Actually, the lawsuits have already been filed… just not against New York City.

The NYPD has unveiled its proposed rules for concealed carry licenses in the Big Apple; restrictions that bear a striking resemblance to the state-level laws that were rushed into being by the Democrat-controlled legislature in Albany and have subsequently been challenged in court with the filing of more than a half-dozen lawsuits. A federal judge in the state has also delivered a preliminary opinion that many aspects of the new gun control package are likely unconstitutional and should be put on hold while they’re being litigated, but that’s not stopping the NYPD from moving forward with plans to impose similar infringements on NYC gun owners in the near future.

The changes will raise the age requirement to receive a rifle and shotgun permit from 18 to 21. They will also ramp up background checks by requiring applicants have four character references and a list of social media accounts they’ve had over the last three years.

Those looking to get a firearms license will need to show proof of completion of the proper training courses, including live fire training.

If these changes are adopted, the rules will also make the emergency rules issued in August and September in response to the Supreme Court’s ruling permanent.

The NYPD is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the proposed rules on November 18th, and I certainly hope that NYC gun owners (and those who would one day like to exercise their 2A rights without the city government treading all over them) will turn out to voice their objections to the unconstitutional provisions slated to become local law.

Will those voices make a difference in what the city does? Probably not, to be honest. But it’s still important that we show up and speak out against these violations of fundamental constitutional rights both before and after the city gets hauled into court to defend their latest infringements on the right to keep and bear arms.

And you never know… sometimes miracles do happen. In Hawaii, for instance, it does look like the opposition to a proposed list of “sensitive places” in Hawaii County has prompted council members to scale back the scope of their “gun-free zones.” The final list may still contain locations that aren’t really sensitive at all, but it’s a step in the right direction and one that probably wouldn’t have been taken were it not for the grassroots activism of local gun owners.

From raising the age to own a rifle and shotgun to 21 (a move that flies in the face of recent court decisions that have found 18-year olds possess the right to both keep and bear arms in self-defense) to demanding a list of social media accounts (something that U.S. District Judge Glenn Suddaby found suspect in his decision to grant a temporary restraining order against many components of the New York law), the NYPD’s rules are designed to prohibit the exercise of our Second Amendment rights instead of ensuring that New Yorkers have access to them. Even the city’s training requirement is going to be an onerous and burdensome process for New Yorkers hoping to obtain a carry license given the lack of publicly-accessible ranges in the Big Apple.

That, of course, is the whole idea; to make getting a carry license so difficult that the vast majority of New Yorkers will throw up their hands in defeat and “choose” not to exercise their right to bear arms. I don’t believe that these anti-gun authoritarians are ultimately going to get their way, but they’re doing everything they can do obstruct and even criminalize responsible gun owners in the meantime.