State Constitutions

[Pro2A]

I made a interesting observation today doing a bit of research. I took a sample of 10 states Illinois, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Florida, New York, Texas, Maryland, New Jersey, Indiana, and California and looked up their Bill of Rights. Low and behold I discovered that all the states that have strict gun laws DO NOT have the right to bear arms in their constitutions

The states that are lax on gun laws, have it. Examples below:

Arizona - Section 26. "The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself or the state shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain, or employ an armed body of men".

Florida - SECTION 8. (a) "The right of the people to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves and of the lawful authority of the state shall not be infringed, except that the manner of bearing arms may be regulated by law".

Pennsylvania - Section 21. "The right of the citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the State shall not be questioned".

Indiana - Section 32. "The people shall have a right to bear arms, for the defense of themselves and the State".

Texas - SEC. 23. "Every citizen shall have the right to keep and bear arms in the lawful defense of himself or the State; but the Legislature shall have power by law to regulate the wearing of arms with a view to prevent crime".

Illinois is weird...SECTION 22.
"Subject only to the police power, the right of the individual citizen to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed".

Subject to police power? Whats that supposed to mean?


Maryland, New York, New Jersey, and California don't have anything about bearing arms, and are also all very anti-gun states. Do you think that states that leave out the "right to bear arms" bit has anything to do with why they are so strict on gun laws? Or is it something else?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[ispcapt]

What "strict gun laws" does IL have?

[Pro2A]

FOID and No CCW permits... nuff said

[ispcapt]

FOID and No CCW permits... nuff said

Hardly in the category of "strict gun laws" but if that's your definition then OK, have at it.
If you can answer all the questions on the 4473 correctly then you can also get a FOID.
IL doesn't have any AWB.
IL doesn't have any mag limits.
IL doesn't have any restrictions on type/make of guns such as CA and MA.
But that's not what you're really trying to say. You have some other point you're trying to make so go for it.

[Pro2A]

Illinois gets an A on the Brady Bunch website... which translates into an F for legal gun owners.

Illinois has NO CCW what so ever for private non-LEO citizens and the FOID card is a card that registers all your guns with the state. The state giveth, the state can also taketh. I'd rather the state NOT know that I have guns. Part of the reason I'm in PA.

[Cupcake]

IL is generally considered to be second only to Kalifornia in gun-owner unfriendliness. And don't get me started on Mayor Daly and his views on both gun ownership and small aircraft.

[archer51]

Not sure if I would say New York state is gun unfriendly, just NYC and their anti second admendment mayor. Unforunately NY and IL suffer the same fate, as NYC and Chicago goes, so does the state.

[ispcapt]

Illinois has NO CCW what so ever for private non-LEO citizens.

Do some more research on some of the states that have CCW on the books but in actuality have no practical CCW as it's near impossible for the private citizen to get a CCW.

and the FOID card is a card that registers all your guns with the state.

You really need to do some more research if that's the sum total of your knowledge. FOID does nothing of the sort. FOID does not "registers all your guns with the state". You don't list your guns or anything even close. There is no registration of guns in IL. I don't know where you got your info but you got bad info there if that's what you believe.

IL is generally considered to be second only to Kalifornia in gun-owner unfriendliness. And don't get me started on Mayor Daly and his views on both gun ownership and small aircraft.

You need to check your facts too. Only those who don't know what they're talking about would "considered to be second only to Kalifornia in gun-owner unfriendliness." Try looking at some of the other states.
Since it looks like from your profile you claim to be in Michigan. Did you get your guns "safety inspected"? Isn't that registration?
Also, for a bit of education, Daley is the mayor of Chicago. IL encompasses a lot more of the state than Chicago, altho to those uneducated in things that's usually what they say when they talk of IL. It makes no more sense than saying Michigan is nothing but a dirty state with high unemployment and high crime. Has to be true since Detroit is Michigan.
Get outside of Chicagoland and you might see what the state looks like, no different than Michigan.

[SammyIamToday]

Kentucky gun laws > Illinois gun laws. You can't argue that one. :)

I agree with what he said. That Illinois is regarded as pretty bad when it comes to gun ownership. Maybe you don't think so, but I sure do. I'd never live there.

"The right to bear arms in defense of themselves and of the State, subject to the power of the General Assembly to enact laws to prevent persons from carrying concealed weapons."

That's from the Ky Constitution.

[ispcapt]

That Illinois is regarded as pretty bad when it comes to gun ownership. Maybe you don't think so, but I sure do.

Really? The only requirement for owning a gun in IL is possession of a FOID card. To get a FOID card you have to answer the same questions that are on a 4473. No other restrictions. No registration. No mag limits. No restrictions on the type of gun or how many.
Would it be nice to have CCW in IL? You bet. But too many read erroneous stories on the internet (like Pro2A who thinks FOID registers all firearms), embellish the story, and then repeat it not knowing what they're talking about.

[SammyIamToday]

Really? The only requirement for owning a gun in IL is possession of a FOID card. To get a FOID card you have to answer the same questions that are on a 4473. No other restrictions. No registration. No mag limits. No restrictions on the type of gun or how many.
Would it be nice to have CCW in IL? You bet. But too many read erroneous stories on the internet (like Pro2A who thinks FOID registers all firearms), embellish the story, and then repeat it not knowing what they're talking about.

Yeah, but I can go in a store in pretty much every other state in America and buy ammo. I can't in Illinois because I don't have a FOID card. I really don't think I should have to ask permission from my state government to buy ammo. To each his own.

Also according to this you have waiting periods. http://www.isp.state.il.us/foid/firearmsfaq.cfm That's another thing that would keep me out. It's a shame, wouldn't mind visiting Illinois.

[Ram Rod]

I'm just glad I live in Arkansas. That's my opinion, and I'm stickin' to it.

[retsupt99]

CONSTITUTION
OF THE
STATE OF FLORIDA

...SECTION 8. Right to bear arms.--

(a) The right of the people to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves and of the lawful authority of the state shall not be infringed, except that the manner of bearing arms may be regulated by law.

I'm not complaining about FL...much better than most...

Stay armed...stay safe!

[Right Wing Wacko]

Washington State Constitution:

SECTION 24 RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS. The right of the individual citizen to bear arms in defense of himself, or the state, shall not be impaired, but nothing in this section shall be construed as authorizing individuals or corporations to organize, maintain or employ an armed body of men.

Note that there won't be any argument in THIS Washington as to whether the right to keep and bear arms is an INDIVIDUAL right or a Collective Right

[Cupcake]

Yeah, michigans back-door registration stinks, but at least it only applies to handguns. I also like that I can carry. I know Daly has but a corner of the kingdom, but I can't help connect the 2. I do have no first hand knowledge of IL laws, but as far as I know, isn't CA the only state with mag limits? If your happy that IL isn't at the very bottom of the list, thats cool with me. Here is a link that has bolstered my image of IL's position on gun ownership:
http://www.defensivecarry.com/vbulle...ht=worst+state