J.B. Van Hollen

The Paranoids Are Winning: Bringing Hidden Guns To Work At The Wisconsin Capitol

October 10, 2011 by The Political E...

Republican state legislative leaders want the new concealed carry law interpreted to allow packing heat in the Capitol.

Next up for GOP folks: Full-body armor, helmets,  personal scanning shields?

There is no real reason to implement this policy other than legislators, and Atty. Gen. J.B. Van Hollen catering to the National Rifle Association and pandering to far-right conservative voters.

Which is not a good reason to introduce firearms into public space where controversial issues are aired and debated, and where partisanship continues to burn white hot.

Van Hollen's boot-licking response to NRA: 'I'm making it as easy as I can'

October 7, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

Wisconsin's attorney general, J.B. Van Hollen, sure knows how to talk tough.  The National Rifle Association criticized his department this week, saying it was drafting rules for concealed carry training that were too strict, required four hours of training and included firing a weapon. (Imagine that!)

Van Hollen's weak-kneed response:

"I'm surprised the NRA isn't grateful," Van Hollen said. "We're making it as easy as possible."

The rules don't require any hands-on practice as [the NRA's Chris] Cox believes, the attorney general said. 

So, not to worry.  You won't actually have to handle or fire a weapon in order to get a permit to carry one.  (You might be a little surprised at how much noise it makes if you ever pull the trigger.)  Presumably, the four hours of training will include information on which way to point it and which end the bullet comes out.

Grown-ups, guns and just gone-crazy: In Arizona now, Wisconsin soon

October 6, 2011 by Uppity Wisconsin

So what's Wisconsin going to be like when the new Republican-enabled concealed-carry gun law takes hold? Well, it may be a lot like Arizona. That's a state with an insanely laissez-faire concealed-carry law. Hendrik Hertzberg, political writer for the New Yorker magazine, reported on a recent incident there where an entire military base went to Condition Red over a reported gun sighting. "The base was locked down, emergency vehicles were summoned, and automated alert messages went out, advising people to stay indoors, away from windows," Hertzberg wrote.