OK, the U.S. Constitution says in the Second Amendment to the Bill of Rights, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
But who really "needs" to carry a gun in a bar?
What does that have to do with "A well regulated Militia"?
And yet -- despite all of the really pressing issues confronting the members of the Tennessee General Assembly -- our legislators, again, have begun efforts to try to legalize handgun-carrying in restaurants that sell alcohol. A judge struck down a similar measure last year, and lawmakers should reject it this year.
The bill at issue would allow the approximately 269,000 people who have state gun-carry permits to take pistols into places where alcohol consumption is legal -- so long as the gun-toters themselves don't drink.
Unfortunately, we have too many people who do not have gun permits but illegally carry guns in many places, creating danger and often injuries and deaths. But we don't really believe legalizing gun-carrying in alcohol-selling places would increase public safety.
There are some proper laws providing for the legal possession and use of guns. But the guns-in-bars proposal wouldn't meet any real need or provide legal improvement -- quite the contrary.