by Hidden in among all the recent election news was the defeat of NH State Representative Jenn Coffey (R-Merrimack) who had led the successful fight to reform New Hampshire’s knife laws.
Coffey, the winner of Blade Magazine’s 2011 Publisher’s Award, had sponsored the bill that removed penalties for both possession and selling switchblades, dirks, daggers, and stilettos. Her bill which passed and was signed by the governor of New Hampshire changed the emphasis from the tool to the crime. In addition, Coffey is the National Legislative Director for the Second Amendment Sisters. She has written a book, Knives, Lipstick, and Liberty about the experience of going from an apolitical EMT to being recognized as a leader for knife rights.
Coffey lost to Democrat Mario Ratzki by approximately 200 votes. Mr. Ratzki, according to his website, had relocated to that area of New Hampshire a mere three years ago to retire after selling antique rugs in Boston. The voter guide from NH Public TV says that Coffey is a graduate of Lycee Henri Poincare (Nancy, France) and U. Cal. – Berkeley.
As to his position on the Second Amendment, he said in a letter to the editor, “We need to balance gun rights with public safety.” An equivocating statement like that tells you everything you need to know.
Mr. Ratzki sure took carpet-bagging to a whole, literal dimension…
It would be a real shame if New Hampshire–one of the few free states in the Northeast–started to become more like Massachusetts.
Balance gun rights with public safety? In New Hampshire? Do they even have crime up there? What on earth is he talking about? Maybe HE feels unsafe when law-abiding citizens carry concealed handguns and have semi-automatic rifles at home. That's what living in a blue state will do to you.
He is pretty dismissive of her accomplishment in getting the knife laws changed. Given that she was in the minority in a huge (over 200 member) legislative body and got her bill passed with bi-partisan support and signed by a Democratic governor says something about her abilities.
Anonymous at 8:55: Too late. I noticed way too many signs of this happening in the very late '80s (e.g. lots of houses with blue Boston Globe delivery boxes out in front), and everything since then has confirmed my decision to cross off the state as a place to settle down in.
Worse than California refugees, in that plenty of them live in the southern counties and commute to work in Massachusetts. Their inability to connect their personal behavior in semi-fleeing the state while trying to bring it's policies to their new residence is … well, par for the course of people who are this stupid about public policy in the first place.