PHOENIX — There was a time in the Wild West when cowboys had to check their guns before they could pull up a bar stool for a drink — rules that protected against the saloon gunfights that came to define the frontier era.
But a bill moving through the Arizona Legislature has bar owners fearful the state is returning to the Old West. Lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow anyone with a concealed-weapon permit to bring a handgun into bars and restaurants serving alcohol.
The bill gives bars the discretion to keep gun-toting patrons out, and anyone with a weapon would not be allowed to drink. But the bill has angered bar owners who believe booze and guns are a recipe for disaster.
“This might be one of the stupidest things that I have heard of,” said Mike Nelson, who plans to post a sign on his front door of Pomeroy’s bar in Phoenix outlawing guns as soon as possible. “Can you think of a single reason guns and alcohol should be intertwined?”
“These laws are common sense,” said NRA spokeswoman Rachel Parsons. “Restaurants are not immune to criminal activity. Law-abiding people — regardless of whether they’re in restaurants, cars or homes — they should be able to protect themselves.”
