From Del. Mary Ann Lisanti:
Dear Friends,
Our first full week has come to an end. In addition to my new duties as Sub-committee Chairman, I had the pleasure of being appointed by Speaker Busch as House Chair of the Joint Committee on Unemployment Insurance Oversight, and member of the Joint Committee on Worker’s Compensation. I’m excited to partner with my friend and Senate counterpart Chairman Ben Kramer from Montgomery County. We have critical issues to address especially with the on-going federal government stand-off and its impact on our citizens.
In addition to stepping into a new role, I had the privilege to witness the second Inauguration of Governor Hogan in the Senate Chamber as he begins a new term. I look forward to continue working with his administration and my legislative colleagues in a bipartisan fashion for the people of Maryland.
LOOKING AHEAD
Among all the celebration and new positions, I have been diligently preparing and drafting my legislative agenda. I want to take this opportunity to highlight some of the legislation I will be introducing this session. Last session the General Assembly passed legislation I sponsored to eliminate the tax on military and emergency service retirement income, however it was amended to include the first $15,000 in income. We are back again this year to expand tax exemption and include surviving spouses as well as exempt Gold Star family benefits from state taxation.
As always I will be fighting to make sure Harford County gets its fair share of resources in the Budget for important projects in our community. This session I’m proud to be working with community leaders on a diverse agenda of projects that will support education, cultural understanding, and housing equality.
Being a member of the Economic Matters Committee, I hear a great variety of significant legislation that impacts citizens and businesses throughout the State. I would like to bring to your attention that our committee will be hearing proposals to raise the smoking age to 21 and raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. These will be critical issues that affect countless Marylanders of all ages and backgrounds and I look forward to hearing from you on these and many other issues over the weeks and months ahead.
Please don’t hesitate to contact my office if you have any questions or concerns regarding legislation or how I can as sit you. It’s a great privilege to serve the people of Harford County and I always appreciate hearing from you while serving in Annapolis.
Sincerely,
Mary Ann Lisanti
Delegate, District 34A
Local government controlling our lives? Yes we need the Federal, State, and Local officials to regulate our entire lives… we are not shall not be given the freedom to make decisions that are good or bad or just a decision on our own. We all know that government knows what is best for anyone, right? Seriously, that is all sarcasm. Tell me how much did the Billions from the tobacco settlement do for the people? Did it do anything except line the pockets of politicians with cash? How about this one…. the legalization gambling in MD will fund the school system? What a crook! All the politicians did was steal the funds from the general account. The point is when do we tell these socialist monstrous politicians to stop? This would be a good start.
Well, I don’t buy into the whole smoking thing being the demon that it is described as. I have a friend dying of colon cancer and liver cancer. The doctors say he got the cancer from smoking. Funny thing is he never had mouth, throat, esophagus or lung cancer. I could accept his cancer was caused from smoking if it developed in areas that smoke carcinogens pass thru or into, but this is not the case. So, I told my friend that he should’ve never put those cigarettes out in his anus or inhaled them thru his anus. He laughed and agreed. More than likely, he developed cancer from exposure to chemicals from work or when he was in the service. He agrees with that as well. Our government thinks we are idiots. So do our doctors. They believe we are all a bunch of uneducated morons that need to be led. However, I believe that it is more of a crime to do things unto others just because they are lacking knowledge, especially when those harming us knew better from the start. Just to be very clear, Chemotherapy only works on several types of cancer, yet our doctors tell us we need chemo whenever any type of cancer occurs. They do this because they make a lot of money to administer chemo. That’s the bottom line. They are killing us for money. Another thing I want you all to realize, is that the STATE OF MARYLAND is actually titling human beings thru birth certificates. When you go to renew your license, suddenly you are required to prove your identity and they won’t accept our original birth certificates that were issued by the hospitals. They think we are stupid and don’t realize that our identity can be proven by then looking at our photos already in the computer. Back to the titling thing, notice that the new birth certificates look an awful lot like a car title and notice the RED number on the document. It is not the same as your file number, which is what USED to be indicative of where your CERTIFICATE OF LIVE BIRTH was stored. They are titling us. For what purpose? It can’t be for good reasons as every aspect of our government is about betraying the Constitution and enslaving you to the will of whatever corporation they think they are titling us to. It is about time for WE THE PEOPLE to take our country back and if they won’t reform the treasonous government that exist now, we are going to have to wage war to get our lives back. We are running out of time….
I see it differently. I don’t look at our GOVERNMENT as “treasonous”. To me it’s not WE THE PEOPLE) versus the (GOVERNMENT)…good guys against the bad guys…us opposed to them. Our government and our people are not mutually exclusive. They are inclusive. United we improve and move forward…divided we regress! I guess you might call me a hopeless (die-hard) optimist.
I don’t see it that way. They took the oath and knowingly broke that oath. You can do what you want.
Comments allowed?
Nope
Wonder what the unintended consequences of $15/hour minimum wage is going to be? What’s the objective here? Why not make it $30/hour minimum wage?
I’ll take a guess, I imagine a lot of small business job positions will be restructured in scheduling, positions eliminated and some commercial businesses will take advantage of more automation for customer paying – Retail/Fast food.
In the last 50 years, I have seen many wage increases. I worked at $4 per hour. Every time the following happened:
people fired
automation
prices go up
and within 2 years, everyone is back to where they were before wage increases.
Its a simple fact of nature. When there is no price for being a useless eater, people will be useless eaters. Its why Communism fails every single time.
I’m not opposed to $15.00 an hour minimum wage for employers with 50 or more employees. We need to protect small businesses.
Do you know what people who make 15 bucks an hour do with their money? They spend it and business’s see an uptick in business so they make more money and get busier so they hire more people. The other option is give tax breaks to billionaires and they take the money and put it into Swiss bank accounts which they would like you to believe helps poor people somehow……
But they can buy heroin at 12
We need not to single out certain groups from getting tax relief. We are losing so many retirees to the surrounding states because of unfair taxation. When my husband was alive and we were fortunate to have an adequate salary, taxes weren’t an issue. Now I’m a widow on a small pension that never seems to increase in the face of increased medical costs and the all around cost of living. I can’t afford to move to PA, or DL. or spend my winters in FL. So I’m stuck with increasing costs that seem to hit all of us, our utilities, gasoline, medication, etc., yet we never see cost of living increases that truly reflect it. We need to address this by giving all seniors a tax break. Not certain interest groups. My husband served before Vietnam for four yrs. in the Navy. I won’t benefit from any tax breaks. Let’s be fair and make these tax breaks for all retires we all deserve it.
Government does not have money. Government takes money from it’s citizens in the form of taxes and fees. What you want would require the state to either increase other taxes and fees, or *gasp* decrease their budget. Which do you think will happen? I’ll give you three guesses, but you really only need one.
Want to see the results of demand for increased wages just go to a McDonalds now. You walk up to a kiosk and punch in your order and pay there. Three less people at the counter to wait on you now
That’s called innovation and those 3 people are now not collecting government subsidies and McDonalds is forced to pay high priced technicians to maintain the machines. Those machines don’t make themselves. Having a business model that requires poverty wages for the owner to succeed is no longer acceptable.
Well, sorta…those “high priced technicians” don’t work for McDonald’s. Micky-Deez outsourced the development of said kiosks to a 2nd / 3rd and 4th Party.
McDonald’s approached a 2nd Party who has expertise and experience in design, integration and manufacturing of self-service kiosks. 2nd Party took their proprietary code and customized it for McDonald’s.
From there, McD’s and 2nd Party worked with 3rd Party on a fancy new design. Prototyping occurs, testing, fixes, etc…
Next, a final design is delivered to a production facility where it is mass-produced (because, much like Cosco and BJ’s, “discounts in bulk, bro”).
Kiosks are installed by 2nd or 3rd Party, and are on a maintenance agreement (probably funded annually) for ongoing maintenance including updates and any break / fix actions for the kiosks.
McDonald’s is not employing “high priced technicians”…they are outsourcing.
So, you are correct in that a “high priced technician” is now responsible for the operation of a McDonald’s restaurant equipped with kiosks…but all the $15/hr staff have to do is slap a sign on it that states “Out of Order”.
Make sense? Hope so, I rambled…but you get the point. Maybe. Probably.
Please cut through the static and raise the minimum wage to $15. It will have a positive impact on our local and state economies. Please so not raise the age for smoking. I don’t think folks should smoke but if you can be drafted and die for your country, you should be able to have a cigarette if you want.
Ryan, I understand that this is not your field of study, but try to follow along. If minimum wage is raised to $15, then the wages of all workers who make more than the present minimum would also need to be raised proportionally (experienced workers, supervisors, assistant managers and managers). This massive across-the-board increase will result in higher prices (to pay the wage hikes), which will counteract the wage increases. Also, hours and jobs will be cut in those industries that cannot simply pass the rise on to the consumer.
Do you still think this is a good idea (higher prices, fewer jobs, fewer hours for workers), or have I offended you by introducing logic and reasoning?
I understand your argument. I disagree and so do the vast majority of real life examples where this is happening. Correspondingly, your logic oversimplifies the complex interactions between wages, industry, prices, etc. It also does not take into account the multiplicative effect which higher wages have on purchasing within local economies or reductions in governmental costs associated with poverty.
Minimum wage is for entry level workers. If you raise the minimum wage, fewer will be hired thereby decreasing the employment opportunities for entry level job seekers. They take a job at that wage, learn some job skills and parlay that into a better opportunity. Raising the minimum wage has resulted in higher teen unemployment, higher overall unemployment and few business opportunities. Jobs will be cut. Just check with Seattle and other cities that raised the minimum wage to $15/hr. Keep it where it is and let the market set the wages, not some politicians seeking votes.
Cool story but totally incorrect. Go back and do some research on why minimum wage was created. and stop being stupid.
I checked the Settle thing like you suggested and it appears increasing the minimum wage resulted in a booming economy.
$15 minimum wage is not the perfect answer you think it is
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/op-eds/im-a-restaurant-employee-in-a-city-with-a-15-minimum-wage-heres-how-its-hurt-me
Can someone tell me what the guidance is on medical marijuana “prescription” in regards to employment at HCPS?
What sort of idiot would come here looking for drug policy employment advice? Here’s some advice, you are too stupid to work in education.
How am I stupid? I never insulted you. It’s also not “advice” for me and my employment endevours nor anyone else I know.
I’m simply asking an unrelated question to the news article.
And please vote “NO” to any Pro-Second Amendment bills. The majority of Maryland residents don’t want the general public carrying firearms.
The last thing I need is to get negligently shot at the gas station while two morons engage in a gun battle over who’s Deer has a bigger rack.
For the record, you do NOT speak for me, nor for most of the people that I know. I am a mid-40’s woman who legally owns a firearm for my protection and that of my family. I have taken several safety classes, and store my weapon safely. The generalization that hunters will be holding shoot-outs like the OK Corral is ludicrous.
If you criminalize guns, only criminals will have guns. What part of that do you not understand?
When the courts rule that carrying a firearm in public is a right and “shall not be infringed’ then people can laugh at me all they want.
If the courts were NOT embedded with the treason of the Codes of Rules and Regulations, they would say just that. Reminder, the Federal government does NOT have the authority to regulate the public, the States do. When they made the gun control laws its was passed illegally by the Federal government. The Feds then BRIBE the States to enact laws thru Federal Funding. Our entire legal system is an act of treason. That’s just the way it is. Don’t be scared of guns. They won’t shoot you without someone aiming and pulling the trigger. Be afraid of the people whom you are demonizing in the first place. They are the only ones who can shoot you…
Ah yes, the old Blood in the Streets red herring. I don’t suppose you have any facts to back up your argument, do you?
The only facts Ive seen is that conservatives like to constantly remind everyone how they are law abiding.
Maryland legislature passes gun control and the gun owners (strongly conservative) always obey the law.
End of story. Thats your facts.
If you think more guns is what Maryland needs, put it out there on a voters referendum. Let the people decide.
I haven’t seen any pro second amendment vicotories where laws were challenged.
Chicago.
North Harford Democrat… you wrote: “If you think more guns is what Maryland needs, put it out there on a voters referendum. Let the people decide.”
Does amending the Constitution count? You know… right there in the Bill of Rights… that part where individual freedoms and their protection from Congress is located… that?
And you mentioned this gem: “I haven’t seen any pro second amendment vicotories where laws were challenged.”
Did you read District of Columbia v. Heller?
Advice… quit this argument while you are behind. Unless you have some data or facts to support your bigotry about conservatives and hunters… please stop. I’m embarrassed for you.
I’m behind on the gun control debate? You really think besides Heller the Pro Second Amendment supporters are that far ahead?
What gun bans have been overturned? If that’s so unconstitutional how come it’s not at the Supreme Court right now?
Amending the Constitution? Do you really think that could be done (on any issue) with the majority of the states in favor?
My debate is on Maryland law as it pertains how the courts have ruled and how our legislature has passed bills. Thank you.
Advice…. Move to a state that lets you holster up that big gun and walk around in public.
Actually, no I do not think those who support and defend the Constitution are that far ahead. That is why we have organizations fighting to protect the individual freedoms we have, not selectively mind you, but on face value. Good point. Congress and the states have grossly weakened the Bill of Rights and over-stepped their authority on this issue. You are correct, I agree with you.
Again, quit while you are behind. You wrote: “Amending the Constitution? Do you really think that could be done (on any issue) with the majority of the states in favor?”
Have you actually ever read the Constitution? You know… the part where one method of a few is outlined that 2/3 of each chamber can pass a resolution and pass along to the states for 3/4 of them to amend the Constitution??? So, yes, I do think it could be done. in fact, it has happened 27 times.
I am beginning to believe, as evidenced by your statements, that the true problem is not firearms; but the folks on the left who use them illegally. In part, or wholly I presume, because they have never read nor understood the Constitution. It does make sense. I can say this because statistically those places that vote higher than average for Democrats, or have kept them in power the longest; tend to be the most violent. Baltimore City, Chicago, LA, Detroit, etc… did you know if you remove those locations from US statistics we are the 4th lowest crime country in the world? Those solidly Democratic jurisdictions propel the US to one of the most deadly.
Lastly, I don’t think I have to move somewhere else. It is easier for me to educate the ignorant here. After all, it is through education that we can conquer bigotry. And friend, you are a bigot.
The Constitution is the law. The Maryland Constitution is the law. The Codes are NOT. They appear to be the law on the surface, but any statute can be ruled unconstitutional and is NULL and VOID before it was enacted. The problem is terrorism. Governance by intimidation. When they take you and lock you away until you take their plea bargain of contract law is the problem. This is a perversion of justice. Contract law was never supposed to be part of criminal law. There is no original jurisdiction, stare decisis or jurisdiction when we deal with unconstitutional statues, especially when the Supreme Court has already made a verdict that can be applied to prevent a conviction. They will tell you the Constitution can NOT prevent a conviction, yet expect us to believe that the Code can prevent them from following the law. This is false and is all covered under Article 3 Section 3. They do NOT have the power to define, sub divide or sub define Article 3 Section 3 thru legislation. They can only set the penalty for it. Deprivation of Rights and the Codified statutes of Treason are all unconstitutional statutes because of this and are NULL and VOID. There is only Article 3 Section 3. Our main problem is the perception of laws made in Washington DC. These laws don’t apply to WE THE PEOPLE. They only apply to them the government. The government then bribes the States to impose the laws on the masses, which is law making by a criminal act and against the Supreme Law of the Land. The US Code is a bunch of codified crap when applied to private citizens because it has no substance to WE THE PEOPLE, only to them the government and they illegally impose laws made in Washington DC in the several States to the masses. I am convinced that every State law maker and the entire Judicial Department of Maryland are traitors. They are an organized crime syndicate and a terrorist organization illegally enforcing the laws of the sea on us of the land, but they can only do this by local law administrators committing acts of treason and allowing Code enforcement officers to brutally terrorize the people that pay their salaries. I will never pay a tax again because of this. I don’t pay the salaries of my enemies. I don’t pay the salaries of traitors. We are not supposed to pay their salaries once they have broken the covenants. All taxation is forfeit and our government is dead. We need to stop electing former government employees into positions and reform the government before we have nothing but the Democratic fascist state left. Fascism and Socialism have always failed and when we look into the past we see this plainly. Elect more people NOT involved in government employment and our country will thrive again.
Name calling doesn’t help your cause get over the “gun nut” stigma.
Yeah, you don’t have to move but I think it’s highly unlikely Maryland would have any gun control overturned.
The thing with most of these people is that they will most likely turn in their guns to the authorities rather than risk criminal prosecution over disobeying gun laws.
Shocking irony…
“These people”??? My goodness… I’m not name-calling, I’m describing. You are a bigot.
Dream about confiscation. It will never happen – even if the firearms are ‘outlawed.’ We have this pesky thing called due process… that nasty Bill of Rights again, and reinforced by that even more sinister 14th Amendment… one of those 27 times the impossible happened.
These people, as in law abiding gun owners as opposed to prohibited person’s possessing firearms.
Law abiding gun owners follow the law, hypothetical passed gun control laws is that they will turn in to the authorities or remove from the state any item a state legislature bans up until the date the bill becomes state law.
Where did I type anything about confiscation? I’m pretty sure I did not
con·fis·ca·tion
/?känf??sk?SH(?)n
noun
the action of taking or seizing someone’s property with authority; seizure.
Uhh… I quote: “most of these people is that they will most likely turn in their guns to the authorities”.
So, if in the unlikely event ‘these people’ (bigotry) do not turn them in can we safely assume the ‘authorities’ will simply say, ‘dang, that almost worked.’ Or do you suspect they will arrive with the armored up vehicle and a squad capable of bringing down a tin pot dictator?
I’ll say it again, please stop. Please just stop posting how ignorant you are on this topic. The SCOTUS has ruled that the 2A is a personal right, and just like with the ruling on Obamacare… it’s the law.
You can dream of a day when only the bad guys have firearms. Tell you what… why not take a trip to Somalia or some other country in deep turmoil to discover exactly what that scenario may lead to. Go there, unarmed, unprotected… then come back and tell us how cheerful life was. Then, when such an argument can be made and supported… will I ever sit down and talk seriously about this topic. Frankly, I cannot take you seriously.
Alternatively, please show me how the most restrictive laws are helping Baltimore or Detroit or Chicago. Please just make the evidenced based argument. I’m waiting.
Confiscation are your words, I never typed that.
I would guess any current and future contraband firearm items would be discovered like anything else that is illegal to possess. In plain view of a law enforcement officer or discovered by any legal investigation.
Correct. You did not use the word. You did use how it is defined. I guess it makes sense coming from the party that struggles with the definition of the word ‘is’.
Now honor my request. Please provide the evidence that disarming law-abiding citizens and leaving criminals armed is safer. Please, I’m still waiting. Please post links to the statistics demonstrating that Baltimore, Detroit, DC, Chicago… any crime infested city with murder out of control is safer than areas with legal firearm protection for individuals.
If your argument or position is logical or true, this should be a remarkably easy task. If you fail to do this I can safely presume such data does not exist. I can also safely presume you are just talking out of your, well, you know where.
Statistics prove that the states with less restrictive gun laws have lower crime rates. This was studied and published back in 1998. Read on. https://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/493636.html
Can a county tax be imposed on tobacco products sold within Harford County?
Check your County Code. Taxation of cigarettes may not be in the scope of what the county is allowed to tax. If the State has approved your charter, which it obviously has, you must determine if your County is within its authority to do so. You will probably be challenged in court if you instill such a tax, so be sure of yourself before implementing such a tax. I do believe you can tax e-cigarettes, but I am not sure about tobacco. Remember, taxation of this sort is to discourage use because of the cost being too high for individuals to afford such a luxury, but it can be construed as an attack on liberty. Corporations don’t own people. People own corporations. Be careful what you wish for as they may tax more of your liberty in the future… Is this what you really want?
SoulCrusher,
Thanks for your reply to my question. I asked Delegate Lisanti the same question (via email) a couple of days ago and have yet to receive a reply.
You are correct…the taxation route is indeed a slippery slope.
It looks as though Lasanti is looking at the socialist movement and figuring she needs to get to the left of it. If the theory is that a person who makes a minimum wage can’t afford the necessities of life, then all we need to do is raise the minimum wage and all is well. Sounds good but, wages and salary constitute 75% of a business owners expense. If Mr. Owner is asked to increase wages by 25% is it the thought that Mr. Business owner will simply do that and not pass it on to the consumer? Wrong! He will raise the price of his goods and services by 25% to cover it. Now guess what, the person who now earns the increased minimum wage still can’t afford to buy the stuff.
California: The increments in the minimum wage from $6.75 to $7.50 in 2007 and to $8.00 in 2008 were estimated to increase earnings in limited service restaurants slightly more than 10% but reduced employment by about 12%. The bump up to $10.50 in 2017 raised earnings in those restaurants by another 20%, but reduced employment by another 10%.
Huh.
Seattle: On average the minimum wage increases have caused employers to reduce hours, with a net effect of reducing low-wage employees’ earnings by $125 a month.
Ya don’t say.
For many employers and employees (especially at small and medium-sized businesses), these increasing salary minimums can result in unintended consequences: Firms must balance increases in labor costs by adjusting other employee benefits, or passing on the costs to customers in terms of fees or pricing.
Read in plain language: “They will pass the salary increases onto the consumers. You will have to pay more for your stuff!”
At some point, consumers will only agree to pay so much for Product X. This will drive down demand, which in a normal market would lead to price decrease…in the “fairy tale market” it could lead to the shutdown of small business.
Another example, common to many families: Daycare. Let’s say Parent_1 has a job that just raised to the minimum $15/hr. YAY! CareProvider_2 has to do the same for her staff…so while Parent_1 may believe (initially) that they are generating more income with new wages…it all goes out the window when he / she / it is forced to pay more for child care…I mean CareProvider_2 has to cover here wages and make a profit at the same time, right? So much for that raise. Where does that leave us? Subsidies funded by the taxpayer? But why should you need it if $15/hr is a “livable wage”?
The downside to a $15 minimum wage is that some minimum wage earners will lose their jobs or have their hours cut. Or, we all will be paying more for our provisions. In essence, a $15 minimum wage is a tax on everyone, but a potential upside is that the worker will have more money to buy things for themselves and their family, which adds to the economy. Which, of course, would be true if the cost of goods and services didn’t go up.
My daughter works at Amazon. Their “$15” minimum wage meant she no longer received productivity bonuses. No longer do they earn stock options. They are encouraged to take “voluntary time off” with no pay.
She makes less now than she did, and she has worked there for a year and a half.
Clearly your daughter needs to work harder, maybe get an education and pick herself up by the bootstraps. Maybe you could give her a small 1 million dollar loan to get things going….
Just a million?
Dear Delegate Lisanti:
Would you please do all of us a favor. Only entertain legislation that helps businesses succeed. Knowing that government does not create anything, we must be very careful. Without business entities, there is nothing but failure. Socialist societies have tried for decades to create the special utopia, only to fail every time in ruin. We all know that the Maryland private sector underperforms that national economy by large measures. Its economy is reliant upon government related jobs way above the national average. Let’s encourage private sector employment instead of crush it.
LOL
The fact of the matter is the Pro 2nd amendment people lose more court cases around the county than they win. Cases argued are challenges to their perceived infringements to gun rights.
Over and over again the rulings favor public safety – – – that is the trend and the plantiffs cant seem to put a favorable argument why a gun like the AR15 shouldn’t or can’t be banned, and why people need to walk around conceal carrying
Gun owners are their own worst enemy.
Quite frankly, no one should have to put forth a “favorable argument”. The Judges know the law and they knowingly break it. The legislators whom make the statutes think they are “allowed” to make any law. Code enforcers think the statutes are the law. Prosecutors know the law and break it as well. The real crime is the misprision of treason that every criminal attorney commits when they allow their clients to be convicted of statutory treason. Now, we can all agree that fully automatic weapons shouldn’t be on our streets, but that isn’t what we are talking about, is it? If you take away the guns and only criminals and law enforcement have them, where would we be? Remember the purpose of the 2nd Amendment. The Amendment is provided for sustenance, protection and most importantly prevention. Prevention from tyranny. If you forget the real reason the 2nd Amendment was created then you are your own worst enemy….
Late last year it is hunting season with millions of hunters with thousands of long guns going out for the hunt. Not a one incident of a person injured due to a fireman was reported. My wish is that politicians would stop stealing their soul to the devil and that law enforcement would be given the tools to get illegal guns of the street. Every day illegally obtained firearms takes a life and nothing is done about it. That is the real crime.
Thanks for clarifying that the second amendment applies only to hunting. That’s a big one a lot of people seem to believe it applies to everyone having whatever “arms” they want.
People only need a hunting long arm, there’s the second amendment.
Everything else can be banned, along with licensing and regulations that favor public safety.
Otherwise,
I’ll wait for a decision “shall not be infringed'” applies to assault rifles.
The fact you use the term ‘assault rifle’ indicates you know pretty much nothing about firearms. In other words… you need to learn a few things.
Here is what it sounds like to the informed… London is having a problem with stabbings… perhaps they should limit the public from purchasing assault knives. Sounds pretty silly, doesn’t it? Get it?
“Assault weapon” is mentioned many times in COMAR.
Assault weapon or assault rifle? Try the online search feature… type in A-S-S-A-U-L-T R-I-F-L-E and report back to me your results… again, it sounds funny to people who know what they are talking about.
“Assault weapon” has been a term used in Maryland for many years to distinguish “regulated firearms” from non “regulated firearms.”
Firearms Safety Act of 2013 banned the regulated long guns.
This term has been codified into Maryland regulation for a few decades.
Providing you with internet links of gun control provides absolutely nothing. Maryland has already accomplish extremely good gun control laws and I look forward to seeing more.
Quite frankly, I don’t know why the Maryland Legislature would call a regulated long gun an Assault Weapon. Seems to be that the Maryland Legislature has assaulted vocabulary to keep people fearing something that hardly comes into play. You have more to fear from a person carrying a concealed hand gun because that happens quite a bit. Day after day I see the hood rats on the corner selling the stuff all junkies crave, yet I don’t recall ever seeing one of them carrying an “Assault Weapon”. They carry hand guns because they can conceal them. That’s the bottom line. Back in the 2000’s I did see someone with a MAC10, but that was about the worst thing I ever saw on the streets of Baltimore. Now if you really want to fear something, talk about a sawed off semi automatic 12 gauge pistol grip loaded with “00” buckshot. That’s a real weapon right there. If that doesn’t give you chills then you are idiot.
Oh my… seriously. Are you kidding me? You can type what you just did… and previously get wadded up over the difference between using ‘confiscation’ versus referencing it in every detail… and then think that ‘assault rifle’ (whatever that is) is the same as ‘assault weapon’. You are a piece of work.
Can Spot Em.
Someone else mentioned Assault rifle, not me.
Look up COMAR, “Assault weapon” has been codified for years.
I’m not getting into a gun hobbyist debate of semantics.
Clips? Or is it magazines? Huh huh huh.
You know what an assault weapon is because at some point years ago the state legislature created a list of long arms that are “assault weapons” and now banned.
What is up with you and confiscation? Suspects get illegal items “confiscated” from them every day in this state. A large portion of these items are illegal drugs.
My head is spinning.
I don’t deny ‘assault weapon’ can be found in COMAR, never did. ‘Favorable Liberal’ used the phrase ‘assault rifle’ which is a strong indication the person has no idea about anything even related to firearms. For some odd reason you stuck your nose in that comment.
If your point is simply that the term ‘assault weapon’ is a COMAR buzzword for ‘rifle’, a long arm, and uses that in its coding system (which it does, I never suggested it didn’t); fine. However, to use the term ‘assault rifle’ sounds stupid because it is. At best it is lazy and ignorant. At worst it is misleading, or dishonest.
Why does it sound stupid or dishonest? Because when people are stabbed the term ‘assault knife’ or in a hit and run ‘assault car’ are not used. Why not? Because it sounds stupid and dishonest. It sounds stupid and dishonest because the person speaking recognizes that the knife or car were merely tools of the act, but the act committed by a person. ONLY when firearms are used does the word ‘assault’ get attached to the act and tool. Why? The effect. If we make them evil enough people will be convinced they should not have them, nor anyone else. Well, history is replete with examples of what happens when people cannot defend themselves.
For you that may be only a semantic game, but for folks like me that understand governments killed 200+ million people in the 20th century, well, it is more than mere word play. You even helped the argument, “the state legislature created a list of long arms that are “assault weapons” and now banned.” You are right, they did.
The simple fact is this. There are people like yourself that want people disarmed. You don’t want them disarmed because you are afraid of getting shot up at Royal Farms. You are not afraid of hunters force entering your house. You are not afraid of a firearm enthusiast shooting up a mall or concert. You were correct when you said the legal firearm owner was a law abiding citizen.
What confuses people like me is this. You entertain all these dreams of stricter gun control laws to disarm or deny firearms to responsible, law-abiding citizens; but offer NO SOLUTION to disarm the convicted felons, keep firearms out of the hands of thugs who have been arrested 35 times and still picked up armed on the streets of major cities.
Since not one person yet from the anti-Bill of Rights crowd – at least as far as I have seen – has offered one convincing or evidence based argument to support the disarming of law-abiding citizens to improve the safety; please provide one strong argument supported by data to suggest disarming law-abiding citizens is the best solution.
Del Lisante;
Are you in favor of raising the income tax for those who give jobs to others? Are you in favor of increasing public private partnerships? Are you in favor of destroying the economic engine in favor of some other economic model? If you are can you cite a successful example of communism that has worked aside from discussions in the teachers and professors lounges of America?
Venezuela. Nuff said.
Thankfully I was able to break my addiction to cigarettes 27 years ago. With that said, I am not quite sure where I stand on raising the minimum smoking age to 21 in Harford county. However, I do think anything that discourages young people from smoking should be given careful consideration.
Below are some related links:
https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/editorial/bs-ed-0206-tobacco-age-20180202-story.html
https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-op-1115-20181114-story.html
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/americas-original-tobacco-state-considers-hiking-the-smoking-and-vaping-age-to-21/2019/01/20/20599006-1b3f-11e9-8813-cb9dec761e73_story.html?noredirect=on
Laws, Rules and Regulations don’t really work when it comes to regulation of behavior. Education does, but when you present the education as government propaganda, that fails as well. People should receive an unbiased analysis of the facts and then decide for themselves. I understand that everyone wishes to prevent young people from trying substances and shield them from addiction and health problems, but the more you try to prevent, the more you will fail. People don’t like to be told what to do and they definitely don’t like code enforcers threatening them with penalties. The government will never learn this because the government is run by those whom lack an understanding for the matter. You don’t elect former government employees to office because those are the ones who have no clue what normal everyday people want as they are NOT normal everyday people. These are those whom have already become institutionalized and brainwashed in believing that liberty only exists when they say it exists. This is just not true. The more law you make, the more interference in liberty you instill. The more interference in liberty you instill, the more thought of rebellious behavior will occur. Christ, if you all haven’t figured that out yet then there is just no hope for you. Leave the smoking age alone and become a better government for it.
We are a government of laws, rules and regulations. “Reasonable” laws, rules and regulations work. They are part of the solution, not part of the problem.
Wrong. If laws, rules and regulations worked then we’d have no problems within this country and definitely no Opioid crisis. Furthermore, there is no such thing as a reasonable law born of the Federal government and imposed on WE THE PEOPLE. Especially when the statute was born into the States thru the use of criminal bribery known as Federal Funding. Laws, rules and regulations of the Federal government are that of the elected officials and government employees. They also apply to members of the Armed Forces. There is no Constitutional Authority for statutes of the Federal government to be used on WE THE PEOPLE. Without a grant of Constitutional Authority there is no jurisdiction. Without jurisdiction there is only treason. No foreign nation or religion can loan their jurisdiction to our government and no State can offer their jurisdiction as well, even when they are paid to commit the treason they are committing.
I have to ask, what do you consider “reasonable”?
“Reasonable” is a relative term and therefore difficult to define precisely. The definition, I like, is that which is “fair, sensible, logical & appropriate” for the situation. With that said, I do think it might be possible for Harford County to come up with a “reasonable” law restricting the sale of cigarettes to those 21 and over.
Well, I think your idea is “unreasonable” as well as pointless. If a person wants to smoke a cigarette then they should be able to smoke a cigarette. You would have a person be held to account for being an adult but wish to prevent them from making a decision that comes with being an adult. Why don’t you just want to ban cigarette sales all together? Why don’t you just ban the sale of anything you don’t like? See where I’m going with this? There comes a point when being righteous crosses the line into being overly righteous. This cursed State already has too many rules and regulations. Why make more?
I have to ask, what state, if any, do you feel is less “cursed” than Maryland?
Can’t think of any off hand, can you?
Looks like you and I are in agreement once again. Maryland is the “least cursed” state in the Union. We should thank our lucky stars! We live in a Democratic state with a Republican Governor…what more could we ask for?
Well, I don’t think Maryland is the least cursed State in the Union. There are a few States where there has always been more liberty and always will. The problem is the States I allude to have climate problems, volcanoes, earthquakes, etc… It is my opinion that the great State of Alaska is the last real sanctuary of freedom in this country. However, it’s too cold, they have earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis and much of the State is still wilderness. Not to mention that Alaska is the most likely State that could be invaded by a foreign country due to its location. The Japanese even set foot on American soil in Alaska during World War II. As for the politics of Maryland, well, let’s just say the Democratic party has really turned the government of Maryland in to a vessel of treason and I don’t think any Republican governor can contain these common traitors. They can over ride any Veto and they will still instill whatever treasonous statute they want because our legislature knows nothing but treason. The Democratic party should be busted up for anti-trust issues in this State. That’s the bottom line….
Raise it to $15 and I will move my business out of Maryland. These low waged people are overpaid now at $12, all these people want to do is smoke all day and play on social media. They don’t care about their quality of work and they feel entitled to a job.
Clearly you can’t get quality people at what you pay, yet still hire them.
With that sort of business savvy you should run for president…..
Yeah right clown, I have people making $60k that are just as worthless.
I make more in 6 months than you make in five years.
You sound like a very smart business person paying worthless people big salaries.
LOL
“I make more in 6 months than you make in five years.”
Lol.
Good news! The Maryland legislature is considering a bill to raise the age to buy tobacco from 18 to 21. Similar bills in the past were never able to get enough support to pass…looks like this year might be different. Apparently, Virginia is also considering a similar bill