Tea Party Protesters Gunning for Attention in Alamogordo

Summer protest in NH

According to "Otero Tea Party Patriot" Ralph West, guns are the next big thing at right-wing protests. "I think this will be the start of something big," West said in an article in today's Alamogordo Daily News.

"This" is an "open carry" protest being co-hosted by the Otero Tea Party Patriots, the Alamogordo Second Amendment Task Force and the Sons of Liberty Riders on Saturday in Alamogordo. According to West, "We're basically protesting the entire Obama administration." Participants are "encouraged" to bring guns.

According to the article, pistol-packing protesters intend to highlight their weaponry to get more attention from the media -- and Sarah Palin:

“That’s what will be different (with Saturday’s protest). People will be wearing guns, which is legal in this state,” said Ralph West, a member of the Otero Tea Party Patriots. “We figured it would get some attention.”

West said he’s contacted several media outlets in New Mexico, as well as Fox News and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

Carrying an unconcealed firearm is legal in New Mexico by anyone over the age of 19. A person can openly carry in most places, except a federal or state building, school or restaurants and bars that serve alcohol.

The groups applied for a permit to conduct an "open carry event" with the City of Alamogordo. Because of the firearms request, the permit application was forwarded to the Alamogordo Department of Public Safety, which is expected to make a decision on it today.

As gun advocates point out, most gun owners can be expected to act responsibly when carrying a weapon at a public rally. Critics, however, argue that it only takes one out-of-control person to get fired up at a protest and fire his or her gun -- which just might set off an exchange of gunfire with other protesters or even law enforcement officers, putting the entire crowd at risk. In addition, some who want to attend a rally in opposition to the protest can easily be intimidated by armed participants in the crowd.

Toting guns in public is a hot topic in Alamogordo of late. Earlier this month, Otero County Commissioner Ronny Rardin proposed changing the county's personnel policy to allow county employees openly carry their guns to work.

There's also been a push in other states to allow the open carry of guns in government buildings and elsewhere, and to bring guns to public events. This month in New Hampshire, for instance, activists are protesting the reinstatement of a rule banning the carrying of weapons in the New Hampshire Statehouse. Such a law was in effect when Republicans dominated the New Hampshire legislature from 1996 to 2006, but then lapsed. Legislative leaders there say the rule is needed to avoid trouble:

Both Senate President Sylvia Larsen, D-Concord, and Speaker of the House Terie Norelli, D-Portsmouth, said a group of onlookers in the House gallery this spring got out of hand, openly carrying firearms and shouting at lawmakers during debate while a group of fourth graders sat nearby.

This summer, right-wing activists made headlines by carrying guns -- including a semi-automatic rifle -- outside the convention center in Phoenix where President Obama was giving a speech. The week before, when Obama appeared in New Hampshire to talk about healthcare, a man carrying a sign that read, "It is time to water the tree of liberty" – alluding to Thomas Jefferson's speech, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants" – stood outside the meeting with a pistol strapped to his leg.

There are also ongoing controversies about whether college and university students should be allowed to carry guns on campus.

All of this is taking place against a backdrop of this summer's often rowdy and sometimes violent tea bagger protests at health care town halls and elsewhere. How long will it take for some kook to fire a weapon into a crowd or at a public official and set off a tragic chain of events? Your guess is as good as mine.