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the past few days, Montgomery County, Md., has gotten hoards of
attention after its town council made it illegal for residents to
smoke even within their own homes (they later backed off). Matt
Drudge further reports that the Maryland town banned Santa Claus
from public display, fearful that some town residents might be "uncomfortable"
with jolly ol' Nick. But liberal shenanigans like these are nothing
new for Montgomery: Earlier this year, the council also passed a
ban on gun shows.
When Frank Krasner decided to organize 60 vendors for his twice-annual
Silverado Show in Montgomery County, he thought he was doing the
town a service, by fulfilling an unmet demand. Charging a modest
admission fee, Krasner earns about $20,000 in a two-day period —
a clear indication of the show's popularity.
But Council
President Blair Ewing — the same one who recently expressed
disappointment over the smoking ban's reversal — wouldn't have
it, and led local antigun zealots to ban the event outright. Ewing
did not return repeated requests for an interview, but he is quoted
at length in the local paper. There, he makes his own position clear:
"I'm not happy to see the sale of guns promoted in the county
at all."
Because the
private fairgrounds which host Krasner's show receive government
subsidies, Maryland politicians were able to ban the event by simply
threatening to revoke further financial aid. The heavily Democratic
town council gave the fairgrounds an ultimatum: If you continue
to permit events where guns are both exhibited and sold, you will
lose $500,000.
One member
of the state legislature justified the action this way: "There
is no reason to allow gun shows in Montgomery County parks, period.
Otherwise, we're giving the government's imprimatur to gun shows."
Of course, one could say the same about the annual gay rodeo also
held on those fairgrounds — but the council has had no qualms
about giving the government's imprimatur to that.
Because some
states exempt vendors like Krasner from completing the background
checks required in stores, gun shows have become a common target
for Democrats. Krasner notes, however, that this does not imply
in his own case, as there is no gun-show loophole in Maryland.
In response
to the Montgomery council's actions, Krasner is suing for damages
and attorney's fees. He alleges that the law violates commercial
free speech, defined by his attorney Jonathan Kagan as "speech
that does no more than propose a commercial transaction." The
way the law was written, the fairgrounds may either display guns
or sell them, but not both. It seems unlikely that customers will
pay a $5 admission fee when attending a show amounts to little more
than flipping through a bunch of catalogs. As Krasner puts it, "Do
you go to an art show and not see art?"
Regardless
of how the court rules, Krasner's business has already sustained
losses. Media reports, he said, have "caused untold havoc"
to his business. Many regular attendees, having read of the cancellation
of his gun show, in Montgomery, "think the shows all over the
place [have been] cancelled."
In any case,
the media storm Ewing & co. have stirred up with their smoking
ban undoubtedly comes as no surprise to Krasner. We can only hope
their latest controversy will embarrass Montgomery's residents at
least enough to elect more sensible politicians.
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