Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Colorado Inches Closer to Idiocy

Unless there's a miracle in the House and we can get 2 or 3 more Dems to flip on HB-1224 (the bill to limit magazine capacity) now that it's been amended and passed through the Senate, there is just one hope left.

Veto by the Governor.

I would love to hear the moral dilemma playing out in Governor Hickenlooper's head right now.

On one hand, MAIG is elbows-deep in Colorado politics and God only knows what kinds of promises are being made to legislators and the Governor for supporting their agenda. Appointments in DC? Political clout in the national arena? Seven Minutes in Heaven with Janet Napolitano?? Rumors are the Obama administration and Bloomberg have been constant in their contact of Colorado Democrats.

On the flip side, our Governor is rumored to be a shooter himself. An avid sportsman and outdoorsman, he knows much of the state's revenue comes from tourists, hunters, athletes, and fishermen. While their chosen avocation may not involve firearms or be impacted directly by the new laws, their views on them may (and likely will) drive them to ski in Utah, fish in Montana, and hunt in Wyoming instead of bringing their money to Colorado. Many people who are self-avowed supporters of 2nd Amendment issues have pledged to vacation elsewhere and it's reasonable to assume they're going to follow through on their promises.

If the potential loss of tourism and recreation revenue is bad, this legislation also threatens to drive out a number of nationally-prominent companies which manufacture components affected by the new laws or are moving commerce to states which do not openly attack the law-abiding gun owner in the name of "little coffins."

Four very popular shows on the Outdoor Channel are produced in Colorado and will move to other more "friendly" filming locations if/when these bills become law. This will pull income tax revenue, sales taxes, permitting and use fees from the state's coffers. Potentially worse than that, however, will be the hosts - some of which are Coloradans - coming out on the air and repeatedly hammering home the point that Colorado, once a fantastically gun-friendly state, is no longer a safe haven where the safe, same, and legal use of firearms for hunting, sports, recreation, and personal protection has long overshadowed the two major active shooter massacres we've suffered in the last 15 years.

That will certainly cause damage to our state's reputation an our ability to draw outside recreation money. It pales in comparison, however, to one of the most publicly visible unintended consequences of these bills becoming law - the loss of Magpul in Colorado. Most folks in the gun universe are aware of their plans to move in order to remain in compliance with the law and to keep from funding a government hostile to its citizens. Governor Hickenlooper is going to have to look long and hard at each one of the jobs which will be lost if and when Magpul pulls most of its production and relocates to a "friendly" state. He would do well to look those 600+ workers straight in the face and sign their jobs away.

Now, I have a good friend who feels this socio-economic game of political chicken may be enough to get our Governor to flinch at the last second and jerk the wheel toward "veto" of at least that particular bill. I'm not as optimistic, but I still hope he'll see the light.

As it stands today, Colorado's law-abiding gun owners are going to be in for a long winter...

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