South Dakota Bill: Every Adult Must Own a Gun

Republicans try to make a point with mandatory gun law
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 1, 2011 10:17 AM CST
South Dakota Bill: Every Adult Must Own a Gun
A man shops for guns in this file photo.   (AP Photo/Josh Anderson)

South Dakota lawmakers have introduced a bill that would force all of the state’s citizens to buy a gun “to provide for the self defense of themselves and others.” (Wait, is it still self-defense if you’re defending others? Isn’t that just defense?) The law would apply to all adults age 21 or older, except for those legally prohibited from buying them, the Sioux Falls Argus Leader reports. It leaves it to each individual to pick a gun “suitable to their temperament.”

Of course, the five lawmakers who introduced the bill don’t actually expect it to pass. The point, according to one Sioux Falls Republican, is to prove that the federal mandate to buy health care insurance is unconstitutional. “Do I or the other cosponsors believe that the State of South Dakota can require citizens to buy firearms? Of course not,” he says. “But at the same time, we do not believe the federal government can order every citizen to buy health insurance.” (More gun laws stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X