Alessandra Mondolfi holds a sign against AR-15 weapons as she yells, “No More” during a protest against guns on the steps of the Broward County Federal courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2018. Nikolas Cruz, a former student, is charged with killing 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Time with Granddad makes an Old School comeback.
On Monday, at a legislative hearing discussing the prospect of conceal carry within city limits, grandfather Charles brought along his granddaughter.
Whose name was Bailey.
Who was 11.
Who was carrying a loaded AR-15.
Kind of reminds me of this guy:
Here’s the armed little lady:
Accompanied by her grandfather, Charles, an 11-year-old girl named Bailey Nielsen carried a loaded AR-15 into the Idaho statehouse.https://t.co/mLq7V1JLlU
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) February 25, 2020
You can’t pack heat like that in Los Angeles — the cops’ll show up and freak out in perilous ways.
But Charles Nielson was singing a song about the heartland.
As reported by The Associated Press, he laid it out for lawmakers:
“Bailey is carrying a loaded AR-15. People live in fear, terrified of that which they do not understand. She’s been shooting since she was 5 years old. She got her first deer with this weapon at 9. She carries it responsibly. She knows how not to put her finger on the trigger. We live in fear in a society that is fed fear on a daily basis.”
To Charles, people like Bailey should be able to tote their firepower on account of ’em being good folks — unlike the others who’ll be carrying whether it’s legal or not:
“When they come to Idaho, they should be able to carry concealed, because they carry responsibly. They’re law-abiding citizens. It’s the criminal we have to worry about.”
According to the AP, no one had much of a response to Bailey’s gun show:
There was no notable reaction among lawmakers to the girl carrying the AR-15, and none asked Charlie Nielsen any questions after he testified. Guns are not an uncommon sight in the Statehouse when gun legislation is being debated, particularly handguns on belt holsters. Long rifles such as AR-15s also appear occasionally.
Such wasn’t the case in Virginia, where some didn’t appreciate City Councilman Nathan Clark’s shouldered AR.
The vice mayor was horrified:
“[Nathan’s move] was a disgrace, disheartening and an embarrassment. Most of us were blindsided by the display.”
How would she have like it if Nathan was 11?
The legislation in Idaho regards whether any legal U.S. residents age 18 or over will be granted the same rights as state citizens.
Republican Rep. Christy Zito is championing protection for all:
“I stand here before you today as a mother and grandmother who has had to use a firearm to defend their child.
“Even though I didn’t have to pull the trigger, just the fact that they could see it, and they knew that I had it, was the determining factor.”
But not everyone’s excited:
Opponents say allowing teenagers to carry a concealed weapon without any required training within city limits is a bad idea and could lead to shootings. If the bill becomes law, Idaho would be among a handful of states that allow that type of concealed carry.
There was once a time when a young person could walk down the street with a gun and no alarm would envelop the world. But these days, firepower’s being vilified. And the AR-15 is veritably Satan’s slingshot.
We’ve got our media and politicians to thank for that.
Way to present the info with crystal clarity, everyone.
Especially this guy in VA. Good goin’ on the research end.
Shoulda had Bailey Nielson run that meeting.
-ALEX
Relevant RedState links in this article: here.
See 3 more pieces from me:
Find all my RedState work here.
And please follow Alex Parker on Twitter and Facebook.
Thank you for reading! Please sound off in the Comments section below.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member