Tennessee passed permitless carry, also known as constitutional carry. That’s a huge win for folks in the Volunteer State, but it marks a major setback for proponents of gun control.

In their minds, nothing but gun control is ever good for the state, but in Tennessee, the majority of lawmakers disagreed. Especially with the governor pushing it.

Well, it happened.

But, according to one lawmaker, folks in Tennessee should prepare for a surge in violence.

In just one week, those 21 and older will be able to carry a handgun without a permit in Tennessee.

This comes as violence surges across the country, and some are warning the new permitless carry law could cause increased gun violence in the Volunteer State.

According to the FBI, Tennessee ranks as one of the most violent states, and now there’s fear violence could spike again when the law becomes official on July 1.

“We’ve seen the rise in violence going on, it’s only going to get worse, because right now we’re going to have untrained people carrying guns that they do not know how to use,” Nashville Representative Vincent Dixie said.

…

“We know how devastating this can be to our communities, and we pleaded with the governor, we plead our case and even gun right activist was thinking this is not a good bill,” Rep. Dixie said.

What Dixie is doing is despicable.

See, he likely knows that as summer approaches, violent crime tends to rise. This has gone on for a long time. Something about the heat makes folks more likely to hurt their fellow man than in any other season.

Either that or it’s the one season the weather isn’t likely to run them inside.

Regardless, though, violent crime tends to “surge” every summer. That’s simply the way it goes, and I suspect Dixie knows this.

What he’s trying to do here is issue a prediction, claiming that permitless carry will be responsible, all in hopes that when the seasonal increase in crime happens, he can play the “I told you so” card and work to undermine permitless carry down the road. Yes, it was just passed but that doesn’t mean gun rights are ever completely secured in any state.

If people like Dixie were sincere in their desire to understand the effects of permitless carry on violent crime, all they’d have to do is look at the numerous states that have already passed similar laws. Absolutely none of them saw a surge in violent crime after passing permitless carry. Probably because the criminals didn’t change their behavior, only the law-abiding did. Those same law-abiding folks are also laws about not shooting people for whatever reason other than self-defense.

So no, if there is an increase in violent crime following permitless carry, it will be coincidental and more the result of the season than any change in the law.

However, also don’t be surprised to see violent crime decrease. More armed citizens mean more potential problems for would-be crooks. They don’t want to cross one of those, so don’t be surprised if crime drops across the board on the mere threat of more armed citizens.

Somehow, though, I don’t think Dixie would acknowledge his mistake. Funny how that shakes out.