What are we going to do with these wild-west cowboys? California Assemblyman Tim Donnelly got detained at the airport for trying to bring a Colt .45 loaded with four rounds in his carry-on bag onto an airplane. From his office today, he offered a simple explanation: "When I arrived at the security check point, X-ray machines revealed that I had forgotten to remove a gun from my carry-on luggage." Oh, why he just plum forgot! Or, as Rick Perry would say, "Oops!"
Riiiiight. I forget things in my bag all the time, too. Of course, it's usually something like earphones or a magazine. Unlike Donnelly, I'm not an outspoken advocate for gun rights. And I don't even own a slingshot. (But if I did, I would definitely not pack it in my carry-on.) So what do I know of the travails of a gun-totin' Assemblyman? Still, I think when you "accidentally" leave a gun in your carry-on bag, you obviously have a problem.
I mean seriously. Who does that? A LOADED gun in your bag? Why is he carrying around a loaded gun anywhere in the first place? Is he expecting to be caught in a gun-slinging duel on his flight? Does he just carry one around with him all the time? For fun? What exactly is he expecting to do with that thing?
I know a lot of gun rights advocates make a point of reminding us that they take gun safety very seriously. But I think part of gun safety is REMEMBERING THAT YOU HAVE A GUN WITH YOU. You know? You should be mindful of its presence at all times. If it slips your mind, you're not being safe enough. And if it slips your mind AND you forgot to UNLOAD the thing, then you really have no right carrying a gun at all.
Sorry, Tim Donnelly, but you make gun rights advocates look bad. I expect more out of people who want the right to carry a firearm wherever. And I hope you're the exception, not the rule for most gun-carrying behavior in our country. If you want to convince the rest of us skittish folk that you deserve the right to carry firearms, you really need to demonstrate more responsibility. Sheesh.
Do you think guns should be banned on all airline flights?
Image via Naval History & Heritage Command/Flickr