Lock 'N Load: Firearm tax holiday coming in September
If you’ve only got a baseball bat under your bed to protect yourself from midnight break-ins, here’s your opportunity to upgrade the home armory. A new law, passed by the legislature this year, allows for a three-day tax holiday on the purchase of firearms, ammunition and hunting supplies. This year, September 4-6 is dubbed the Annual Louisiana Second Amendment Weekend Sales Tax Holiday and applies to state and local sales taxes. The exemption is not available for business purchases. Consumer purchases do not include the purchase of animals for hunting.
While the law is couched in terms that encourage the state’s hunters to rack up on supplies like deer stands and duck decoys, don’t be naive. Here’s the definition of “firearm” in the bill: “a shotgun, rifle, pistol, revolver or other handgun, which may be legally sold or purchased in Louisiana.”
Baton Rouge’s murder rate this year has risen to the point where, using FBI measurement standards, the city is way ahead of traditionally kill-prone cities like Cleveland, Newark, and even Detroit.
Not since the late 1980s, when the number of murders in Baton Rouge doubled, has there been such dramatic and frightening numbers about killing. So far this year, 46 people have been murdered in Baton Rouge. At the halfway point of 2008, projected to July 15th, there were 27 dead. Dr. Shannon Cooper, the coroner of East Baton Rouge Parish, says one reason is the kids are getting much better weapons. “We used to see a single bullet hole,” he said. “Now, there are five, six, seven bullet holes.”
The spike in murders this year puts Baton Rouge’s numbers comparable to last year’s numbers in major cities across the country. New Orleans was considered the murder capital of the nation in 2008.
Looks like Baton Rouge may be the epicenter for the proliferation of hand guns as well as violent crime. So thanks, Louisiana lawmakers, for making it cheaper to unload handguns onto the street. Shoot em’ up, boys.
... written by Walter Pierce, Managing Editor , August 21, 2009 - 05:06 pm
To all the 2nd Amendment supporters out there about to tear our dear Mary a new one, let me say that as a gun owner and recreational shooter, I might not necessarily buy her cause-effect inference here, but I do support her enthusiasm. With that said, FRESH MEAT!
... written by Phil , August 21, 2009 - 06:39 pm
Mary, not to get crazed, but your bias is obvious in the article. Can't you please write an objective news article without injection of your opinion. Or just go ahead and admit it at the headline byline, "Opinion slanted by distorted statistics by Mary Tutweiler".
So lets start with the obvious facts, which never seem to penetrate inquiring craniums. Switzerland has the highest per capita gun ownership in the world, yet the lowest murder rate. Swiss weekends include getting together in shooting tournaments, where contestants drink beer, shoot targets, award prizes, and have fun.
Baton Rouge is full of people who would bash your head in with a tire iron. A gun just makes it neater. The Gold Standard of murder rates is the South East Washington DC. How does Baton Rouge compare to DC? Can we win the title this year? And these guns now available, were they purchased by Mr. Criminal during the tax holiday, or stolen from a citizen. How about we get Mr. Criminal off the streets, instead of your tired attempt to promote safety by disarming everybody.
... written by Terry Garrett , August 21, 2009 - 06:53 pm
With all due respect, Mary, do you REALLY think the criminals are obtaining their handguns legally? I lawfully purchased my first pistol (Judge) a few months ago, and I sleep better because of it. I think our legislature took this opportunity to assist lawful citizens in obtaining firearms for the protection of themselves and their families, especially considering our esteemed President's view of the 2nd Admendment.
... written by Jason , August 21, 2009 - 07:01 pm
She thinks most criminals actually buy guns, HA! Guns are good and taxes are bad. Why is this so difficult for liberals to understand? Also, why does a newspaper located in Lafayette need to use statistics from Baton Rouge and a TV report from Shreveport? Clearly this is a lame attempt to inject the writer's displeasure of the State making it easier for Louisiana's citizens to evoke their second amendment rights.
... written by Mary Tutwiler , August 21, 2009 - 08:06 pm
Hey Phil, maybe you don’t get it but a blog is supposed to be opinionated. My job is to weigh-in on news items, even stimulate a little dialogue. And yep, I do have an attitude about handguns. Less handguns, less shootings. Then folks, especially adolescents, can go back to solving their disputes the way they used to, with a good old-fashioned fist fight. Give some hot tempered kids a chance to live long enough to grow up and get over the attitude, which is only amplified by a handgun. Nobody dies from a black-eye or a bloody nose. Your liberal, flower-power, happy hippy reporter, Mary.
... written by Ferrol , August 21, 2009 - 09:17 pm
Mary your comments are not even worth talking about.
... written by Phil , August 21, 2009 - 10:02 pm
My misunderstanding, I thought this was newspaper reporting, nowhere does it say blog. I thought you presented the facts, and the reader was free to draw their own illogical conclusions, instead of having them handed to them on the half shell. Don't kid yourself, kids without guns will and do use tire irons, bricks, 2x4's or any other weapon. The utopian idea that a black eye or a bloody nose, and everyone is going to shake hands and become life-long friends is naive. DC is at 89 compared to last year at the same time of 118, a 25% drop. Gasp, you say, "what happened". Well, hate to break it to you, but this year, DC residents can own handguns, after the US Supreme Court overturned a DC law banning ownership in contravention of the 2nd amendment. Don't you just hate it when facts don't support illusions. BR as of June had 38, compared to 25 the previous year. Nothing different except the homicide count jumped in 2006, the year after Katrina. http://mpdc.dc.gov/ and http://brgov.com/dept/brpd/csr/
... written by Armed Geek , August 22, 2009 - 03:25 pm
Baton Rouge was a lesser image of New Orleans. Ask any city that was a recipient of the Katrina diaspora what happened to their crime stats. Outside of those two metro areas Shreveport, La. is about the most pleasant place to live that you could ever hope to find.
... written by Phil , August 23, 2009 - 05:10 am
In 1909, there were 239 homicides in a population of 50 million in the US. That's about 1/2 a person per 100,000. Just a scant 45 years after the War of Succession. At that time, every Grandma had a gun. And was willing to use it. And the criminals knew it. And knew better than to mess with Grandma and her 12 gauge double barrel. Because she would pull both triggers on their butts. Ask questions later as she mopped the blood off her back porch. So, tell me Mary, is it better to have a weapon, or ask your attacker to just give you a black eye or bloody nose?
... written by Little Miss Sunshine , August 23, 2009 - 04:45 pm
OK Mary, how do you want it? Shall we shoot you or club you with a bat? In Japan, (no 2nd amendment) they mostly use knifes making a real mess, yuck.
... written by JP , August 24, 2009 - 01:46 pm
I have to agree that a lot of people doing the murdering get their guns illegally, but that doesn't change the fact that we in this country and especially in the deep South have a paranoid obsession about handguns. And the ease with which a criminal can get a handgun does have something to do with flooding of the market by legal gun fanatics. Of course, let's forget about the cases where grandpa accidentally kills his grandson who's hiding in the closet to play a joke, or the kid who shot himself with an Uzi at a gun show while dad and the gun-seller watched.
Sure, Switzerland may have the highest gun ownership per capita, but they also have higher levels of perspective and responsibility per capita. They're not as exposed as we are to delusional talking heads who whip up hatred and fear, or 24 hour infotainment propaganda channels that create absurd caricatures about elected leaders and pass it off as "news."
... written by John F , August 24, 2009 - 03:06 pm
Good points Phil, especially about the alternate weapons (tire irons, etc). Furthermore, weapons aside, if a 225lb person(s) is determined to harm a 120lb person, they can do it and inflict much more than a black eye or bloody nose. Here is some reality (it's been stated for years, I know. But maybe this time...): The bad guys always get the guns anyway, whether banned or not. This has been proven time and time again. It obviously can't be controlled. So what happens when they have them and they know that the hard working law abiding citizens have none due to gun control? Well, the bad guys just became more/very powerful. A person will think twice about going after someone with a gun if they know they can get shot at just as easily. Sort of like the cold war, mutually assured. We all have a right to an opinion, that makes this country what it is. But please give this some thought. Your thinking is dangerous. In summary: The bad guys always can/will get guns legally or not. If there was a glimmer of a hope that the bad guys possession of guns could be controlled your thinking would carry more weight. On a final note, I wouldn't get too worked up by the tax break on that weekend. I doubt the 8% break (roughly $25 to $50 on a typical handgun) will have the bad people flocking to the gun shops.
... written by Taxpaying American Citizen , August 24, 2009 - 03:20 pm
Once again, JP finds a way to blame something "right wing" news or talk radio.
Is that Number One talking point in the DNC newsletters these days?
... written by Ms. Moist Towelette , August 24, 2009 - 04:07 pm
"Doctors Are The 3rd Leading Cause of Death in the US, Causing 225,000 Deaths Every Year - July 2000 JAMA."
The data is a little old but I am not ready to ban doctors. Might shoot a few.
... written by Phil , August 24, 2009 - 06:36 pm
written by JP , August 24, 2009 "..that doesn't change the fact that we in this country and especially in the deep South have a paranoid obsession about handguns."
Huh, you talkin bout me? Seriously, I wouldn't call it a paranoid obsession. I would call it a reasonable precaution. It's reasonable, because the first step of any tyrant or dictator is to remove weapons from the hands the general populace. Ask the Moors under Philip II, ask the Jews under Chancellor Hitler. History is replete with examples, and Southerners understand that. Yamamoto was attributed, but not proven to have said "You cannot invade the mainland [US], behind every blade of grass is a rifle." So, kindly understand that it is not paranoid obsession. (Those who read history are doomed to watch others repeat it).
... written by JP , August 24, 2009 - 07:39 pm
Yeah sure, the Moors under Philip II and the Jews under Hitler are real valid comparisons. Actually, I think that would be an example of 'false analogy' suitable for any Critical Thinking textbook.
Fact is, over the past few years gun rights have increased, not decreased. The ban on assault weapons was lifted and not reinstated by the evil Democrats. The Supreme Court recently ruled to allow DC citizens to carry handguns, essentially stating that the 2nd amendment applies to individuals. So forgive me if I don't buy into the fear rhetoric that they're takin' our guns away.
... written by Phil , August 24, 2009 - 09:22 pm
Individual disarmament is the issue. It was done in Philip II day, and was one of the first things the Nazi government did. And you one posed the "deep South paranoid obsession with guns" hypothesis.
And what was this one? "..they also have higher levels of perspective and responsibility per capita." Don't start throwing around "false analogy" and "Critical Thinking" after tossing that little piece of creative hogwash in. Were you quoting that from your "Critical Thinking for Dummy's" book?
... written by Phil , August 24, 2009 - 09:31 pm
Heinrich Himmler "Germans who wish to use firearms should join the SS or the SA -- ordinary citizens don't need guns, as their having guns doesn't serve the state."
... written by Phil , August 24, 2009 - 09:54 pm
http://gunowners.org/fs0404.htm * And in an exhaustive study on this subject, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership has researched and translated several gun control laws from foreign countries. Their publication, Lethal Laws: "Gun Control" is the Key to Genocide documents how gun control (and confiscation) has preceded the slaughter and genocide of millions of people in Turkey, the Soviet Union, Germany, China, Cambodia and others. (Jay Simkin, Aaron Zelman and Alan M. Rice, Lethal Laws: "Gun Control" is the Key to Genocide, (Milwaukee: Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, 1994).)
... written by Phil , August 29, 2009 - 04:13 am
And as a surprising after-note, crime is down 25% in DC, since lifting the ban on homeowners having weapons. In case you missed it in the earlier comments.
"Kennesaw, GA. In 1982, this suburb of Atlanta passed a law requiring heads of households to keep at least one firearm in the house. The residential burglary rate subsequently dropped 89% in Kennesaw, compared to the modest 10.4% drop in Georgia as a whole." Come on, JP, critical thinking at the forehead.
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