utbagpiper
Banned
Today, July 24th is Pioneer Day, an official State Holiday in the State of Utah. It is also observed, unofficially, in many communities outside Utah that were part of the original territory of Deseret. Pioneer Day marks the arrival of Brigham Young and the first, main body of Mormon Pioneers into the Salt Lake valley on July 24th, 1847.
Happy Pioneer Day everyone.
Those of us blessed to live in Utah have much to be grateful for in terms of a beautiful place to live; a low-crime and friendly culture; a generally well-managed State with moderate taxes and good K-12 and College educational opportunities;great performing arts from the Shakespeare Festival and other theater, symphony, ballet and opera; tremendous outdoor recreation both motorized and non-motorized; and of course, some of the best overall gun laws in the nation.
Yes, we've got some work to do in terms of permit-free (ie constitutional) carry both OC and CC, and getting some additional anti-discrimination protections for those who are lawfully armed, along with additional protections against "catch-all" laws like disrupting a school activity. But for two decades Utah has helped lead the way in terms of non-discriminatory permit issuance, recognizing out-of-State permits, campus and K-12 school carry, employment protection for most State/local employees who carry, parking lot preemption for most private sector employees, and so on.
As I celebrate Pioneer Day, I remember the sacrifices of my forebears who often paid a heavy price to settle this rugged land and carve a successful culture out of a barren wilderness. There are those who buried spouse or children in unmarked graves along the route between Winter Quarters and the Salt Lake Valley. While the main body of the Mormon Pioneers were making their way to the Great Basin, there were those who enlisted with the US Army, providing much needed hard currency for their families and the other Pioneers. The Mormon Battalion made the longest march of US military history. After being released from service in California, several Battalion members were involved in the first Gold find at Sutters' Mill that set off the California Gold Rush. There are those of my people who were heavily persecuted by the federal government--spending time in prison and/or being forced in hiding. There are those who had no sooner gotten established in Salt Lake but what they were called to even less hospitable areas like Utah's Dixie. I live a very comfortable, bountiful life in a wonderful community in part because of almost unspeakable sacrifices of those who went before.
More recently, having grown up in a time where common folks had very little ability to legally carry a gun for self defense, I now enjoy non-discriminatory carry permits thanks to the pioneers of Utah's RKBA community--Scott Engen, Clark Aposhian, Sen. Waddoups, and others, less visible--who spent the late 80s and early 90s working to get us that major milestone. Our current, State constitutional RKBA language is rather new. I had the privilege of working with Sarah Thompson, Curt Oda, Brent Tenney, Crystal Perry, Clark, and others as we helped protect our young permits from attempts to limit where one could carry, pushed through recognition of out-of-State permits, and otherwise expanded legal and social recognition of our RKBA.
Part of that increased social respect for our RKBA has come about from free permit classes offered to legislators, teachers, abused women, and other groups. Many Utah gun owners have provided or helped with those classes. Some have worked as RSOs or otherwise helped Boy Scouts get appropriate, safe, positive first exposure to firearms. Others have arranged for RSO training classes to enable additional persons to so serve. Many have quietly and mostly anonymously been good ambassadors for RKBA by taking friends or neighbors out for their first shooting experience, been responsible by cleaning up trash at favorite shooting sites, etc. Many have taken time to get involved in political party caucus meetings and conventions, candidate campaigns, and then attending hearings or contacting legislators to advocate for the proper position on RKBA-related bills.
It has been--and I trust will continue to be--a pleasure to work with so many great people, wonderful Utahns, toward the goal of full and proper statutory and social respect for our God-given, Constitutionally enumerated, RKBA.
Thank you.
Here is wishing you and yours a wonderful, safe, reflective Pioneer Day.
Charles
Happy Pioneer Day everyone.
Those of us blessed to live in Utah have much to be grateful for in terms of a beautiful place to live; a low-crime and friendly culture; a generally well-managed State with moderate taxes and good K-12 and College educational opportunities;great performing arts from the Shakespeare Festival and other theater, symphony, ballet and opera; tremendous outdoor recreation both motorized and non-motorized; and of course, some of the best overall gun laws in the nation.
Yes, we've got some work to do in terms of permit-free (ie constitutional) carry both OC and CC, and getting some additional anti-discrimination protections for those who are lawfully armed, along with additional protections against "catch-all" laws like disrupting a school activity. But for two decades Utah has helped lead the way in terms of non-discriminatory permit issuance, recognizing out-of-State permits, campus and K-12 school carry, employment protection for most State/local employees who carry, parking lot preemption for most private sector employees, and so on.
As I celebrate Pioneer Day, I remember the sacrifices of my forebears who often paid a heavy price to settle this rugged land and carve a successful culture out of a barren wilderness. There are those who buried spouse or children in unmarked graves along the route between Winter Quarters and the Salt Lake Valley. While the main body of the Mormon Pioneers were making their way to the Great Basin, there were those who enlisted with the US Army, providing much needed hard currency for their families and the other Pioneers. The Mormon Battalion made the longest march of US military history. After being released from service in California, several Battalion members were involved in the first Gold find at Sutters' Mill that set off the California Gold Rush. There are those of my people who were heavily persecuted by the federal government--spending time in prison and/or being forced in hiding. There are those who had no sooner gotten established in Salt Lake but what they were called to even less hospitable areas like Utah's Dixie. I live a very comfortable, bountiful life in a wonderful community in part because of almost unspeakable sacrifices of those who went before.
More recently, having grown up in a time where common folks had very little ability to legally carry a gun for self defense, I now enjoy non-discriminatory carry permits thanks to the pioneers of Utah's RKBA community--Scott Engen, Clark Aposhian, Sen. Waddoups, and others, less visible--who spent the late 80s and early 90s working to get us that major milestone. Our current, State constitutional RKBA language is rather new. I had the privilege of working with Sarah Thompson, Curt Oda, Brent Tenney, Crystal Perry, Clark, and others as we helped protect our young permits from attempts to limit where one could carry, pushed through recognition of out-of-State permits, and otherwise expanded legal and social recognition of our RKBA.
Part of that increased social respect for our RKBA has come about from free permit classes offered to legislators, teachers, abused women, and other groups. Many Utah gun owners have provided or helped with those classes. Some have worked as RSOs or otherwise helped Boy Scouts get appropriate, safe, positive first exposure to firearms. Others have arranged for RSO training classes to enable additional persons to so serve. Many have quietly and mostly anonymously been good ambassadors for RKBA by taking friends or neighbors out for their first shooting experience, been responsible by cleaning up trash at favorite shooting sites, etc. Many have taken time to get involved in political party caucus meetings and conventions, candidate campaigns, and then attending hearings or contacting legislators to advocate for the proper position on RKBA-related bills.
It has been--and I trust will continue to be--a pleasure to work with so many great people, wonderful Utahns, toward the goal of full and proper statutory and social respect for our God-given, Constitutionally enumerated, RKBA.
Thank you.
Here is wishing you and yours a wonderful, safe, reflective Pioneer Day.
Charles