The Beltway Outsider

From WTOP News:

If you’re headed to Union Station Wednesday, expect to see extra police. They’re part of a massive security exercise called Operation ALERTS.

Officers from more than 100 federal, state, local, rail and transit police agencies are participating in a counterterrorism exercise. The exercise is being conducted at 150 railway stations in 13 states along Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor.

Heads up, if you plan to open carry (in Virginia only of course) on Amtrak be prepared to see a larger police presence. They may possibly conduct a “consensual stop” on you if they see you carrying. What is a consensual stop? It’s when an officer is not detaining you, but is asking questions to determine what you are up to. You are free to leave of shut up at any time and you are not under suspicion (yet). Consensual stops sometimes lead to probable cause for further detainment, I’d advise not speaking to police about any topic outside of the current weather conditions.

From The Washington Post

It took $833.69, a total of 15 hours 50 minutes, four trips to the Metropolitan Police Department, two background checks, a set of fingerprints, a five-hour class and a 20-question multiple-choice exam.

Is this what the Founding Fathers meant by “Shall not be infringed”? That the common citizen should waste a whole bunch of time and money simply to enjoy a freedom allowed by our Bill of Rights? Who set this system up this way and why?

But as my four trips to the police department attest, D.C. officials haven’t made it easy. Which was exactly their intent. The day the Heller decision was announced, Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray (D) vowed that the city was still “going to have the strictest handgun laws the Constitution allows.” Fenty decried the ruling, saying that “more handguns in the District of Columbia will only lead to more handgun violence.”

Well, Chairman Mao, err…. I mean Gray your city’s scheme is still unconstitutional, and you’re being sued again! Gee, I wonder if you’ll win this time? And Mayor Fenty, can you show how many of these newly registered handguns has caused an uptick in “handgun violence”? (I’ve never seen a handgun commit violence, I’ve only seen a human commit violence with a handgun) No? None of them have? How long must we wait?

And how things done in Virginia, according to Post writer Chris Davenport:

If I lived in Virginia, I’d simply walk into a shop, show my ID, fill out forms and then wait while the store calls for my background check, which can take all of three minutes. If I pass, the gun is mine. Or I could buy a gun from a private citizen and forgo the background check. No safety course required (unless I’m applying for a concealed-handgun permit, which is not even an option in the District). No need to register the gun with the government (unless it’s a machine gun, which is, again, not an option in the District).

Wow, how refreshing! I should have named this post “A tale of two cities” but Virginia isn’t a city now, is it? It’s too bad D.C. can’t come to its senses and figure out that keeping the citizens unarmed leads to more violence. You may as well fill a fish tank full of goldfish and then let loose a couple predatory fish like piranhas in the tank. The goldfish are the citizens and the piranhas are the criminals. Swell idea, eh? Well that’s exactly what D.C. has done and they seem quite happy about it.

Fairfax County Schools security guard Wesley Cheeks needs to be reminded what that “Bill of Rights” thing is all about. Watch the video below and then read the email from David Codrea for complaint instructions. If I were in the protester’s place I would have continued my Constitutionally protected free speech and been arrested. This is not saying I’m for or against the speech topic, this is a liberties issue for me.

Here is the proper complaint conduit: http://www.fcps.edu/fts/safety-security/index.htm

Hat tip to David Codrea: The War on guns

Money quote from the story:

What the tape doesn’t show is striking: At no point did the officers interact with the undercovers, nor did the brothers appear to be involved in a drug deal with anyone else. Adding insult to injury, an outside camera taped the undercovers literally dancing down the street.