Log In | Register
23 Votes
87 Comments
Florida's "Shoot First" Law Reflects Crazy Ideology of Preemption
News Type: Opinion — Seeded on Sun Nov 11, 2007 4:54 AM EST
Article Source: AlterNet.orgadvertisement
Florida's crazy "stand your ground" gun law is part of an ideology of preemptive action against any perceived enemy spreading from the White House on down.
Crossing the state line into Florida on I-75, one is greeted by a billboard reading, "Visitor Warning. Florida residents can use deadly force. Please be careful." Erected by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the sign is a reference to the fact that, for the last year and a half, Floridians have been allowed by law to shoot anyone they want.
Well, not just anyone. A citizen can use deadly force only if, in the words of the law, he or she "believes it is necessary to do so to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or to another person or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony." So breathe a sigh of relief. As long as you don't give anyone a reason to feel threatened, you're perfectly safe.
The "stand your ground" law - called the "shoot first" law by opponents - passed the Florida legislature by a wide margin. Since it went into effect, similar laws have been passed in at least 14 other states and are being considered in many more.
Published to:
- Grey Wolf's Column, All of Newsvine
- Groups: Activism, Anti-War, Communists, Left of Center, Political Analysis, Psych, Soc, Philos, Question Authority, RightsVine, rightwingers,
- Regions: none
 | Bush Is Right to Worry If Waterboarding Is Defined as Torture | AlterNet.org | Thu Nov 8 | 22 |
| AlterNet: War on Iraq: Veterans' Suicides: a Hidden Cost of Bush's Wars | AlterNet.org | Mon Nov 12 | 0 |
| Fox News Freaks Out After Video Highlighting Their Indecency Becomes a Major Hit | AlterNet.org | Tue Nov 13 | 0 |
| Who's Afraid of a Falling Dollar? | AlterNet.org | Fri Nov 9 | 1 |
| Can Green Jobs Save the American Middle Class? | AlterNet.org | Fri Nov 9 | 2 |
- Public Discussion (87)
- Activism
- Anti-War
- Communists
- Left of Center
- Political Analysis
- Psych, Soc, Philos
- Question Authority
- RightsVine
- rightwingers
You're in Easy Mode. If you prefer, you can use XHTML Mode instead. |
As a new user, you may notice a few temporary content restrictions. Click here for more info.
COMPANY STUFF:
LEGAL STUFF:
- © 2005-2009 Newsvine, Inc. |
- Newsvine® is a registered trademark of Newsvine, Inc. |
- Newsvine is a property of
