This antique-shop sign has nothing to do with the current Oregon legislature, where firearms bills are still pending.
Even though the word from Salem was that supporters of gun bans were backing off a little, it’s worth taking a look at one bill and who proposed it. This is House Bill 3200, which would ban some common rifles and pistols, calling them assault weapons. It is an extraordinary piece of legislation, even calling for police inspection of gun owners’ homes.
The bill applies to semiautomatic rifles with detachable magazines if they have certain features, such as a shroud on the barrel or a thumb hole in the stock. It also targets pistols with magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds. Owners of such firearms would have to turn them in to the police or sell them to a licensed dealer. They would be allowed to keep one, for a fee, if they register it with the state police. The bill provides for the police to make house inspections to make sure the requirements for secure storage are met. And for a violation, the maximum penalty would be 10 years in prison and a quarter-million-dollar fine.
The sponsors and cosigners of this proposed gun grab are 15 Democrats, eight in the House and seven in the Senate. These 15 Democrats, led by Greenlick in the House and Burdick in the Senate, are willing to send the police to your house to enforce a breach of your constitutional rights. And if anybody stands up for his rights by refusing to comply, it’s off to prison for up to 10 years. Look up the bill, HB 3200, and remember the sponsors’ names. Their eagerness to confiscate possessions and limit our freedom is frightening indeed. (hh)
