Zombie Research Society
An amendment to a Florida bill would see it legal to carry a concealed weapon during the zombie apocalypse. And with the apocalypse fast approaching, it’s not a moment too soon!
On Tuesday Apr. 29, State Senator Dwight Bullard filed an amendment to Senate Bill 296 that would change the title of the amendment from “An act related to carrying a concealed weapon or firearm” to “An act relating to the zombie apocalypse.” Can’t be true, you say? ALL TRUE, I say! Consider the rest of the full language in the bill:
[An act related to] Carrying a Concealed Weapon or a Concealed Firearm: Providing an exemption from criminal penalties for carrying a concealed weapon or a concealed firearm while in the act of complying with a mandatory evacuation order during a declared state of emergency, etc.
The bill would eliminate criminal prosecution for anybody carrying concealed firearms under those conditions, essentially bypassing any licensing requirement of the person carrying the concealed firearm.
Bullard’s amendment would essentially re-write the bill to read something like this:
[An act relating to] the zombie apocalypse: Providing an exemption from criminal penalties for carrying a concealed weapon or a concealed firearm during a zombie apocalypse or some other declared state of emergency.
Less room for conjecture, and catchier. Guaranteed it will get the attention it deserves.
UPDATE
Gun lobbyist Marion Hammer contends that the “concealed weapon” Bill 296 is necessary because during emergency evacuations, homeowners might leave their guns behind.
Apparently Senator Dwight Bullard is actually against the NRA-backed Bill, and introduced the amendment as a form of protest. He questions why someone would not carry their weapon in the luggage they would presumably pack during an evacuation.
Bullard comments:
It’s equally laughable that people who haven’t gone through the proper training, the background check, the license to carry — we’re saying because of a hurricane or flooding or sinkhole, these individuals have gone from gun owners to concealed carry permit holders. I’d argue a crisis is probably the last instance in which you want someone who is not a concealed permit holder to carry a weapon.
What do you think?
Part of the concerns of Senator Dwight Bullard are legit. As a former military machine-gunner, former Deputy Sheriff, and now NRA Certified Pistol Instructor, I know from personal experience that an untrained person (especially in a state of anxiety or panic) with a firearm is an extremely dangerous combination. That being said, a trained person with a firearm is the most effective defense against a maniac with a gun. So, moral of the story: get some training, shoot alot, then get more training. Rinse, wash, repeat. ‘Nuff said.
And try to have fewer maniacs with guns.