AndeyHall
Active member
The following is my email to Senator Bryant. I encourage everyone to help support these laws that allow us to take advantage of our 2nd Amendment rights!
"Dear Senator Bryant,
As a fellow South Carolinian, Andersonian, and as a student at Clemson University, I would first and foremost like to thank you for representing our state and for sponsoring these two amendments. I hope that in the upcoming hearings on these two amendments, you can express the concerns and ideas that I will discuss in this email. As you are probably well aware there are two places that I am currently prohibited from carrying a firearm, even as a concealed weapons permit holder: one being restaurants that serve alcohol, and the other being schools (specifically Clemson in my case).
I would first like to discuss S308, the amendment to the prohibition of concealed weapons in restaurants that serve alcohol. Section 23-31-400 currently prohibits any person from discharging a firearm while under the influence of alcohol. So if the intention of Section 16-23-465 is to prevent "drunken shootings", then this type of incident would already be covered under Section 23-31-400. Therefore, what Section 16-23-465 actually does is prevent law abiding citizens like me from enjoying a meal and non-alcoholic beverage in a restaurant like Applebees, Chilis, O'Charleys, etc simply because they serve alcohol. The law also prevents people who live in cities like Greenville or Charleston, where they may live in a downtown area within walking distance from a restaurant, from being able to carry a firearm at all if they plan on eating at one of these restaurants that serves alcohol because they would have to leave their firearms at home.
Now I would like to discuss S242, the amendment which would give me the right to carry a concealed weapon at school. I know it only sounds like common sense that guns do not belong in school, and I agree 100%. However as it currently stands, and as we have seen in recent tragic events, there ARE people that are bringing guns into schools. The problem lies in that those people bringing the guns in have nothing but ill intent and are bent on committing evil acts. What our schools need are licensed, law abiding citizens who are able and willing to do what it takes to help stop these massacres. The laws we have may look good on paper, but I am the one who has to sit in a classroom and wonder, "If someone walked in right now and began shooting, what could I do to prevent it?" The answer is NOTHING! They can boast how much security these schools have, whether it be by increasing law enforcement personnel, upgrading security systems, or creating new emergency procedures for these types of events. But these systems have proven themselves failures time and time again.
The bottom line is this:
The Constitution was written to ensure that the United States government could not strip its citizens of basic human rights. The 2nd Amendment is the basic human right to self defense. These lawmakers cannot, with 100% certainty, ensure my safety everywhere I go. They do not have the means to protect me any and everywhere I go. Therefore I do not see how it is not considered an infringement when they deny me the right to defend my life, my family, my friends, and my fellow classmates when I am either in class or out to eat. I should not have to choose between a college education or the right to self defense. I should not have to choose between a meal at Applebess or the right to self defense. We are now seeing a presidential administration that is without a doubt overstepping its bounds and showing its complete disregard for our Constitution and basic human rights. I think I speak for the majority of South Carolinians when I say that I would consider it an honor to live in a state that is not only refusing to recognize the unconstitutional laws that the federal government is now trying to push on us, but is also taking steps in the opposite direction by opening doors to allow even more of it citizens to take advantage of their 2nd Amendment right. Thank you for your time."
"Dear Senator Bryant,
As a fellow South Carolinian, Andersonian, and as a student at Clemson University, I would first and foremost like to thank you for representing our state and for sponsoring these two amendments. I hope that in the upcoming hearings on these two amendments, you can express the concerns and ideas that I will discuss in this email. As you are probably well aware there are two places that I am currently prohibited from carrying a firearm, even as a concealed weapons permit holder: one being restaurants that serve alcohol, and the other being schools (specifically Clemson in my case).
I would first like to discuss S308, the amendment to the prohibition of concealed weapons in restaurants that serve alcohol. Section 23-31-400 currently prohibits any person from discharging a firearm while under the influence of alcohol. So if the intention of Section 16-23-465 is to prevent "drunken shootings", then this type of incident would already be covered under Section 23-31-400. Therefore, what Section 16-23-465 actually does is prevent law abiding citizens like me from enjoying a meal and non-alcoholic beverage in a restaurant like Applebees, Chilis, O'Charleys, etc simply because they serve alcohol. The law also prevents people who live in cities like Greenville or Charleston, where they may live in a downtown area within walking distance from a restaurant, from being able to carry a firearm at all if they plan on eating at one of these restaurants that serves alcohol because they would have to leave their firearms at home.
Now I would like to discuss S242, the amendment which would give me the right to carry a concealed weapon at school. I know it only sounds like common sense that guns do not belong in school, and I agree 100%. However as it currently stands, and as we have seen in recent tragic events, there ARE people that are bringing guns into schools. The problem lies in that those people bringing the guns in have nothing but ill intent and are bent on committing evil acts. What our schools need are licensed, law abiding citizens who are able and willing to do what it takes to help stop these massacres. The laws we have may look good on paper, but I am the one who has to sit in a classroom and wonder, "If someone walked in right now and began shooting, what could I do to prevent it?" The answer is NOTHING! They can boast how much security these schools have, whether it be by increasing law enforcement personnel, upgrading security systems, or creating new emergency procedures for these types of events. But these systems have proven themselves failures time and time again.
The bottom line is this:
The Constitution was written to ensure that the United States government could not strip its citizens of basic human rights. The 2nd Amendment is the basic human right to self defense. These lawmakers cannot, with 100% certainty, ensure my safety everywhere I go. They do not have the means to protect me any and everywhere I go. Therefore I do not see how it is not considered an infringement when they deny me the right to defend my life, my family, my friends, and my fellow classmates when I am either in class or out to eat. I should not have to choose between a college education or the right to self defense. I should not have to choose between a meal at Applebess or the right to self defense. We are now seeing a presidential administration that is without a doubt overstepping its bounds and showing its complete disregard for our Constitution and basic human rights. I think I speak for the majority of South Carolinians when I say that I would consider it an honor to live in a state that is not only refusing to recognize the unconstitutional laws that the federal government is now trying to push on us, but is also taking steps in the opposite direction by opening doors to allow even more of it citizens to take advantage of their 2nd Amendment right. Thank you for your time."
