Opinion: Stadiums No Place for Guns

AthleticBusiness.com has partnered with LexisNexis to bring you this content.

Copyright 2016 Gannett Company, Inc.
All Rights Reserved

USA TODAY

 

Some people will do anything to get their names in the news.

Even if comes at the expense of the public's safety.

Three Washington state legislators are pushing a bill that would force arenas and stadiums to allow fans to bring in weapons if they have concealed carry permits. Because adding guns to a highly charged atmosphere where alcohol already offsets common sense far too often seems like a great idea.

"What I've been trying to do is foster bipartisan support for common sense solutions to gun violence," said Laurie Jinkins, the Tacoma area representative who chairs the Washington House Judiciary Committee. "This seems to be the antithesis for that."

There was no public groundswell for this proposed legislation. Seattle's professional teams did not ask for it, and the major professional leagues have rules that specifically prohibit fans from bringing weapons into stadiums.

This is grandstanding, pure and simple. Representatives Bob McCaslin, Matt Shea and David Taylor saw an opportunity to pander to the gun lobby and stoke fear in those who see a Second Amendment-repealing boogeyman around every corner these days, and they jumped on it.

Washington law prevents firearms possession at "any stadium or convention center, operated by a city, town, county or other municipality" unless an individual has a concealed carry permit. But most stadiums are operated by public facilities districts or private entities and thus can make their own rules on weapons.

The bill proposed by McCaslin, Shea and Taylor would expand the law so it specifically prohibits public facilities districts and public stadium authorities, or any private group that leases a stadium or arena from them, from banning pistols for those with concealed carry permits.

None of the three responded to a request for a comment Tuesday, probably because they know there's no way to defend this.

And spare me the argument that a gun would defuse a situation or stop a potential criminal. These stadiums have security in place screening fans to avoid weapons being smuggled in. Now we want to eliminate that?

Americans have generally agreed that there are some places where it's just not smart to have guns, like schools, public parks, courtrooms and hospitals. That stadiums and arenas should be part of that list is a no-brainer.

Fortunately, there seems to be little support for McCaslin, Shea and Taylor's proposal.

Sporting events are for fun and foam fingers, not firearms.

Read More of Today's AB Headlines

Subscribe to Our Daily E-Newsletter

 
December 14, 2016
 
 
 

 

Copyright © 2016 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms and Conditions Privacy Policy
Page 1 of 254
Next Page
Buyer's Guide
Information on more than 3,000 companies, sorted by category. Listings are updated daily.
Learn More
Buyer's Guide
AB Show 2024 in New Orleans
AB Show is a solution-focused event for athletics, fitness, recreation and military professionals.
Nov. 19-22, 2024
Learn More
AB Show 2024