Two Gun Bills Pass the Georgia Senate, One Would Allow Licensed Guns in Churchs, Bars & Possibly College Campuses

Two gun bills sponsored by Georgia Republican lawmakers passed state Senate. Would allow licensed guns to be carried in churches, bars and grants public colleges the right to determine if guns are allowed on their campuses.

Two bills that would allow licensed guns to be carried in churches, bars and parts of airports were passed by the Georgia Senate Wednesday. SB 308, which was sponsored by state Sen. Mitch Seabaugh (R-Sharpsburg), to clarify where guns can be carried in the state. It passed 41-12 with bipartisan support. The other bill, SB 291, sponsored by state Sen. David Shafer (R-Duluth), permits concealed weapons in vehicles that pick up and drop off passengers at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Seabaugh's bill, in its final version, would make it a crime to carry a gun onto private property unless the property owner grants permission. So, if a bar owner or church pastor approves gun possession on his property, then it is legal for patrons or parishioners to carry one. Still, the idea of carrying a gun into a church is ludicrous. I have always felt that patrons carrying guns to bars is a recipe for disaster because an inebriated person's capacity to think and act is greatly diminished.

What's equally ridiculous is the fact that this bill also grants public colleges and universities the right to determine if guns are allowed on their campuses. After the massacre at Virginia Technical University, the last thing that anyone should want on a college campus is a gun. An early version of the bill allowed guns on campus, which university officials fought. The bill has to face a final hurdle, as it now goes to the House of Representatives to be voted on.

It seems that the extreme right wing faction within the Republican Party is getting a bully pulpit to push their positions. It is imperative that every voter get to know the positions of their elected officials on both sides of the aisle. You can't effect change if you don't vote and be knowledgeable about your lawmakers.