I came across this this morning and thought that it might add spice and hope to everyone on this board!

Enjoy and God Bless,

Marshall

<span style='color:navy'>Published: Jan 2001
Vermont State Rep. *Fred Maslack has read the Second Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution as well as Vermont's own Constitution very carefully, and his
strict interpretion of these documents is popping some eyeballs in New
England and elsewhere. Maslack recently proposed a bill to register
non-gunowners and require
them to pay a 躔 fee to the state. *Thus Vermont would become the first
state to require a permit for the luxury of going about unarmed and assess a
fee of 躔 for the privilege of not owning a gun.
Maslack read the &quot;militia&quot; phrase of the Second Amendment as not only
affirming the right of the individual citizen to bear arms, but as a clear
mandate to do so. *He believes that universal gun ownership was advocated by
the Framers of the Constitution as an antidote to a &quot;monopoly of force&quot; by
the government as well as criminals.
Vermont's constitution states explicitly that &quot;the people have a right to
bear arms for the defense of themselves and the State&quot; and those persons who
&quot;conscientiously scrupulous of bearing arms&quot; shall be required to &quot;pay such
equivalent.&quot; Clearly, says Maslack, Vermonters have a constitutional
obligation to arm themselves so that they are capable of responding to &quot;any
situation that may arise&quot;.
*Under the bill, adults who choose not to own a firearm would be required
to
register their name, address, Social Security Number, and driver's license
number with the state. *&quot;There is a legitimate government interest in
knowning
who is prepared to defend the state should they be asked to do so,&quot; *Maslack
says.
*Vermont already boasts a high rate of gun ownership along with the least
restrictive laws of any state - it's currently the only state that allows a
citizen to carry a concealed firearm without a permit. *This combination of
plenty of guns and few laws regulating them has resulted in a crime rate
that
is the third lowest in the nation.
Honey, pack your bags!! *Vermont here we come!!!</span>

&nbsp; I'm all for it!

Wasn't there a city in Florida that required every household to own a gun?

I always said &quot;just one?&quot;

&nbsp;Isn't the swiss gov't that mandates every household possess a full auto and no less than 5000rounds. &nbsp;Gee no wonder Hitler left them alone a little more resistance than &nbsp;the Polish pitchfork.

FWIW, that list is also a list of firearms owners that could also possibly be dissidents. Anyone not paying the fee is a gun owner. There already is a remedy in most state constitutions. Simply call up the militia. Anyone not responding can be assessed any (and I do mean ANY!) penalty the militia cares to levy against them- ANY penalty- up to and including life. No list is maintained and it's much harsher than what the gent has planned in his bill.

The Swiss do give citizens a modern military rifle (and you have to go to the range annually), but they only give each citizen 20 or 30 rounds. &nbsp; &nbsp;Not bad...

Marshall,

This is a great story. What's the source, as I'd like to share the URL with several friends?

As for the town that mandated gun ownership, it was Kennesaw, Georgia back in the early 1980's.

In regards to Switzerland Charlie Z is very close to fact. Each adult male is issued a true assault rifle, selective fire and all. Most are now 5.5mm (not 5.56mm NATO/.223 Remington as some have reported) Sturmgewher 90's, while many of the older fellows still have the much more powerful 7.5mm Stg 57. They are also issued 50 rounds that &nbsp;remain sealed unless a national emergency is called. However, the Swiss cantons (something like our county governments) subsidize huge amounts of ammo for target practice and competition. So basically you get to shoot your assault rifle at cost whenever you like!