy gun buy backs are very successful in Compton. They just spent thousands buying assault toys. And according to the Compton police that were glad to fork over the money, "these are the kinds used in robberies". Therefore, their great toy buyback will end all crime in Compton. What a relief!
The Compton Gun Buy Back seems to be an endless source of amusement to a few folks. Of course the whole debacle might have been avoided by having some of you "experts" working with the cops to ensure that taxpayers' monies weren't being wasted. Oh, no, my bad. I forgot, no self respecting Type 2A would be caught dead helping the local, state or federal jackbooted thugs with their confiscation program.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that banning toy guns is stupid. The legislators could have simply done nothing and made everybody happy. Well, maybe not.
I don't see anything new here, except maybe enhanced fines.
ReplyDeleteWe already have too many laws, and this problem is not worth another one, entirely separate from the gun rights issue.
From the gun rights standpoint, it is primarily propaganda reinforcing the notion that guns are evil, and the evil is so strong that even toys are affected.
Democommie, That's right the pro-gun guys often seem more interested in bad-mouthing the efforts than helping them. In some cases it's about things they supposedly want also, like reducing gun violence. The best example for me is the never-ending negative criticism about the definition of an assault weapon.
ReplyDeleteSevesteen I think your right that the talk about banning toy guns is consistent with the attitude that guns are evil.
Mikeb: "That's right the pro-gun guys often seem more interested in bad-mouthing the efforts than helping them. In some cases it's about things they supposedly want also, like reducing gun violence. The best example for me is the never-ending negative criticism about the definition of an assault weapon."
ReplyDeleteThen your example, and perhaps your whole point, sucks.
There is probably no definition of "assault weapon" that would not also ban popular hunting gums. There is also probably no definition of "assault weapon" that would not allow for the manufacture of guns that anti-gunowner advocates would still want to ban.
Nonetheless, I have been willing to compromise on the matter in return for a strong, clear, and credible commitment to NOT try to later ban even more guns as "assault weapons." Unfortunately, an excuse to keep banning more guns seems to be what "assault weapons" is all about.
Why would we want to "help" gun control efforts?
ReplyDeleteBTW - How can the government "buy back" personal property that they never owned in the 1st place?
Mikeb: "Sevesteen I think your right that the talk about banning toy guns is consistent with the attitude that guns are evil."
ReplyDeleteI am reminded of an old story for which I have no link. There was a survey done about toy gun usage, in which respondents were asked at what ages they played with toy guns most and how often per week they did so (obviously dependent upon memory). It turned out that ages 8-12 saw the most toy gunplay and the all-time high for toy gunplay was the years 1942-1945. The percentage of children reporting the most frequent toy gunplay during those had not been surpassed even decades later. I remember that the surveyor suggested that those who were ages 8-12 during the years 1942-1945 be studied further to determine if all that toy gunplay had any negative effect, but I don't know if that was ever done.
In the words of the Mikeb blog: What's your opinion? Do you think that those who were ages 8-12 during the years 1942-1945 could be shown to any negative effects
from all that toy gunplay (i.e. arrest rate) as compared to previous or later generations?
"no self respecting Type 2A would be caught dead helping the local, state or federal jackbooted thugs with their confiscation program."
ReplyDeleteConsidering how CA treats gun owners, I wouldn't help them if their heads were on fire and the only way to put them out was to urinate on them.
Let the gun grabbers do their own grabbing. And the more they get ripped off, the better. It only shows how stupid the concept of a "buy back" is.
This story reminds me of this
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ssYezFw_Qs
As this story mentions the law was put into place after the shooting death of Deaunta Farrow. The interesting part is that the shooting would not have been prevented by the new law. The toy gun that Farrow was possessing had the required orange tip.
ReplyDeleteToy gun TV commercials:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR9ojNddiSI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMqd5EQXD-g&NR=1
"Democommie, That's right the pro-gun guys often seem more interested in bad-mouthing the efforts than helping them. In some cases it's about things they supposedly want also, like reducing gun violence. The best example for me is the never-ending negative criticism about the definition of an assault weapon."
ReplyDeleteAlright, Mike--did you really mean that, or is it another one of your "jokes"? I'm honestly puzzled. Do you really think gun rights advocates should be expected to work against their own interests? You (and your ideological allies) have made it clear that your ultimate goal is the extinction of the gun culture--and you want us to dig the grave for it?
Not me--I plan to stick around and indulge in the celebratory performance of messy bodily functions on the graves of anti-gun people and their families (and their hideous, slightly dog-like rodents) ;-).
"The Compton Gun Buy Back seems to be an endless source of amusement to a few folks. Of course the whole debacle might have been avoided by having some of you "experts" working with the cops to ensure that taxpayers' monies weren't being wasted. Oh, no, my bad. I forgot, no self respecting Type 2A would be caught dead helping the local, state or federal jackbooted thugs with their confiscation program."
ReplyDeleteOh yes. I am quite amused by it. You are wrong about my willingness to help though. If they had one of these in my town, I'd be there to help. I'd have a stack of cash in my pocket to and trump the gift card offering too.
I wouldn't be buying movie props by the truckload and claiming victory over crime though.