The NRA backed the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, and I fully support the intentions of this legislation, which was passed by both the House and Senate to prevent people from suing gun makers for crimes committed with their products (after all, would you sue Ford if a drunk driver hit you with an Escort?). A problem with it is Section 5, specifically Clause 3, which was introduced in the Senate version, S. 397, but left out of H.R. 800.
Here is Clause 3, verbatim:
"
`(3) LIABILITY FOR USE-
`(A) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person who has lawful possession and control of a handgun, and who uses a secure gun storage or safety device with the handgun, shall be entitled to immunity from a qualified civil liability action.
`(B) PROSPECTIVE ACTIONS- A qualified civil liability action may not be brought in any Federal or State court.
`(C) DEFINED TERM- As used in this paragraph, the term `qualified civil liability action'--
`(i) means a civil action brought by any person against a person described in subparagraph (A) for damages resulting from the criminal or unlawful misuse of the handgun by a third party, if--
`(I) the handgun was accessed by another person who did not have the permission or authorization of the person having lawful possession and control of the handgun to have access to it; and
`(II) at the time access was gained by the person not so authorized, the handgun had been made inoperable by use of a secure gun storage or safety device; and
`(ii) shall not include an action brought against the person having lawful possession and control of the handgun for negligent entrustment or negligence per se.'."
What this clause means is if someone breaks into your house and steals your gun, the only way you can get immunity from prosecution if the person commits a crime with your stolen gun is to make sure that it is locked by a "secure gun storage or safety device."
The downside to this is that locked guns cannot save lives. It is very foolish to keep a gun locked (unless you have children) when you are at home, because if someone breaks into your house, unlocking the gun could add 10 seconds. 10 seconds can easily be the difference between life and death. So, either you lock the gun up everytime you leave (if you live in one of the few, awful states that does not allow CCW), or you risk getting sued over someone else's actions.
Here is my advice to my readers: Keep your gun unlocked if you wish, and buy a cable safety lock. If your gun is stolen and the police arrive, show them the cable lock that the burglar "cut" which can easily be done with bolt cutters. You get the idea. This will save you money in the long run.
2005-10-28
2005-10-27
US Constitution Article I § 8 Clauses 1-8
I am devoting two entries to Article I, Section 8 of the US Constitution. My reasoning is that this is a very important section that contains several important clauses that require a deeper analysis than other parts of the text.
"Clause 1: The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;"
This does not explicitly create an income tax but does allow Congress to regulate such matters. The validity of the Federal Income Tax will be discussed when I write about the 16th Amendment.
"Clause 2: To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;"
Perhaps the most abused Clause in the entire Constitution, the Federal Government has borrowed over $8,000,000,000,000 (that's 8 trillion dollars) on the credit of the United States. Most of this has been through activities that implicitely violate the Constitution.
"Clause 3: To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;"
This clause is also very loaded. It is known as the "Commerce Clause." It means that only the Federal Government may regulate interstate commerce. Interstate commerce has also been mis-directed lately. A majority of the Supreme Court ruled that marijuana that is grown, cultivated, given away, and used within the State of California is interstate commerce. Obviously they are legislating from the bench. A footnote, Clarence Thomas, often called the most conservative justice, dissented on this opinion, remarking that, "If Congress can regulate this under the Commerce Clause, then it can regulate virtually anything–and the Federal Government is no longer one of limited and enumerated powers."
The six justices who constituted the majority obviously do not understate what "among the several States" means. This clause explicitly states that Congress cannot intervene in intrastate matters. Most of the justices who take this viewpoint are very liberal. What a quandary.
"Clause 4: To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;"
This Clause makes perfect sense. Obviously it would not be appropriate for each state to determine who is and who is not a US Citizen. Federal bankruptcy laws are also important in that people or companies could take refuge in states with less strict laws merely for the purpose of obtaining an "easier" bankruptcy. Surprisingly, the States actually do have differing bankruptcy laws, but none have yet been challenge in court to my knowledge.
"Clause 5: To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;"
States used to be able to coin their own money, this can obviously be a problem for those who wish to travel around the country. As for the second part of this clause, did anyone know that the US is legally on SI, known as the Metric System?
"Clause 6: To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;"
The second criminal act that Congress can provide punishment for. The first was Treason, in Section 6. Currently, the Secret Service enforces counterfeiting laws.
"Clause 7: To establish Post Offices and post Roads;"
Seems basic, but does the Post Office need to operate as a government entity or merely be created by the government? This also does not give the Federal Government oversight over all (or many) roads, since only very basic roads are required for carrying mail...
"Clause 8: To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;"
Congress often funds the arts and sciences via grants. This clause does not allow this action. It merely allows Congress to help the arts and sciences by providing and regulating copyrights and patents.
So far, we've covered many things Congress is allowed to do. I hope that you, my readers, can already see that Congress regulates things that are far beyond its scope. The rest of Section 8 will be in the next Constitution post.
"Clause 1: The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;"
This does not explicitly create an income tax but does allow Congress to regulate such matters. The validity of the Federal Income Tax will be discussed when I write about the 16th Amendment.
"Clause 2: To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;"
Perhaps the most abused Clause in the entire Constitution, the Federal Government has borrowed over $8,000,000,000,000 (that's 8 trillion dollars) on the credit of the United States. Most of this has been through activities that implicitely violate the Constitution.
"Clause 3: To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;"
This clause is also very loaded. It is known as the "Commerce Clause." It means that only the Federal Government may regulate interstate commerce. Interstate commerce has also been mis-directed lately. A majority of the Supreme Court ruled that marijuana that is grown, cultivated, given away, and used within the State of California is interstate commerce. Obviously they are legislating from the bench. A footnote, Clarence Thomas, often called the most conservative justice, dissented on this opinion, remarking that, "If Congress can regulate this under the Commerce Clause, then it can regulate virtually anything–and the Federal Government is no longer one of limited and enumerated powers."
The six justices who constituted the majority obviously do not understate what "among the several States" means. This clause explicitly states that Congress cannot intervene in intrastate matters. Most of the justices who take this viewpoint are very liberal. What a quandary.
"Clause 4: To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;"
This Clause makes perfect sense. Obviously it would not be appropriate for each state to determine who is and who is not a US Citizen. Federal bankruptcy laws are also important in that people or companies could take refuge in states with less strict laws merely for the purpose of obtaining an "easier" bankruptcy. Surprisingly, the States actually do have differing bankruptcy laws, but none have yet been challenge in court to my knowledge.
"Clause 5: To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;"
States used to be able to coin their own money, this can obviously be a problem for those who wish to travel around the country. As for the second part of this clause, did anyone know that the US is legally on SI, known as the Metric System?
"Clause 6: To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;"
The second criminal act that Congress can provide punishment for. The first was Treason, in Section 6. Currently, the Secret Service enforces counterfeiting laws.
"Clause 7: To establish Post Offices and post Roads;"
Seems basic, but does the Post Office need to operate as a government entity or merely be created by the government? This also does not give the Federal Government oversight over all (or many) roads, since only very basic roads are required for carrying mail...
"Clause 8: To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;"
Congress often funds the arts and sciences via grants. This clause does not allow this action. It merely allows Congress to help the arts and sciences by providing and regulating copyrights and patents.
So far, we've covered many things Congress is allowed to do. I hope that you, my readers, can already see that Congress regulates things that are far beyond its scope. The rest of Section 8 will be in the next Constitution post.
Almost Borked?
Today Harriet Miers withdrew her nomination for Supreme Court Justice and President Bush accepted it. This news follows a week of Bush refusing to release any White House documents associated with Ms. Miers and conflicting reports on whether Miers does or does not support abortion (though this is a minor issue, the news media and both liberals and conservatives love to bring it up to get their bases frothing at the mouth). The biggest obstacle to her nomination is that many Senators saw her as one of Bush's cronies, who went to a second tier law school, hasn't had a stellar legal career, and is just not fit for the job. The title of this post is a reference to Robert Bork, who was nominated by Reagan and rejected by the Senate. I think this would have been Ms. Miers fate.
Sidebar: I wrote to both of my Senators expressing my concerns about Miers's dubious record. One of them, Senator Warner, basically replied that he knows Ms. Miers, she is qualified for the job, and gave the distinct impression that he is one of Bush's cronies.
At any rate, Miers doesn't seem like she really knew much about the Constitution so it's probably good that it ended this way, but we'll never know.
Sidebar: I wrote to both of my Senators expressing my concerns about Miers's dubious record. One of them, Senator Warner, basically replied that he knows Ms. Miers, she is qualified for the job, and gave the distinct impression that he is one of Bush's cronies.
At any rate, Miers doesn't seem like she really knew much about the Constitution so it's probably good that it ended this way, but we'll never know.
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