DC residents want to “crack down on ski masks”
Old Trooper sends a link to an article in the Washington Times wherein some locals are blaming high capacity ski masks which are apparently being sold with no background checks in DC stores, and then the masks are free to wreak havoc on the otherwise peaceful community. So they figure they need to “crack down” on the purchase of the item.
On a Metropolitan Police Department-run listserv, Ms.[Faith Wheeler, an Advisory Neighborhood Commission member] was one of several people who broached the subject of trying to discourage the sale of ski masks in the neighborhood, or asked legislators whether there are other ways to ban their sale.
The City already forbids people over the age of 16 from wearing the ski masks in public in some circumstances like while committing a crime or threatening someone else, but apparently the law doesn’t go far enough for some of the residents of DC…sound familiar? The DC cops say they don’t keep statistics on how often they enforce that law…which in the language of the DC government means that they don’t enforce it at all. Again, sound familiar?
“And the next thing you know, the irrational thinkers will be talking about getting rid of scarves. A long scarf can make a good mask. Hmm. What’s next after that?” one woman wrote on the police listserv in response to the ski mask discussion.
Yikes, it’s almost as if there’s a pattern here. It’s as if people who think that government can solve every little problem in their lives expect more and more government. But that can’t be right. Can it?
So, those balaclavas that Ranger Joe’s sells – are those assault ski masks? And those ski masks made by that company UnderArmor – are they really armor – who cares, we should ban them because they sound scary? The DC government should have a database of people who can legally purchase ski masks and there should be a three-day cooling off/waiting period. And purchase should be limited to one ski mask every month. The black ones scare me. The opportunities for the “do something” crowd are virtually endless in the unregulated ski mask market.
Category: "Teh Stoopid"
As a resident of the MD/DC/VA area, this is just embarrassing.
THIS is why I usually don’t go in to D.C. or Baltimore much if at all.
This will probably pass, since ski masks aren’t constitutionally protected items.
A three day waiting period for a ski mask simply gives you three more days to recon the objective.
Next they’ll ban halloween masks.
I absolutely hate wearing a bra. I’m fairly certain that one of mine could cause some serious damage to others. So, would one of you folks in the DC area PLEASE petition to make bras illegal. My hope is that will trickle down to my state and I can finally walk around in public feeling FREE without folks looking at me like I’m crazy.
Thank you in advance
@5 I’m gonna refrain from most remarks I would usually make after reading that 😀 Come on down to Mississippi, you can let your chesticles be free without judgement lol.
@5 Parachute Cutie
/Pics or it didn’t happen.
//Thank *YOU* in advance
///You *know*, someone here had to say something like that. 😀
Kinda reminds me when I walked into the bank in Fairbanks without thinking with my balaclava down because it was cold. Needless to say, I quickly realised that it wasn’t a good idea.
Well, this can just be made simple. Ban all clothing. Make it really obvious what everbody is carrying.
Problems?
@9 god no, ohh sweet baby Jesus on a pogo stick no. Have you seen some of the land whales walking around? They do not make bleach strong enough to rinse out my eyes with if that happens.
Assault ski masks?
Sadly some dingbat will believe this.
Maybe they can make a law where you can wear black ski masks if you’re cold and red ones if you plan on Commiting a crime?
Plenty of mask wearing two faced reptiles in Bmore/D.C. beltway…they’re called career politicians.
Don’t forget to ban trench coats as well… they are pure evil!! If you remember, after Columbine it was proven that wearing of trench coats and black clothing in general causes one to murder….
sign in front of business: “SKI MASK FREE AREA”
If ski masks are banned, criminals will just start wearing hosiery over their heads and there will need to be a stocking ban too.
Just wear a burka and law enforcement won’t look at them twice for fear of being sued and losing their jobs. Could you imagine the shit storm that would arise when somebody said “that person wearing the burka” when referring to a person that just committed a crime in this country? It would start raining frogs.
I can already think of a few ways around any proposed laws that would work in DC. Switch from a ski mask to a blue and white shemagh and claim it’s a requirement of your religion, and a show of solidatry with your Palestinian brothers and sisters. That gets you the “seperation of church and state” and “freedom of expression” exemptions right out of the gate. Add to that you are a blogger and you can claim the “reporter” card as well.
There’s also the lawsuits. DC banned ski-masks and I caught a cold because my face was exposed to the hellicaous winter weather.
I refuse to support a ban on clothing. I do not wish to nauseate people, because they will sue me for something stupid.
Besides, it’s barely 10F outside.
I have a pink bandana, in case anyone wants to borrow it if assault ski masks are banned.
You guys know I’m a local, much like Chip. A friend of mine had her son permanently messed up when some overzealous cops tackled him off of his bicycle while he was simply riding home from work one night (Complete with his kitchen apron, as he helped cook at a restaurant). His offense? Wearing a ski mask while it was below freezing outside. He ended up spending the next few days behind bars, and then he was released without an apology, just a “Oh, hey, guess what, you’re not the bad dude we’re looking for after all”, and that was it. He was brutalized in jail too. Needless to say, he has since fled the area back home, and that was that. Idiots abound, and they cost people their sanity and lives when they’re allowed to take out their BS on others. To add sometging to the lighter side: I had my ski mask when it was freezing out once. My friend borrowed it to walk into BK and order a meal, lol. I couldn’t stop laughing, and guess what? The people behind the counter didn’t freakout, they actually thought it was funny too. People need to square themselves away when it comes to judging real threats vs. non-threats.
Are they going to ban broad brimmed hats next? They block the views of cameras and with a little bit of work can make it hard to properly identify features enough to make sketches and descriptions iffy. Better band the half masks that I wear while boarding, bandanas and hell, for good measure let’s bad gas masks, dust filters and the flu masks since the Japanese gangsters use it in a similar way sometimes.
Starting to agree with my high school LEO in requiring basic logic tests before allowing people to breed.
In stead of banning the sale of ski mask just require the store owners to write the name of the owner in permanent marker on both sides. This way anyone getting robbed will have the name of the person robbing them. Easy solution.
SGT Kane: or you could just wear a burqua or chador. (smile)
Robot Wrangler, Ex-PH2: it doesn’t require a clothing ban to do that. Check these out – but not while drinking liquids or immediately after eating (smile):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvxNgdFeWqM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNzwgrtdBo8
They blame the gun for shootings and now they blame the ski mask for criminal behavior…
When the hell did we stop blaming the CRIMINAL for the CRIME? I know that it might be racist for me to ask this, or sexist, or some other form of discrimination. But, you know, if a guy is holding you up wit ha ski mask and a gun, it is the person actually doing the hold-up that is exhibiting the bad behavior.
I would say that this makes me insane, but then they might take away my guns, swords, and ski masks (and possibly hammers, baseball bats, car, tire iron, crow bat, cats, and anything else that has ever been used in history to perpetrate a crime).
But, hey. At least Obama has went skeet shooting at Camp David ALL THE TIME… even though he only went there three times… and there were no recordings of him skeet shooting, or pictures, or evidence of any shots of any kind… but, I guess if he says it, it must be true, right?
GAWD DAMNIT, I NEED A DRINK!
What in the heck are people that have to work outside going to do to stay warm? I am a land surveyor, and I get 30 minutes max in the office each day. The rest of the time, I’m subject to the elements. I can’t keep my face warm in DC? It will be hard to get a building, or bridge built there. Want to get your property corners staked? Wait till summer. Must be hard to get anything done when the gov is working against the progress. I hope Obamacare covers frostbite.
I walked into a bank with a full face helmet, you should have seen them freak out.